John A. Macdonald

Sir John Alexander Macdonald GCB PC QC (January 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first and third Prime Minister of Canada. He was an important influence on the Canadian Confederation, July 1, 1867. Macdonald was in office from 1867 to 1873 and again from 1878 to 1891, making him the second longest-serving Prime Minister of Canada (after William Lyon Mackenzie King) and the only one to win six majority governments.

The Right Honourable Sir John A. Macdonald PC GCB KCMG QC
1st & 3rd Prime Minister of Canada
In office 1 July 1867 – 5 November 1873
Monarch	Victoria
Governor General	The Viscount Monck The Lord Lisgar The Earl of Dufferin
Preceded by	Office established (see Canadian Confederation)
Succeeded by	Alexander Mackenzie
In office 17 October 1878 – 6 June 1891
Monarch	Victoria
Governor General	The Earl of Dufferin Marquess of Lorne The Marquess of Lansdowne The Lord Stanley of Preston
Preceded by	Alexander Mackenzie
Succeeded by	John Abbott
Joint-Premier of the Province of Canada Premier of Canada West
In office 24 May 1856 – 2 August 1858
Monarch	Victoria
Preceded by	Allan MacNab
Succeeded by	George Brown
In office 6 August 1858 – 24 May 1862
Monarch	Victoria
Preceded by	George Brown
Succeeded by	John Sandfield Macdonald
In office 30 May 1864 – 30 June 1867
Monarch	Victoria
Preceded by	John Sandfield Macdonald
Succeeded by	John Sandfield Macdonald (as Premier of Ontario)
Personal details
Born	John Alexander Mcdonald January 11, 1815 Glasgow, Scotland
Died	June 6, 1891 (aged 76) Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Cause of death	Stroke
Resting place	Cataraqui Cemetery
Political party	Conservative
Other political affiliations	Upper Canada Tory (1843–1867) Great Coalition (1864–1867) Liberal-Conservative (1867–1873)
Spouse(s)	Isabella Clark ​ ​ (m. 1843; died 1857)​ Agnes Bernard ​ (m. 1867)​
Children	3 (including Hugh John Macdonald)
Education	Apprenticeship
Profession	Lawyer
Signature
Military service
Nickname(s)	"Old Tomorrow" "The Old Chieftain"
Allegiance	British Empire Upper Canada
Branch/service	Loyalist militia
Years of service	1837
Rank	Private
Battles/wars	Rebellions of 1837–1838 Upper Canada Rebellion
• Father of Confederation • Cabinet offices held Attorney General of Canada West (1854–1862, 1864–1867) Minister of Militia and Defence (1860–1867) Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada (1867–1873) Minister of the Interior (1878–1883, 1888) Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs (1878–1887, 1888) President of the Privy Council (1883–1889) Minister of Railways and Canals (1889–1891) Leadership offices held Leader of the Conservative Party of Upper Canada (1858–1867) Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1891) Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition (1873–1878) Parliamentary offices held Member of the Parliament of the Province of Canada (1843–1867) Member of the Parliament of Canada for Kingston (1867–1878, 1887–1891) Member of the Canadian Parliament for Marquette (1878) Member of the Canadian Parliament for Victoria (1878–1882) Member of the Canadian Parliament for Lennox (1882) Member of the Canadian Parliament for Carleton (1882–1887)

One of the things Macdonald wanted to do was to build a transcontinental railway that would link Canada from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. That railway, called the Canadian Pacific Railway, was completed in 1885.

Macdonald did not speak French as well as the Prime Ministers who came after him. He could speak Scottish Gaelic and a bit of Latin.

Macdonald had four siblings. He was the third of five children.

Other websites

• "Macdonald-Biography-First Among Equals". Libraries and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
• "Sir John A. Macdonald: Father of Confederation". City of Kingston. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
• "John A. Macdonald's Kingston". Kingston Historical Society. Archived from the original on 2008-05-31. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
• The Canadian Museum of Civilization - Face-to-Face - The Canadian Personalities Hall
• John A. Macdonald: Architect of Modern Canada
• John A. Macdonald, Confederation and Canadian Federalism Archived 2008-12-01 at the Wayback Machine
• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
• "Sir John A. Macdonald, Freemason" Archived 2007-06-04 at the Wayback Machine
• Synopsis of federal political experience from the Library of Parliament Archived 2005-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
• Image of The Jamaica with Sir and Lady Macdonald aboard Archived 2008-03-23 at the Wayback Machine
• John Macdonald's Gravesite
• Correspondence of Sir John Macdonald; selections from the correspondence of the Right Honorable Sir John Alexander Macdonald, first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, made by his literary executor Sir Joseph Pope (1921)
• "Macdonald, Sir John Alexander". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 2008-03-25. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
• Dictionary of Canadian Biography article by J. K. Johnson and P. B. Waite
• The John A. Macdonald Portal, edited by Alastair Sweeny Archived 2008-05-31 at the Wayback Machine

Political offices
Preceded by Sir Allan Napier MacNab	Joint Premiers of the Province of Canada - Canada West 1856 – 1858	Succeeded by George Brown
Preceded by George Brown	Joint Premiers of the Province of Canada - Canada West 1858 – 1867	Succeeded by himself as Prime Minister of Canada and Sir John Sandfield Macdonald as Premier of Ontario
Preceded by None	Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada 1867 – 1891	Succeeded by Sir John J.C. Abbott
Preceded by None	Prime Minister of Canada 1867 – 1873	Succeeded by Alexander Mackenzie
Preceded by none	Minister of Justice and Attorney General 1867 – 1873	Succeeded by Antoine Dorion
Preceded by Alexander Mackenzie	Leader of the Opposition 1873 – 1878	Succeeded by Alexander Mackenzie
Preceded by Alexander Mackenzie	Prime Minister of Canada 1878 – 1891	Succeeded by Sir John J.C. Abbott
Preceded by David Mills	Minister of the Interior 1878 – 1888	Succeeded by Edgar Dewdney
Preceded by John Henry Pope	Minister of Railways and Canals 1889 – 1891	Succeeded by Mackenzie Bowell (acting)
Parliament of Canada
Preceded by none	Member of Parliament for Kingston 1867 – 1878	Succeeded by Alexander Gunn
Preceded by Francis James Roscoe	Member of Parliament for Victoria 1878 – 1882	Succeeded by E.C. Baker
Preceded by John Rochester	Member of Parliament for Carleton 1882 – 1887	Succeeded by George Dickinson
Preceded by Alexander Gunn	Member of Parliament for Kingston 1887 – 1891	Succeeded by James H. Metcalfe