Minister of Militia and Defence (Canada)
Encyclopedia
The Minister of Militia and Defence was the federal government minister in charge of the volunteer army units in Canada
prior to the creation of the Canadian Militia
, before the creation of the Canadian Army.
From 1855 to 1906, the minister was responsible for Canadian militia units only, as the British Army
was still stationed in Canada
. From 1906 to 1923, the minister was in charge of the Department of Militia and Defence (Canada)
. After 1923, the position was merged with the Minister of the Naval Service
and the Minister of Aviation
into the new position of Minister of National Defence
. The Minister of National Defence became responsible for the Canadian Militia
, the Royal Canadian Navy
and, from 1924, the Royal Canadian Air Force
.
Major General
Sydney Chilton Mewburn
and Major General
Sir Sam Hughes
were the only ministers to have served in the military.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
prior to the creation of the Canadian Militia
Canadian Militia
The Canadian Militia was the traditional title for the land forces of Canada from before Confederation in 1867 to 1940 when it was renamed the Canadian Army.The Militia consisted of:* Permanent Active Militia* Non-Permanent Active Militia...
, before the creation of the Canadian Army.
From 1855 to 1906, the minister was responsible for Canadian militia units only, as the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
was still stationed in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. From 1906 to 1923, the minister was in charge of the Department of Militia and Defence (Canada)
Department of Militia and Defence (Canada)
The Department of Militia and Defence was the department responsible for military forces in Canada from 1906-1921.The Minister of Militia and Defence was in charge of this department....
. After 1923, the position was merged with the Minister of the Naval Service
Minister of the Naval Service (Canada)
The Minister of the Naval Service was the federal government minister charged with oversight of the Royal Canadian Navy.In 1923 the National Defence Act merged the position of Minister of Militia and Defence with the Minister of the Naval Service....
and the Minister of Aviation
Minister of Aviation (Canada)
The Minister of the Naval Service was the minister in charge of the military air service in Canada prior to the creation of the RCAF. There was no official minister in charge of this department as Canada did not have a formal air force....
into the new position of Minister of National Defence
Minister of National Defence (Canada)
The Minister of National Defence is a Minister of the Crown; the Canadian politician within the Cabinet of Canada responsible for the Department of National Defence which oversees the Canadian Forces....
. The Minister of National Defence became responsible for the Canadian Militia
Canadian Militia
The Canadian Militia was the traditional title for the land forces of Canada from before Confederation in 1867 to 1940 when it was renamed the Canadian Army.The Militia consisted of:* Permanent Active Militia* Non-Permanent Active Militia...
, the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
and, from 1924, the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
.
Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Sydney Chilton Mewburn
Sydney Chilton Mewburn
Sydney Chilton Mewburn, PC was a Canadian lawyer, soldier, and politician.Born in Hamilton, Canada West, he was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence from October 12, 1917 - January 15, 1920 under Sir Robert Borden's Union Government in 1917. During World War I, he was a Major General in...
and Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Sir Sam Hughes
Sam Hughes
For other people of the same name see Sam Hughes Sir Samuel Hughes, KCB, PC was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I...
were the only ministers to have served in the military.
Post-Confederation
- George-Étienne CartierGeorge-Étienne CartierSir George-Étienne Cartier, 1st Baronet, PC was a French-Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation.The English spelling of the name, George, instead of Georges, the usual French spelling, is explained by his having been named in honour of King George III....
1867–1873 - Hector Louis Langevin (acting) 1873
- Hugh McDonaldHugh McDonald (politician)Hugh Macdonald, PC was a lawyer, judge and member of the First Canadian Parliament. He represented the Antigonish riding of Nova Scotia, from 1867 to 1869, along with William Hallett Ray, as an Anti-Confederate and, from 1869 to 1873, as a Liberal-Conservative.The son of Allan McDonald and...
1873 - William RossWilliam Ross (Canadian politician)William Ross was a Canadian politician.Born in Boularderie, Nova Scotia, the son of John Ross, a Scottish immigrant, and Robina McKenzie, Ross was a merchant and shipbuilder. In 1855, he married Eliza Moore. He represented Victoria County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1857 to 1867...
1873–1874 - William Berrian VailWilliam Berrian VailWilliam Berrian Vail, PC was a Canadian businessman and politician.Vail was born in Sussex Vale, New Brunswick, the son of John Cougle Vail and Charlotte Hannah Arnold. In 1850, he married Charlotte Leslie Jones. He represented Digby County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1867 to 1874...
1874–1878 - Alfred JonesAlfred Gilpin JonesAlfred Gilpin Jones, PC was a Canadian businessman, politician, and seventh Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia....
1878 - Louis MassonLouis-Rodrigue MassonLouis-Rodrigue Masson, was a Canadian Member of Parliament, Senator, and the fifth Lieutenant Governor of Quebec. He represented Terrebonne in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1882.Masson was born in Terrebonne, Lower Canada, in 1833, the son of Joseph Masson...
1878–1880 - Sir Alexander CampbellAlexander Campbell (Canadian politician)Sir Alexander Campbell, PC, KCMG, QC was an English-born, Canadian statesman and politician, and a father of Canadian Confederation....
1880 - Adolphe-Philippe CaronAdolphe-Philippe CaronSir Joseph-Philippe-René-Adolphe Caron, PC, KCMG was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He is now best remembered as the Minister of Militia and Defence in the government of Sir John A...
1880–1892 - Sir Mackenzie Bowell 1892
- James Colebrooke PattersonJames Colebrooke PattersonJames Colebrooke Patterson , PC was a Canadian politician. He served as a federal cabinet minister from 1892 to 1895 and as the sixth Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba from 1895 to 1900....
1892–1895 - Arthur Rupert DickeyArthur Rupert DickeyArthur Rupert Dickey, PC was a Canadian politician.Born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, the son of Robert Barry Dickey, he was a lawyer before being elected to the Canadian House of Commons in a 1888 by-election in the riding of Cumberland after Charles Tupper was named High Commissioner for Canada in...
1895–1896 - Sir Mackenzie Bowell (acting) 1896
- Alphonse DesjardinsAlphonse Desjardins (politician)Alphonse Desjardins, PC, KPO was born in Terrebonne, Quebec and was mayor of Montreal from 1893 to 1894 and later a Canadian cabinet minister. He married Virginie Paré in 1864 and remarried Hortense Barsalou in 1880....
1896 - David TisdaleDavid TisdaleDavid Tisdale, PC was a Canadian politician.Born in Charlotteville Township, Upper Canada, the son of Ephraim Tisdale and Hannah Price, he was educated at the Simcoe Grammar School and called to the Ontario bar in 1858. He was made a Queen's Counsel in 1872...
1896 - Sir Frederick William Borden 1896–1911
- Sir Samuel Hughes 1911–1916
- Albert Edward KempAlbert Edward KempSir Albert Edward Kemp, KCMG, PC was a Canadian businessman and politician. Kemp was a Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence and Minister of the Overseas Military Forces during World War I. A Conservative and Unionist, Kemp was elected five times to the Canadian House of Commons as the Member...
1916–1917 - Sydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton Mewburn, PC was a Canadian lawyer, soldier, and politician.Born in Hamilton, Canada West, he was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence from October 12, 1917 - January 15, 1920 under Sir Robert Borden's Union Government in 1917. During World War I, he was a Major General in...
1917–1920 - James Alexander CalderJames Alexander CalderJames Alexander Calder, was a Canadian politician.Born in Oxford County, Ontario, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba in 1888. He was a teacher and principal, before being elected to the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan for the riding of South Regina in the...
(acting) 1920 - Hugh GuthrieHugh GuthrieHugh Guthrie, PC, KC was a Canadian politician and Cabinet minister in the governments of Sir Robert Borden, Arthur Meighen and R. B. Bennett....
1920–1921 - George Perry GrahamGeorge Perry GrahamGeorge Perry Graham, PC was a journalist, editor and politician in Ontario, Canada.In the 1898 Ontario provincial election, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, and re-elected in 1902 and 1905...
1921–1922
Ministers with military experience
- LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Étienne-Paschal TachéÉtienne-Paschal TachéSir Étienne-Paschal Taché was a Canadian doctor, politician and one of the Fathers of Confederation.Born in St. Thomas, Lower Canada, in 1795, the third son of Charles Taché and Geneviève Michon, Taché studied at the Séminaire de Québec until the War of 1812 when he joined the 5th battalion of the...
, Chasseurs Canadiens Milita - Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
David TisdaleDavid TisdaleDavid Tisdale, PC was a Canadian politician.Born in Charlotteville Township, Upper Canada, the son of Ephraim Tisdale and Hannah Price, he was educated at the Simcoe Grammar School and called to the Ontario bar in 1858. He was made a Queen's Counsel in 1872...
, 39th Norfolk Battalion of Infantry - Assistant SurgeonSurgeonIn medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
Frederick William BordenFrederick William BordenSir Frederick William Borden, KCMG, PC was a Canadian politician. While he was the Minister for Militia and Defence, he was the father of the most famous Canadian casualty of the Second Boer War Harold Lothrop Borden...
, 68th (Kings) Battalion of Infantry - Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Sam HughesSam HughesFor other people of the same name see Sam Hughes Sir Samuel Hughes, KCB, PC was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I...
, 45th Canadian Volunteer Militia, Canadian Volunteer to the British Army - MajorMajorMajor is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
Sydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton MewburnSydney Chilton Mewburn, PC was a Canadian lawyer, soldier, and politician.Born in Hamilton, Canada West, he was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence from October 12, 1917 - January 15, 1920 under Sir Robert Borden's Union Government in 1917. During World War I, he was a Major General in...
, Canadian ArmyPermanent Active MilitiaPermanent Active Militia was the proper name of Canada's full-time professional land forces from the 19th century to 1940 when the Canadian Army was so designated....