Wilfrid Laurier Heighington, (July 30, 1897 – 23 March 1945)https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/154923959/wilfrid-heighington 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 ...

soldier, writer, lawyer and politician.

Background

Heighington attended Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario, leaving in 1915 to join the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

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 ...

. He was twice wounded in and twice mentioned in dispatches. After recuperating from serious wounds he returned to France to fight at the Somme and

Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

. He ended the war with the rank of captain. He became a lawyer following the war, was called to the bar in 1920, and was appointed

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

eleven years later.

Politics

Heighington was first elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

in the

1929 Ontario general election The 1929 Ontario general election was the 18th general election held in the Province of Ontario, Canada. It was held on October 30, 1929, to elect the 112 Members of the 18th Legislative Assembly of Ontario ("MLAs"). The Ontario Conservative Pa ...

as the

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 i ...

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...

(MLA) for the St. David electoral district in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. He was re-elected in 1934 despite the province wide landslide that brought the

Ontario Liberal Party The Ontario Liberal Party (OLP; french: Parti libéral de l'Ontario, PLO) is a political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. The party has been led by interim leader John Fraser (Ontario MPP), John Fraser since August 2022. The party esp ...

to power under

Mitchell Hepburn Mitchell Frederick Hepburn (August 12, 1896 – January 5, 1953) was the 11th premier of Ontario, from 1934 to 1942. He was the youngest premier in Ontario history, appointed at age 37. He was the only Ontario Liberal Party leader in the 20th cent ...

. He represented the Legislature as part of its official delegation on the pilgrimage to the

Canadian National Vimy Memorial The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a war memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during the First World War. It also serves as the place of commemoration for Canadian soldiers of the First ...

's official dedication ceremony in France. He was a candidate in the 1936 Conservative leadership election, placing fifth. The following year he narrowly lost his

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

in the legislature in the 1937 Ontario general election. Despite being out of the legislature, Heighington ran again for the party leadership in 1938, and came in third, but with fewer votes (only 41). George Drew won the leadership on the first ballot.

Later life

Heighington was a prolific writer authoring articles and poems for '' Saturday Night'', ''The Star Weekly'' and other periodicals, many of which were reissued in a book, ''Whereas and Whatnot'' (1934). In 1943, he published the

war novel A war novel or military fiction is a novel about war. It is a novel in which the primary action takes place on a battlefield, or in a civilian setting (or home front), where the characters are preoccupied with the preparations for, suffering the ...

''The Cannon's Mouth''. He was still active with the military when he was hospitalized on 17 March 1945. He died due to complications from pneumonia at St. Michael's hospital on the evening of 23 March.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heighington, Wilfrid 1897 births 1945 deaths 20th-century Canadian poets Canadian male poets Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs Royal Military College of Canada alumni Writers from Toronto Politicians from Toronto Canadian King's Counsel 20th-century Canadian male writers Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Militia officers Military personnel from Toronto