Henry Forbes Angus, (April 19, 1891 – September 17, 1991) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer and academic. Born in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. Th ...

, he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1911. He received a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Civil Law from

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

in 1914. He was awarded the Vinerian Scholarship. He fought in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. After the war, he received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

from Oxford University. Returning to British Columbia, he was called to the Bar. In 1919, he became an assistant professor of economics in the political science and sociology faculty at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

and later became professor and head of the department. He was the first fully qualified lawyer to serve on the full-time teaching staff. From 1948 until his retirement in 1956, he was the first Dean of Graduate Studies. From 1937 to 1940, he was a member of the Royal Commission of Dominion–Provincial Relations. From 1949 to 1951, he was a member of the Royal Commission of Transportation. During World War II, from 1941 to 1945, he was Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for External Affairs. He was one of the few public voices to oppose the

Japanese Canadian internment From 1942 to 1949, Canada forcibly relocated and incarcerated over 22,000 Japanese Canadians—comprising over 90% of the total Japanese Canadian population—from British Columbia in the name of "national security". The majority were Canadian ...

. In 1955, he was appointed chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of British Columbia. In 1965, he was chairman of the British Columbia Commission of inquiry into redefinition of Electoral Districts ("The Provincial Redistribution Commission"). From 1951 to 1952, he was the president of the

Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; french: Société royale du Canada, SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bil ...

. In 1971, he was made an officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. In 1956, he was awarded a Doctor of Laws,

honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

, from the University of British Columbia. The Henry Angus Building at the

is named in his honour.

References

* * 1891 births 1991 deaths Canadian centenarians Canadian economists Lawyers in British Columbia Canadian university and college faculty deans Alumni of the University of Oxford McGill University alumni Men centenarians Officers of the Order of Canada People from Victoria, British Columbia Academic staff of the University of British Columbia {{Canada-law-bio-stub