| Louis-Joseph Papineau (mural by Jean Cartier, Papineau metro station, Montreal) |
Louis-Joseph Papineau (1786-1871) born in Montreal, Quebec was politician, lawyer, and the landlord of the seigneurie de la Petite-Nation.
Admitted to the bar in 1810, he exercised his profession sporadically because of his involment in politics. Elected Member of Parliament in the riding of Kent in 1808, he gave his support to the Parti canadien. He served as captain of the militia during the war of 1812.
Papineau was elected Speaker of the Legislative Assembly on January 21, 1815. The same year, he replaced Pierre-Stanislas Bédard as leader of the Parti canadien. Under his leadership, the party worked for the reform of Lower Canada's political institutions and strongly opposed the abuses of the appointed Legislative Council.
He married Julie Bruneau, in Québec City on April 29, 1818. In 1820, he refused a position in the Legislative Council offered by governor Dalhousie.
In 1822, he was sent to London with John Neilson to present a petition of 60,000 signatures against the Union project. While in Great Britain, he was replaced by Joseph-Rémi Vallières as Speaker.
In 1826, he was chosen leader of the Parti patriote, a reformed and more radical Parti canadien. In 1831, he sponsored a law which granted full equivalent political rights to Jews, 27 years before anywhere else in the British Empire.
He took part of the comittee which wrote the Ninety-Two Resolutions passed by the Legislative Assembly on February 21, 1834.
After the arrival of the Russell Resolutions in Lower Canada on March 6, 1837, he lead the movement of protest and particiated to numerous popular assemblies. He lead the commitee which organised the boycott of essentially all of the British imports to Lower Canada.
On November 15, he created the Conseil des patriotes with Edmund Bailey O'Callaghan. He left Montreal for St-Denis on November 16, after governor Lord Gosford ordered his arrest that of 25 other patriot leaders. He crossed the US border on November 25.
Arrived in the United-States he stayed at his friend judge Reuben Hyde Walworth's family house in Saratoga. He organised for his wife and his children to meet him there. For some time, attempted to gain the support of American President Martin Van Buren. The United-States declared themselves neutral in the conflict opposing Great Britain and its Canadian colonies.
On February 8, 1839, he left New York City for Paris where he hoped to get France involved. In May, he published the Histoire de l'insurrection du Canada in the magazine Progrès. Despited meeting with influential politicans such as Lamartine, and Lamennais France also remained neutral.
He left France and returned to Montreal when he was granted amnesty in 1845.Early Involment in Politics
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly
Leader of the Patriotes
In Exile