Honoré Mercier Jr. (20 March 1875 – 19 June 1937) was a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Quebec A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the authority, legal authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with th ...

. He was the son of the former

Quebec Premier The premier of Quebec ( (masculine) or eminine is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the Coalition Avenir Québec, sworn in on October 18, 2018, following that ...

Honoré Mercier Honoré Mercier (October 15, 1840 – October 30, 1894) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician in Quebec. He was the ninth premier of Quebec from January 27, 1887, to December 21, 1891, as leader of the Parti National or Quebec Libera ...

and father of

Honoré Mercier III Honoré Mercier III (17 November 1908 – 14 July 1988) was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec, the grandson of Honoré Mercier and the son of Honoré Mercier, Jr., Honoré Mercier ''fils''. Mercier was born in Montreal to Honoré ...

Early years

Mercier was born in

Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec Saint-Hyacinthe ( , ) 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 Montérégie r ...

, and attended

Collège Sainte-Marie In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

and

Université Laval (; English: ''Laval University)'' is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university traces its roots to the Séminaire de Québec, founded by François de Montmorency-Laval in 1663, making it the oldest institutio ...

law school. He was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 1900 and became a KC in 1913. Mercier was a lawyer prior to his political career.

Politics

He was first elected in the

1904 Quebec general election The 1904 Quebec general election was held on November 25, 1904, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by Simon-Napoléon Parent, was re-elected, defeating the ...

for the

Quebec Liberal Party The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; , PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has traditionally supported a form of Quebec federalist ideology with nuance ...

, but was defeated in

1908 This is the longest year in either the Julian or Gregorian calendars, having a duration of 31622401.38 seconds of Terrestrial Time (or ephemeris time), measured according to the definition of mean solar time. Events January * January ...

. However, he was then elected in a 1908 by-election, and remained in the Legislative Assembly until

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King Edward VIII, following the death of his father, George V, at Sandringham House. * January 28 – Death and state funer ...

, when he did not run for re-election. He served in numerous Cabinet posts under Premiers

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 ...

and

Louis-Alexandre Taschereau Louis-Alexandre Taschereau (; March 5, 1867 – July 6, 1952) was the 14th premier of Quebec from 1920 to 1936. A member of the Parti libéral du Québec, Taschereau's near 16-year tenure remains the longest uninterrupted term of office among ...

: * Minister of Colonisation * Minister of Mines and Fisheries 1914–1919 * Minister of Lands and Forestry 1919–1936

Outside politics

Besides his legal practice, Mercier was a member, director and headed of various organizations in Quebec: * Director and Secretary-Treasurer, l'École des hautes études commerciales de Montréal 1907-1921 * President, l'Association internationale pour la conservation du gibier et du poisson * Member of Montreal Press Club, * Member of the Canadian Club * Member of Cercle universitaire * Member, Club Saint-Denis * Member, Club de réforme * Member, l'Union interalliée de Paris * Member, Ligue maritime et coloniale française

Gérald Fauteux Joseph Honoré Gérald Fauteux (October 22, 1900 – September 14, 1980) was a Canadian jurist and lawyer who served as the 13th Chief Justice of Canada from 1970 to 1973 and as a puisne justice from 1949 to 1970. Born in Saint-Hyacinthe, Qu ...

was his nephew.

Honours

He was honoured with the Knight (''chevalier'') of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mercier, Honore 1875 births 1937 deaths Quebec Liberal Party MNAs Knights of the Legion of Honour 20th-century members of the National Assembly of Quebec