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Birth
Wilfrid Laurier was born on November 20th, 1841 in St-Lin Canada East (modern day Saint-Lin-Laurentides, Quebec). (Belanger, 2003) -
Obtains degree in Law from McGill University
Laurier graduates from McGill University, obtaining a degree in Law. (Belanger, 2003) -
Wins seat in Quebec Legislature
First elected political position in the 1871 Quebec General Election. Becomes Liberal member for Drummond-Arthabaska (Belanger, 2010) -
Runs for election to the House of Commons
Resigns his seat in Quebec Legislature then runs and wins election to the House of Commons (Belanger, 2012) -
Appointed Minister of Inland Revenue
Appointed by Alexander Mackenzie into his cabinet (Belganer, 2012) -
Appointed Leader of the Liberal Party
Edward Blake chooses Laurier to succeed him as leader after stepping down. (Belanger, 2012) -
Elected Prime Minister of Canada
As leader of the Liberal Party, Laurier wins the 1896 Federal Election becoming Prime minister. (Belanger, 2012) -
Settles the Manitoba Schools Question
The Manitoba Schools Question was a political scuffle that came from Manitoba banning Catholic schools within the province. Laurier addressed the issue by making it so school could teach Catholicism during the last thirty minutes in the day, but did not reinstate the disposed of Catholic schools. (Belanger, 2003) -
Laurier pledges volunteer troops to the Boer War
Earlier in the year, Britain had declared war on the Dutch settlers of South Africa. Expecting military aid from Canada, Laurier had to decide how Canada was to respond. He eventually arrived at tht decision to send 1,000 volunter troops to South Africa. He did not gain parliamentary approval however, and began the erosion of his support base in Quebec. (Belganer, 2003) -
Alberta and Saskatchewan added to Canada
While Laurier was successful in adding Alberta and Saskatchewan to the confederation, he had alienated some of his allies and eroded parts of his base. (Belanger, 2003) -
Naval Service Act
Parliament wanted Canada to have a navy, but Britain wanted it to be usable by the Crown. The divison over the navy was split along anglophone and francophone lines, with English-Canadians wanting a large navy vs French-Canadians not wanting a navy at all. Laurier tried to find a compromise by creating a navy that would need parliament's approval to be used by the British. This solution satisfied no one. It would contribute to Laurier's defeat in the next election. (Belanger, 2012) -
Loses election, no longer Prime Minister
Amid controversies about trade agreements with the United States and the Naval Service Act, Laurier loses the 1911 election to Conservatives. -
Death
Laurier suffers a stroke and dies on February 17th, 1919 (Belanger, 2012)