Arthur Peters (August 29, 1854 – January 29, 1908) was the ninth

premier of Prince Edward Island The premier of Prince Edward Island is the first minister and head of government for the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. The current premier of Prince Edward Island is Dennis King (politician), Den ...

. Arthur Peters and his brother

Frederick Peters Frederick Peters (April 8, 1851 – July 29, 1919) was a lawyer and Prince Edward Island politician, who served as the sixth premier of Prince Edward Island. Early life and career Peters was born in Charlottetown and educated at King's Colle ...

(also destined to enter political office) were born in

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

. Arthur Peters was first elected to the province's legislative assembly in 1893 as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

. He became

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

in 1900 and was asked by the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

to become

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

of the province on December 29, 1901, after his predecessor had resigned to enter federal politics. Peters attempted to renegotiate the rules governing the island's representation in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

as the island was losing parliamentary seats as a result of successive

censuses A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

. Peters argued the province's case before the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 Augus ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

(though the matter was not resolved during his lifetime) and he also negotiated an increased federal subsidy to the province. Peters died in office on January 29, 1908, at the age of 53.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Arthur 1854 births 1908 deaths People from Charlottetown Canadian Anglicans Premiers of Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island Liberal Party MLAs Prince Edward Island Liberal Party leaders