Progressive Conservative party definition of Progressive Conservative party in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

Progressive Conservative party, former Canadian political party, formed in 1942 by the merger of the Progressive and Conservative parties. Beginning with the first Canadian prime minister, John A. Macdonald Macdonald, Sir John Alexander, 1815–91, Canadian statesman, first prime minister of the Dominion of Canada, b. Glasgow. His parents settled in 1820 in Kingston, Ont. Macdonald first practiced law.
..... Click the link for more information. in 1867, the Conservative party dominated Canadian politics for much of the first three decades after confederation in 1867. The Conservative party's commitments to a strong confederation, national economic development, and close ties to Britain were continued by subsequent Conservative prime ministers, John J. C. Abbott Abbott, Sir John Joseph Caldwell, 1821–93, Canadian political leader. He was a graduate of McGill College, where he served on the law faculty (1853–80).
..... Click the link for more information. , John S. D. Thompson Thompson, Sir John Sparrow David, 1844–94, Canadian political leader, b. Nova Scotia. He was elected (1877) to the provincial assembly, was briefly provincial prime minister, and then was made a justice of the supreme court of Nova Scotia.
..... Click the link for more information. , Mackenzie Bowell Bowell, Sir Mackenzie (bō`əl), 1823–1917, Canadian prime minister, b. England.
..... Click the link for more information. , and Charles Tupper Tupper, Sir Charles, 1821–1915, Canadian statesman, b. Nova Scotia. A doctor, he sat (1855–67) in the provincial legislature, became (1864) premier of Nova Scotia, and was a leader in the movement for Canadian confederation.
..... Click the link for more information. . Reactions to the pro-British direction of Conservative policy and the execution of French-Canadian rebel Louis Riel Riel, Louis (lwē rēĕl`), 1844–85, Canadian insurgent, leader of two rebellions, b.
..... Click the link for more information. led to a decline in Conservative party fortunes in Quebec, and the start of a long period of Liberal party Liberal party, Canadian political party. Prior to confederation in 1867, reform parties advocating greater local participation in provincial governments, free trade, and increased separation of church and state existed in Canada West, Canada East, and the Maritime
..... Click the link for more information. dominance.

In the 1920s, Conservative prime ministers Robert Borden Borden, Sir Robert Laird, 1854–1937, Canadian political leader, prime minister during World War I, b. Grand Pré, N.S. Called to the bar in 1878, he won a reputation as a constitutional lawyer.
..... Click the link for more information. and Arthur Meighen Meighen, Arthur (mē`ən), 1874–1960, Canadian political leader, b. Ontario. A lawyer, he began his career in Manitoba.
..... Click the link for more information. managed to forge a coalition of groups alienated by Liberal party policies, but opposition by Quebec to the conscription policy during World War I led to a decline in Conservative support. During the Great Depression Richard B. Bennett Bennett, Richard Bedford, 1870–1947, Canadian prime minister, b. Hopewell, N.B. In 1927 he succeeded Arthur Meighen as leader of the Conservative party; upon the defeat of the Liberals in 1930, he became prime minister.
..... Click the link for more information. formed a Conservative government, though the persistence of the depression led to its eventual collapse. In 1942, incorporating elements of the old Progressive party, the Conservative party adopted the label Progressive Conservative party and advocated a more reform-minded program, but this did little to change the party's national fortunes.

In John Diefenbaker Diefenbaker, John George (dē`fənbā'kər), 1895–1979, Canadian political leader.
..... Click the link for more information. , prime minister from 1957 to 1963, the Progressive Conservative party found a charismatic figure who helped forge a new base for the party in the western provinces. The growing problem of Quebec autonomy contributed to another two decades of Liberal government; Joe Clark Clark, Joe (Charles Joseph Clark), 1939–, prime minister of Canada (1979–80), b. High River, Alta. He entered the Canadian House of Commons from Alberta in 1972 and became leader of the Progressive Conservative party in 1976.
..... Click the link for more information. , party leader from 1976 to 1983, was briefly prime minister in 1979. From 1986, the Progressive Conservative party under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney Mulroney, Brian (Martin Brian Mulroney) (mŭlrō`nē, –r
..... Click the link for more information. attempted to resolve the delicate constitutional issues of provincial status in the failed Meech Lake Accords Meech Lake Accord, set of constitutional reforms designed to induce Quebec to accept the Canada Act . The Accord's five basic points, proposed by Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa, include a guarantee of Quebec's special status as a "distinct society" and a commitment
..... Click the link for more information. and unsuccessful constitutional proposals, and negotiated a free trade agreement (1987) with the United States. The unpopularity of his economic policies, however led Mulroney to resign in 1993.

Kim Campbell Campbell, Kim (Avril Phaedra Campbell), 1947–, Canadian political leader, prime minister of Canada (1993), b. Port Alberni, British Columbia. A litigation lawyer and originally a member of the Social Credit party, she held (1983–88) appointed and elected
..... Click the link for more information. , the party's and Canada's first female leader, briefly governed and led the party (1993) before she and all but two of the party's parliamentary candidates were rejected at the polls. She was succeeded as party leader by Jean Charest Charest, Jean (zhäN shä`rĕ), 1958–, Canadian politician.
..... Click the link for more information. , who led the national party to a partial recovery in the 1997 elections, but the party's full recovery was hampered by the emergence of the Reform party (later the Canadian Alliance Reform party of Canada, which was founded in 1987 in Winnipeg, Man., as a W Canada–based conservative alternative to the Progressive Conservative party . Fiscally conservative and strongly in favor of tax cuts, the Alliance was also strongly federalist.
..... Click the link for more information. ). Joe Clark again became the party's leader in 1998. In 2000 the party won only 12 seats in Parliament, making it the smallest of the five represented parties. although it garnered the third largest bloc of popular votes. Peter MacKay MacKay, Peter (məkā`), 1966–, Canadian politician, b. New Glasgow, N.S.
..... Click the link for more information. succeeded Joe Clark as party leader in 2003, and subsequently led the national party into a merger with the Canadian Alliance to form the Conservative party Conservative party, in Canada.

1 Former Canadian political party that merged with the Progressive party to form the Progressive Conservative party .
..... Click the link for more information. of Canada.