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Concept
Robert Borden
Summary
Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who was the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World War I.
Borden was born in Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia. He worked as a schoolteacher for a period and then served his articles of clerkship at a Halifax law firm. He was called to the bar in 1878, and soon became one of Nova Scotia's most prominent barristers. Borden was elected to the House of Commons in the 1896 federal election, representing the Conservative Party. He replaced Charles Tupper as party leader in 1901, but was defeated in two federal elections by Liberal Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier in 1904 and 1908. However, in the 1911 federal election, Borden led the Conservatives to victory after he claimed that the Liberals' proposed trade reciprocity treaty with the United States would lead to the US influencing Canadian identity and weaken ties with Great Britain.
Borden's early years as prime minister focused on strengthening relations with Britain. Halfway through his first term, World War I broke out. To send soldiers overseas, he created the Canadian Expeditionary Force. He also became significantly interventionist by passing the War Measures Act which gave the government extraordinary powers. To increase government revenue to fund the war effort, Borden's government issued victory bonds, raised tariffs, and introduced new taxes including the income tax. In 1917, facing what he believed to be a shortage in Canadian soldiers, Borden introduced conscription, angering French Canada and sparking a national divide known as the Conscription Crisis. Despite this, his Unionist Party composed of Conservatives and pro-conscription Liberals was re-elected with an overwhelming majority in the 1917 federal election. At the Paris Peace Conference, Borden sought to expand the autonomy of Canada and other Dominions.
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