Robert George Brett (November 16, 1851 – September 16, 1929) was a politician and physician in the

North-West Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

and

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada and served as the

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Lieutenant Governor of Alberta.

Early life

Robert George Brett was born on November 16, 1851, in Strathroy, Adelaide Township, Middlesex County, Canada West (

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

), the eldest of four children to James Brett (b. 1821) and Catherine Mallon (b. 1825). Brett's parents were both immigrants from Ireland and early settlers of the Middlesex region. James Brett was a farmer and carpenter, and later worked as a merchant and insurance agent. Brett was well educated, attending Strathroy Grammar School, leaving in 1867 to apprentice under Dr. F. R. Eccles before attending the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

's Victoria College and attaining his medical degree in 1872. Brett briefly practiced in Arkona, Ontario from 1874 to 1879, and during this time Brett also completed completed his postgraduate work in

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Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

and later in 1894,

Vienna, Austria en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. Brett was married on June 26, 1878, to Louise T. Hungerford, and together had four children, all four of whom predeceased their parents, their eldest daughter, Genevieve, died as a four-month-old infant in October 1881 and is buried at Arkona.

Medical career

In 1874 he located in the small village of

Arkona, Ontario Arkona is a community located in the municipality of Lambton Shores in southwestern Ontario near the Lambton–Middlesex county line, situated beside the Ausable River, on Former Kings Highway 79 (now Lambton County Road 79), Arkona is r ...

, to begin his practice with Dr. F. R. Eccles. While in Arkona, Brett served a term as the village reeve. Brett moved west to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

sometime between 1880 and 1882 (his family were listed in the 1881 census in Arkona). Brett arrived during a real estate boom in Winnipeg, which subsequently crashed causing Brett to lose his investments. In August 1883, Brett travelled west on the second train to Calgary with his brother-in-law Dr. Neville James Lindsay where he provided medical services on contract with the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

(CPR) for railway workers in the Kicking Horse and Rogers passes. During this time Brett established a hospital in the Banff area. Brett returned to Winnipeg in fall of 1883 when he was one of the founders of the Manitoba Medical College, where Brett was the first professor of and therapeutics, and was later appointed professor of

obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and

gynaecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined are ...

. Brett later sat as a board member on the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.Lake Louise), where he was joined by his brother Dr. William Brett, who died during the period. After the railway was completed in 1885, Brett became the CPR surgeon for mining communities in the area and ran a small hospital in

Canmore, Alberta Canmore is a town in Alberta, Canada, located approximately west of Calgary near the southeast boundary of Banff National Park. It is located in the Bow Valley within Alberta's Rocky Mountains. The town shares a border with Kananaskis Countr ...

. Later in 1889, Dr. Lindsay relinquished his CPR medical contract, which Brett added to his own, becoming responsible for all CPR medical care west of Calgary to

Donald, British Columbia Donald is an unincorporated community in the East Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia. This almost ghost town is on the northeast shore of the Columbia River immediately southeast of the mouth of Marl Creek. The locality, on British Co ...

. Brett was a strong proponent of standardized examination and

licensing A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

in the medical profession, and in 1909 proposed the four western provinces form a licensing body for medical practitioners in the West.

Political career

In May 1888, the

6th Canadian Parliament The 6th Canadian Parliament was in session from April 13, 1887, until February 3, 1891. The membership was set by the 1887 federal election on February 22, 1887. It was dissolved prior to the 1891 election. It was controlled by a Conservative/Li ...

passed ''The North-West Territories Act of 1888'' which brought

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive bran ...

to the North-West Territories. The Act abolished the 1st Council of the North-West Territories which consisted of a mixture of appointed and elected seats, and formed a new primarily elected

assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

, however the assembly did lack aspects of responsible government in other Canadian provinces such as an Executive Council and control over federal grant spending.

Chairman of the Lieutenant Governor's Advisory Council

In the first election of the responsible government age in 1888, Brett was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of the North-West Territories This is a list of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assemblies dates and legislative sessions from 1870–present. The current capital is Yellowknife since 1967. There have been twenty-seven legislatures since becoming a territory in 1870. ...

as a member of the electoral district for

Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...

, defeating Alfred Brealey with 325 votes to 208. His nomination had taken place without his knowledge while he was on a trip in central Canada. He became a ''de facto'' leader of the government as chairman of the Lieutenant-Governor's Advisory Council. Robert Brett had a rivalry with long-time member

Frederick Haultain Sir Frederick William Alpin Gordon Haultain (November 25, 1857 – January 30, 1942) was a lawyer and a long-serving Canadian politician and judge. His career in provincial and territorial legislatures stretched into four decades. He served ...

. Lieutenant-Governor

Joseph Royal Joseph Royal (7 May 1837 – 23 August 1902) was a Canadian journalist, lawyer, politician, businessman, and Lieutenant Governor of the Northwest Territories. Early life and career Royal studied at St. Mary's Jesuit college in Montreal. Hi ...

did not provide the Assembly with significant autonomy, and instead viewed it as an advisory body. In 1889 Royal refused to allow the Assembly to decide how the territorial grant would be spent, a decision which caused the Advisory Council, including Brett, to tendered their resignations on October 29. Royal selected Brett as the leader of the new Advisory Council and provided Brett with clarity on the powers the Advisory Council could exercise, which included territorial finances. The expansion of power was viewed unfavorably by the Assembly which sought greater controls and expansion of responsible government. The Assembly passed a

non-confidence motion A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or ma ...

directed towards the new Advisory Council only a few days later on November 9, 1889. Brett tendered his resignation to Royal, who refused it, however in the next week Brett was unable to gain control of the Assembly, and once again tendered his resignation, which was accepted by Royal on November 16. Following the resignation, Royal attempted to govern independent of the Assembly on the advice of two selected officials, but his decision was disallowed by Federal Justice Minister

John Sparrow David Thompson Sir John Sparrow David Thompson (November 10, 1845 – December 12, 1894) was a Canadian lawyer, judge and politician who served as the fourth prime minister of Canada from 1892 until his death. He had previously been fifth premier of Nova Sco ...

. Royal once again appointed Brett to lead the Advisory Council in January 1890, a decision which infuriated the majority of the Assembly which refused to appoint members of the Advisory Council to committees and support bills introduced by the Advisory Council. Brett continued to hold his position and, in 1891 with Advisory Council member

John Felton Betts John Felton Betts (October 9, 1854 – May 9, 1914Perry, Footz (2006) 224) was a merchant and political figure in the Northwest Territories, Canada. He represented Prince Albert and then Cumberland in the Legislative Assembly of the Nort ...

, travelled to Ottawa to advocate for constitutional change towards more responsible government. Brett and Betts left Ottawa believing they had failed to convince the government, but after

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 death, the changes came in 1892 with amendments to the ''North-West Territories Act'' providing that the lieutenant-governor could only expend monies on the advice of the Assembly. Brett was returned by acclamation in the 1891 Northwest Territories general election as the member for Banff. Royal formed a new Advisory Council was formed under Frederick Haultain, which Brett was not a part of. During the upcoming session Brett advocated for the Assembly to choose the membership of the Advisory Committee rather than the lieutenant-governor, and the proposal was adopted a year later in 1892. Brett was subsequently re-elected in 1894.

In opposition

In 1898 Robert Brett became the first Leader of the Official Opposition during a time in which the territorial legislature made a transition to party politics. In the 1898 Northwest Territories general election Brett was opposed by Arthur Sifton in Banff and lost the election by a small margin. Election day returns showed Sifton with a plurality of thirty-six votes, but by the time contested ballots were dealt with this had turned into a majority of two votes for Brett. Brett contested the results of the election on grounds of "irregularities" in accordance with Section 106 of ''The Territories Elections Ordinance''. Judge

Charles Rouleau Charles Borromée Rouleau (born: December 16, 1840 L'Isle Verte, Lower Canada- died: August 25, 1901 Rouleauville, North-West Territories) was a 19th-century Canadian politician, lawyer, judge and writer. He served as stipendiary magistrate a ...

of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, in the jurisdiction of Northern Alberta, found in favour of Brett by two votes. Sifton appealed the decision, and a by-election was scheduled for June 27, 1899. Sifton ended up winning the seat by a comfortable margin. One oft-repeated anecdote from the campaign involved a campaign forum for which Brett was late. After giving his own speech, Sifton offered to give the still-absent Brett's speech as well, since he had heard it so many times. He did so, and when Brett eventually arrived to give a speech nearly identical to the one Sifton had given on his behalf he was puzzled by the audience's amusement. Brett unexpectedly dropped out of the 1902 election, a move that hurt the

North-West Territories Liberal Party The North-West Territories Liberal Party was a short-lived branch of the Liberal Party of Canada in the North-West Territories. History The party existed between 1898 and 1905. In 1905, the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were created from t ...

Alberta politics

When Alberta became a province in 1905 Brett ran in Banff for the Conservative Party but was defeated by

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 and future

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is a title commonly held by Speaker (politics), presiding officers of parliamentary bodies styled Legislative Assembly, legislative assemblies. The office is most widely used in state and territorial legislatures ...

Charles W. Fisher.

Wilfrid Laurier Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier, ( ; ; November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime minis ...

's Liberal government provided for a provisional capital in Edmonton in the ''

Alberta Act The ''Alberta Act'' (french: Loi sur l'Alberta), effective September 1, 1905, was the act of the Parliament of Canada that created the province of Alberta. The ''Act'' is similar in nature to the '' Saskatchewan Act'', which established the p ...

'', but permitted the new government to choose the location of the permanent seat of government. Prior to this decision, Brett travelled to Ottawa to lobby the federal government to choose Banff as the new capital of Alberta. In 1909 he became president of the

Alberta Conservative Party The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta (often referred to colloquially as Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta) was a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta that existed from 1905 to 2020. The party ...

, and later contested the 1909 election for the Cochrane electoral district which replaced the Banff electoral district, losing again to Charles W. Fisher. During his time in the early 20th century he served on a number of boards in Alberta, including the Senate of the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

Lieutenant governor of Alberta

Robert Brett was appointed the

lieutenant governor of Alberta The lieutenant governor of Alberta () is the viceregal representative in Alberta of the . The lieutenant governor is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the m ...

Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (Arthur William Patrick Albert; 1 May 185016 January 1942), was the seventh child and third son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. He served as Gov ...

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

, on October 20, 1915, on the advice of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World War I. Borde ...

. Brett was re-appointed for a second term on December 16, 1920. In 1918, Premier Charles Stewart requested Brett retire

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 ...

Charles Wilson Cross Charles Wilson Cross (November 30, 1872 – June 2, 1928) was a Canadian politician who served in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and the House of Commons of Canada. He was also the first Attorney-General of Alberta. Born in Ontario, he s ...

, who had refused to tender his resignation in hopes a compromise with the premier could be reached. After 12 days had passed without a response from Cross, Brett signed an

order in council An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' Ki ...

removing Charles Cross from his position, the first time in Alberta a lieutenant governor removed a cabinet member. Robert Brett's term as lieutenant governor ended upon his successor William Egbert's appointment on October 29, 1925.

Later life

Robert Brett died in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

on September 16, 1929; he was buried in the Banff Cemetery.

Honours

Brett received an

Honorary Doctor 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 hon ...

of Laws from the

in 1915. The City of Edmonton named Robert Brett Park in his honour. The Banff Curling Club, which Brett helped found in 1900, named the Brett Trophy in his honour.

Mount Brett Mount Brett is a summit located in the Massive Range of Alberta, Canada It is situated in Banff National Park, west of Banff townsite, in the Canadian Rockies. Its nearest higher peak is Mount Ball, to the west. History Mount Brett was nam ...

, a 2,984-metre mountain located southwest of Banff was named in his honour in 1916.

References

;Works cited * * * * *Johnson, Margery. ''The Arkona Cemetery and Mennonite Cemetery in Warwick Township'' (Arkona: Arkona and Area Historical Society, 1985). *Johnson, William F. ''Arkona Through the Years'' (Forest, Ontario: Pole Printing, 1976). *Stott, Greg. ''Arkona: A History of an Ontario Community''(Arkona, Ontario: Anokra Press, 2011).

External links

Robert Brett Biography: Alberta Heritage

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''

Lethbridge Herald – 25 May 1916
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brett, Robert 1851 births 1929 deaths Pre-Confederation Alberta people Northwest Territories Liberal Party MLAs Lieutenant Governors of Alberta People from Banff, Alberta Alberta Liberal Party candidates in Alberta provincial elections