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Lester Bowles Pearson PC OM CC OBE (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as MP for Algoma East, whose largest municipality was the then-new City of Elliot Lake.
- Early Life and Career
- Representing Canada Abroad
- Deputy Minister of External Affairs
- Minister of External Affairs
- Leader of The Liberal Party
- Prime Minister 1963–68
- Legacy
Lester Pearson was the son of a Methodist parson. He spent his childhood moving from one parsonage to another before enrolling in history at the University of Toronto. With the outbreak of the First World War, he enlisted in the Canadian Army Medical Corps. In 1915, he was shipped to Greece to join the Allied armies fighting the Bulgarians. After t...
In 1935, Pearson was sent to London as first secretary in the Canadian High Commission. This gave him a front-row seat as Europe drifted towards the Second World War. He was profoundly influenced by what he saw; as a result, he attached great importance to collective defence in the face of dictatorships and aggression. In 1941, Pearson returned to ...
In September 1946, Pearson was summoned home by Prime Minister Mackenzie King to become deputy minister (or undersecretary) of external affairs. He continued to take a strong interest in the UN; but he also promoted a closer political and economic relationship between Canada and its principal allies, the US and the United Kingdom. ( See also Middle...
By the time NATO was in place, Pearson had left the civil service for politics. In September 1948, he became minister of external affairs and subsequently represented Algoma East, Ontario, in the House of Commons. As minister, he helped lead Canada into the Korean Waras a contributor to the UN army. In 1952, he served as president of the UN General...
By 1957, Pearson was no longer in office. He and the St-Laurent government were widely blamed for not standing by Britain in 1956. The Liberals were defeated and St-Laurent resigned as leader. At a convention in January 1958, Pearson defeated Paul Martin, Sr.to become party leader. The Liberals faced a Conservative minority government under John Di...
Pearson took office on 22 April 1963. His government was expected to be more businesslike than Diefenbaker’s; but it proved instead to be accident-prone and effectively aborted its first budget. Much of Parliament’s time was spent in bitter partisan and personal wrangling, culminating in the great flag debate of 1964. Historian Rick Archbold descri...
For all its superficial chaos, the Pearson government left behind a notable legacy of legislation: a Canada Pension Plan; a universal medicare system; a unified Armed Forces; and a new national flag. However, its approach to the problem of Canada’s economically disadvantaged regions was less successful. His government’s legacy, which included the G...
Lester Bowles Pearson. The Nobel Peace Prize 1957. Born: 23 April 1897, Toronto, Canada. Died: 27 December 1972, Ottawa, Canada. Residence at the time of the award: Canada. Role: former Secretary of State for External Affairs of Canada; former President of the 7th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Born in Toronto of Irish stock on both sides of his family, he received a balanced education in politics, learning the conservative position from his father, a Methodist minister, and the liberal from his mother. Pearson entered Victoria College at the University of Toronto in 1913 at the age of sixteen.
Lester B. Pearson, Canadian politician and diplomat who served as prime minister of Canada (1963–68). He was prominent as a mediator in international disputes, and in 1957 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. Learn more about Pearson’s life and career.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Lester Bowles Pearson, often referred to as "Mike," PC, OM, CC, OBE, MA, LL.D. (April 23, 1897 – December 27, 1972) was a Canadian statesman, diplomat, and politician, who, in 1957, became the first Canadian to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Lester Bowles Pearson PC OM CC OBE (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as MP for Algoma East, whose largest municipality was the then-new City of Elliot Lake.
