Tupper, Sir Charles

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. Despite the opposition of Joseph Howe, Tupper eventually brought Nova Scotia into the dominion. A loyal supporter of Prime Minister John Macdonald, he held several important cabinet posts. As minister of railways and canals (1879–84), he helped achieve the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway. In 1896 he became prime minister of Canada and urged the adoption of a preferential tariff with Great Britain and the colonies, but his Conservative party was defeated that year. Tupper became leader of the opposition, serving until his defeat in the election of 1900. He was made a baronet in 1888.

Bibliography

See his Recollections of Sixty Years (1914); E. M. Saunders, Life and Letters (2 vol., 1916; suppl. ed. by Sir Charles H. Tupper, 1926).