Robert Bond

Sir Robert Bond KCMG (* 26 February 1857 in St. John's , Newfoundland ; † 16th March 1927 in Whitbourne , Newfoundland) was a Canadian politician of the Liberal Party and from 1900 to 1909 Prime Minister of Newfoundland .

Life

Bond began his political career in 1882 when he was first elected to the House of Representatives as protégé of Prime Minister William Whiteway in the general election . As early as 1884 he was elected Speaker ( Speaker elected Chamber of Deputies), however, this office exercised only one year until the election defeat of the Liberal Party in 1885.

After the Liberal Party won the House of Representatives elections in 1889 and Whiteway was again Prime Minister, he appointed him as Colonial Secretary on the Executive Council of the British colony . He held this office until the defeat of the Liberals in the general election and was elected chairman of the Liberal Party of Newfoundland as his successor after Whiteway's withdrawal from politics. In this capacity he was also the leader of the opposition in the House of Representatives.

When the government of the Conservative Tory Party was overthrown by Prime Minister James Spearman Winter by a vote of no confidence, Bond was tasked with forming a new government and on March 6, 1900 Prime Minister of the colony of Newfoundland .

In the general elections on November 8, 1900, the Liberal Party achieved a landslide victory with Bond: With 32 out of 36 seats in the House of Representatives, it won the largest majority in Newfoundland's parliament. In 1901 he was raised to the rank of Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George in the personal nobility and from then on carried the title Sir . In the elections of October 31, 1904, Bond achieved another impressive election victory and has now won 30 seats in the House of Representatives.

Bond remained Prime Minister even after Newfoundland's legal status was changed from a colony to a Dominion in December 1907. The next House of Representatives elections on November 2, 1908, however, led to a constitutional crisis, with both Bond's Liberal Party and the People's Party , led by Edward Morris , each winning 18 parliamentary seats. He then resigned on February 22, 1909 from the office of Prime Minister that Morris finally took over on March 2, 1909. In the early elections called by Morris, the People's Party won a large majority with 26 seats, while the Liberal Party only got ten seats and Bond was again leader of the opposition.

He held this position until the end of 1913 and was then replaced by James M. Kent in early 1914 as chairman of the Liberals and opposition leader . On January 10, 1914, he resigned from the Newfoundland Chamber of Deputies and withdrew from public life.

Web links

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