Louis St. Laurent

Louis Stephen St. Laurent PC CC QC , was the 12th Prime Minister of Canada, fromNovember 1948 toJune 1957. He was a Liberal with a strong base in the Catholic francophone community, from which base he had long mobilised support to Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King. His foreign policy initiatives transformed Canada from an isolationist excolony with little role in world affairs to an active middle power. St. Laurent was an enthusiastic proponent of Canadas joining NATO in 1949 to fight Communist totalitarianism, overcoming opposition from some intellectuals, the Labour Progressive Party, and many French Canadians. The contrast with Mackenzie King was not dramatic160 they agreed on most policies. St. Laurent had more hatred of communism, and less fear of the United States. He was neither an idealist nor a bookish intellectual, but an eminently moderate, cautious conservative man160... and a strong Canadian nationalist.

Louis StLaurent was born onFebruary 1882 in Compton, Quebec, a village in the Eastern Townships to JeanBaptisteMose SaintLaurent, a FrenchCanadian, and Mary Anne Broderick, an IrishCanadian. He grew up fluently bilingual. His English had a noticeable Irish brogue, while his gestures were French.

Source: Wikipedia