Honoré Mercier (October 15, 1840 – October 30, 1894) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He was the ninth

premier of Quebec The premier of Quebec ( French: ''premier ministre du Québec'' (masculine) or ''première ministre du Québec'' (feminine)) is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of th ...

from January 27, 1887, to December 21, 1891, as leader of the

Parti National The Parti National was the name taken by the Liberal Party of Quebec, Canada, under the premiership of Honoré Mercier. Origin and beliefs It was founded on November 17, 1885, the day following the execution of Métis Leader Louis Riel. Many ...

or Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ). He rose to power by mobilizing the Francophone opposition to the execution of

Louis Riel Louis Riel (; ; 22 October 1844 – 16 November 1885) was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first ...

, denouncing it as a betrayal by

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

's Conservative government.

Early background

Mercier was born in Saint-Athanase,

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

to farmer Jean-Baptiste Mercier and Marie Kimener. Mercier is descended from Julien Mercier (1621-1676) who arrived from

Tourouvre Tourouvre () is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Tourouvre au Perche. The first photovoltaic road in the world was under construction in Tourouvre in Novem ...

, France in 1647. Mercier studied at the Jesuit College Sainte-Marie in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

, and was called to the

Bar of Quebec The Bar of Quebec (french: Barreau du Québec) is the regulatory body for the practice of advocates in the Canadian province of Quebec and one of two legal regulatory bodies in the province. It was founded on May 30, 1849, as the Bar of Lower Ca ...

in April 1865. As the age of 22, Mercier became the editor of ''Le Courrier de St-Hyacinthe'' newspaper. He opposed the

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

project as early as 1864, believing that it would be detrimental to French Canadians.

Member of Parliament

In 1871, he was instrumental in creating the short-lived Parti National. Mercier successfully ran 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 ...

candidate in the 1872 election. He became Member of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

for the district of Rouville. He did not run for re-election in the 1874 election. In the 1878 election, Mercier was candidate in the district of St. Hyacinthe. He was defeated by the

Louis Tellier Louis Tellier (December 24, 1842 – June 17, 1935) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and judge. Biography Born in Berthier-en-Haut, Canada East, the son of Zephirin and Luce (Ferland) Tellier, Tellier completed his classical education at ...

, his

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

opponent.

Provincial politics

In 1879, Mercier was appointed Solicitor General of Quebec in the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

of Premier

Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière Sir Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière, (December 5, 1829 – November 16, 1908) lawyer, businessman and politician served as the fourth premier of Quebec, a federal Cabinet minister, and the seventh Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia. ...

and served in that position for less than a year. He won a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

and became Member of the Legislative Assembly for the district of

Saint-Hyacinthe Saint-Hyacinthe (; French: ) is a city in southwestern Quebec east of Montreal on the Yamaska River. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 57,239. The city is located in Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality of the Montérég ...

. He was re-elected in the

1881 Events January–March * January 1– 24 – Siege of Geok Tepe: Russian troops under General Mikhail Skobelev defeat the Turkomans. * January 13 – War of the Pacific – Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos: The ...

and

1886 Events January–March * January 1 – Upper Burma is formally annexed to British Burma, following its conquest in the Third Anglo-Burmese War of November 1885. * January 5– 9 – Robert Louis Stevenson's novella ''Strange ...

elections and won another by-election in 1887. He left an impact on a later leader,

Henri Bourassa Joseph-Napoléon-Henri Bourassa (; September 1, 1868 – August 31, 1952) was a French Canadian political leader and publisher. In 1899, Bourassa was outspoken against the British government's request for Canada to send a militia to fight for ...

Party leader

He became the leader of the PLQ in 1883. A practising lawyer, from 1885 to 1887 he was President of the

Bar of Montreal The Bar of Montreal (french: Barreau de Montréal) is the section of the Bar of Quebec for lawyers in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It has it beginnings in 1693 when, as a Royal Province of the French colonial empire, ''Canadien'' lawye ...

. He strongly opposed the execution of

in 1885; this event helped him win popular support, and the Quebec Conservative Party lost support because its federal counterparts had ordered Riel's execution. Seizing the opportunity to build a coalition with dissident Conservatives, Mercier revived the "Parti National" name for the 1886 Quebec provincial election, and won a majority of seats. However, the coalition consisted of mostly Liberals and only a few Conservatives, so the "Liberal" name was soon reinstituted. The Conservatives, reduced to a minority in the Legislative Assembly, clung to power for a few more months, but Mercier became Premier of Quebec in 1887.

Premier of Quebec

Seeing provincial autonomy as the political expression of Quebec nationalism, he collaborated with Ontario Premier

Oliver Mowat Sir Oliver Mowat (July 22, 1820 – April 19, 1903) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and Ontario Liberal Party leader. He served for nearly 24 years as the third premier of Ontario. He was the eighth lieutenant governor of Ontario and one of ...

to roll back federal centralism. Mercier initiated the idea of interprovincial conferences in 1887. He was the first Quebec premier to defend the principle of provincial autonomy within the confederation, campaigning to abolish the federal government's claimed right to veto provincial legislation. With his strong nationalist stance, Mercier was very much a precursor of later nationalist premiers in future decades who confronted the federal government and tried to win more power for Quebec. He promoted contacts with Francophones in other parts of North America outside of Quebec including

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

and

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

. Those francophones had not yet been assimilated into the English-Canadian or American culture to the extent they would be in the future. Mercier promoted reform, economic development, Catholicism, and the French language. He won popularity but also made enemies. He was returned to the legislature as the Member for the district of

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister G ...

and his party won the 1890 election with an increased majority.

Political downfall

On December 16, 1891, he was dismissed by Lieutenant Governor

Auguste-Réal Angers Sir Auguste-Réal Angers (4 October 1837 – 14 April 1919) was a Canadian judge and parliamentarian, holding seats both as a member of the House of Commons of Canada, and as a Senator. He was born in 1837 probably in Quebec City and died in ...

after a report concluded that his government had diverted public funds. He lost the 1892 election, and gave up the party leadership to

Félix-Gabriel Marchand Félix-Gabriel Marchand (January 9, 1832 – September 25, 1900) was a journalist, author, notary and politician in Quebec, Canada. He was the 11th premier of Quebec from May 24, 1897, to September 25, 1900. Born in what is Saint-Jean-sur- ...

. He was brought to trial later that year and found not guilty when a second report concluded differently on the matter. However, his health had greatly deteriorated and his political career was over. He died in 1894 at the age of 54, and was interred in the

Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame-des-Neiges) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run a ...

in Montreal, Quebec.

Legacy

The following landmarks were named to honour Honoré Mercier: *The Mercier Bridge that links the western part of the Island of Montreal with the South Shore; *The town of

Mercier, Quebec Mercier is a suburban town in southwestern Quebec, Canada, in the Roussillon Regional County Municipality. It is located on the Châteauguay River, southwest of Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 14,626. History Offici ...

; *Avenue Mercier, located in downtown Shawinigan,

, Canada; *The provincial electoral district of

Mercier Mercier is French for ''notions dealer'' or ''haberdasher'', and may refer to: People * Agnès Mercier, French curler and coach *Annick Mercier (born 1964), French curler *Amanda H. Mercier (born 1975), American Judge * Armand Mercier, (1933–20 ...

; *An elementary school named Honoré-Mercier in Montreal; *A high school named Honoré-Mercier in Montreal; *A hospital in

, Québec named

Hôpital Honoré-Mercier The Honoré Mercier Hospital (french: Hôpital Honoré-Mercier) is the major hospital in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada. It serves Saint-Hyacinthe its surrounding Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality, as well as the neighbouring Acton Re ...

; *Avenue Honoré-Mercier, located in the

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...

centre; *The borough of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and its contained district of

in Montreal.

Family

His son Honoré Mercier ''fils'' was a multi-term member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and a Cabinet Minister; his grandson Honoré Mercier III served one term in the Legislative Assembly. Mercier was

Lomer Gouin Sir Jean Lomer Gouin, (March 19, 1861 – March 28, 1929) was a Canadian politician. He served as 13th premier of Quebec, as a Cabinet minister in the federal government of Canada, and as the 15th lieutenant governor of Quebec. Biography ...

's father-in-law and is a great-great-grandfather of

NDP NDP may stand for: Computing * Neighbor Discovery Protocol, an Internet protocol * Nortel Discovery Protocol, a layer two Internet protocol, also called SONMP * Nondeterministic programming, a type of computer language Government * National ...

retired leader

Thomas Mulcair Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) Thomas is a male given name of Aramaic origins. The English spelling "Thomas" is a transliteration; through Latin "Thomas", of the approximate Greek translite ...

Electoral record

References

External links

* * * *
Extensive dossier on Mercier at ''L'Encyclopédie de l'Agora''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercier, Honore 1840 births 1894 deaths Canadian Roman Catholics Journalists from Quebec Lawyers in Quebec Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Liberal Party of Canada MPs Premiers of Quebec Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Quebec Liberal Party MNAs Quebec political party leaders Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) 19th-century Canadian journalists Canadian male journalists 19th-century Canadian male writers Canadian nationalists Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Papal counts