James Ralston

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James Ralston

James Layton Ralston, PC

Queen's Privy Council for Canada

The Queen's Privy Council for Canada , sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or the Privy Council, is the council of advisers to the Monarchy of Canada, whose members are appointed by the Governor General of Canada of Canada for life on the advice of the Prime Minister of Canada....
(September 27, 1881 – May 21, 1948) was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
lawyer, soldier and politician.

Born in Amherst, Nova Scotia

Amherst, Nova Scotia

Amherst is a Canada town in northwestern Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia.Located at the northeast end of the Cumberland Basin, an arm of the Bay of Fundy, Amherst is strategically situated on the eastern boundary of the Tantramar Marshes 3 kilometres east of the interprovincial border with New Brunswick and 65 kilometres east o...
, Ralston graduated from law school

Dalhousie Law School

The Dalhousie Law School, part of Dalhousie University in Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada was established in 1883, making it the oldest university common law school in the Commonwealth of Nations....
at Dalhousie University

Dalhousie University

Dalhousie University is a university located in Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada.As the largest post-secondary educational institution in the Maritimes it offers a wide array of programs, including a medical program and the Dalhousie Law School....
in 1903 and practised law in Amherst. Ralston was the federal Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is a major political party in Canada. The party is positioned in the centre-left of the Politics of Canada....
candidate for Cumberland

Cumberland (electoral district)

Cumberland was a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1968. It was created in the British North America Act of 1867, and was abolished in 1966 when it was merged into Cumberland?Colchester North electoral district ....
in the 1908 federal election

Canadian federal election, 1908

The Canadian federal election of 1908 was held on October 26 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 11th Canadian Parliament of Canada....
but was unsuccessful in being elected.

He subsequently entered public life when he ran as the provincial Liberal

Liberal Party of Nova Scotia

The Liberal Party of Nova Scotia is a political party in Nova Scotia, Canada....
candidate for Cumberland North

Cumberland North

Cumberland North is a provincial electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that elects one member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.The Member of the Legislative Assembly since 1997 has been Independent Ernie Fage, who, until December 18, 2007, was a Progressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia MLA....
and was elected in the 1911 provincial election.

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James Layton Ralston, PC

Queen's Privy Council for Canada

Canada

Amherst, Nova Scotia

Dalhousie Law School

Dalhousie University

Liberal Party of Canada

Cumberland (electoral district)

Canadian federal election, 1908

Liberal Party of Nova Scotia

The Liberal Party of Nova Scotia is a political party in Nova Scotia, Canada....
candidate for Cumberland North

Cumberland North

World War I

World War I, or the First World War , was a global military conflict which involved the Great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War I and the Central Powers....
as an officer in the 85th Canadian Infantry Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders), rising to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in 1918 and was decorated for bravery. He was promoted to commanding officer of the Nova Scotia Highlanders and pursued a career as a professional soldier in Canada's post-war army, rising to the rank of Colonel

Colonel

Colonel is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country in the world. It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures....
in 1924.

Ralston left the military and entered federal politics once again when he was unsuccessful as the Liberal candidate for Halifax

Halifax (electoral district)

Halifax is a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1867.Since October 14, 2008, its Member of the Parliament has been Megan Leslie of the New Democratic Party....
in the 1926 federal election

Canadian federal election, 1926

The Canadian federal election of 1926 was held on September 14 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 16th Canadian Parliament of Canada....
, held September 14.

Despite losing the general election, Ralston was appointed to the cabinet

Cabinet of Canada

The Cabinet of Canada plays an important role in the Government of Canada, in accordance with the Westminster System.A council of Minister of the Crown chaired by the Prime Minister, the Cabinet is the senior echelon of the Ministry ; the terms Cabinet and Ministry are sometimes used interchangeably, a subtle inaccuracy which can...
by Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Canada

The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary Minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet of Canada, and thus head of government of Canada. The office is not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of the constitution of Canada; executive authority is formally vested in the Monarchy of Canada and exercised on hi...
William Lyon Mackenzie King

William Lyon Mackenzie King

William Lyon Mackenzie King, Queen's Privy Council for Canada, Order of Merit , Order of St Michael and St George was a Canadian lawyer, economist, university professor, civil servant, journalist, and politician....
and became the Minister of National Defence on October 8. Prime Minister King created a seat for Ralston by appointing the MP for Shelburne-Yarmouth, Paul Lacombe Hatfield, to the Senate, thus opening the riding for a by-election

By-election

A by-election or bye-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly-scheduled elections....
. Ralston won by acclaimation on November 2, 1926, entering the 16th Parliament.

Ralston served as Minister of National Defence until the defeat of King's government in the 1930 federal election

Canadian federal election, 1930

The Canadian federal election of 1930 was held on July 28, 1930 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 17th Canadian Parliament of Canada....
but was re-elected and remained the MP for Shelburne-Yarmouth through the 17th Parliament, serving in His Majesty's Loyal Opposition.

The riding of Shelburne-Yarmouth was consolidated into the new riding of Shelburne-Yarmouth-Clare in 1935 and Ralston opted to not run again, returning to the legal profession, despite the Liberal party regaining power. Ralston was appointed the Canadian delegate to the Third London Naval Conference

London Naval Conference

There were three major international naval conferences in London, the first in 1908-09, the second in 1930 and the third in 1935. The latter two, together with the Washington Naval Conference in 1921-22 and the Geneva Conferences , resulted in agreements between the major powers on navy vessel numbers, armaments and the rules of engagement in the i...
that December, and he later sat on several Royal Commissions.

Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939 and Canada's entry into World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
was seen as inevitable. The ensuing international crisis saw Prime Minister King court Ralston's military and cabinet experience. Ralston re-entered active public service and he was subsequently appointed as Minister of Finance on September 6, 1939, replacing Charles Dunning who was in ill-health.

Canada declared war on Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the colloquial English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party , which established a Totalitarianism dictatorship that existed from 1933 to 1945....
on September 10 and Ralston participated in the King government's revamping of Canada's 2-decade-long neglected military. The death of Alfred E. MacLean, MP for Prince

Prince (electoral district)

Prince was a federal electoral district in Prince Edward Island, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1968....
on October 28 opened up the opportunity for Prime Minister King to declare a by-election in a Liberal-friendly riding that Ralston could run in. Ralston was subsequently elected by acclamation on January 2, 1940 and entered the 18th Parliament. He was re-elected several months later on March 26 and continued into the 19th Parliament.

In the political tradition of the era, as a federal minister, Ralston brought government patronage to the impoverished rural riding in Prince Edward Island, largely through military spending. On June 10, 1940 the Minister of National Defence, Norman McLeod Rogers

Norman McLeod Rogers

Norman McLeod Rogers was a Canadian lawyer and statesman. He served as the member of parliament for Kingston, Ontario, Ontario, Canada and as a cabinet minister in the government of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King....
was killed when his VIP airplane crashed in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a Provinces and territories of Canada located in the Central Canada part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest, after Quebec, in total area....
.

Prime Minister King subsequently shuffled the cabinet and gave Ralston the National Defence portfolio on July 5. Despite not being from Prince Edward Island, Ralston continued his support to that province as political minister by authorizing the establishment of RCAF Station Mount Pleasant

RCAF Station Mount Pleasant

RCAF Station Mount Pleasant was a Royal Canadian Air Force station in Mount Pleasant, Prince Edward Island, Prince Edward Island, Canada.The aerodrome opened during World War II in 1940 under the auspices of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan ; it was intended to serve as a relief landing field for No....
, RCAF Station Summerside (both in his riding) and RCAF Station Charlottetown

RCAF Station Charlottetown

RCAF Station Charlottetown was a Royal Canadian Air Force station located in Sherwood, Prince Edward Island, Prince Edward Island. Today's Charlottetown Airport maintains a remnant of the base's runways near its general aviation terminal, however all buildings and most infrastructure from the base has been removed....
, as well as a radar station in Tignish (also in his riding).

Ralston supported conscription

Conscription

Conscription is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by an established authority. It is most often used in the specific sense of government policies that require citizens to serve in the military....
for overseas service during World War II

World War II

Prime Minister of Canada

William Lyon Mackenzie King

William Lyon Mackenzie King, Queen's Privy Council for Canada, Order of Merit , Order of St Michael and St George was a Canadian lawyer, economist, university professor, civil servant, journalist, and politician....
's government would not introduce it. The resignation issue was dropped, but after visiting Canadian troops in Europe

Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
in 1944, he argued again that conscription was necessary, and a schism developed in King's cabinet (see Conscription Crisis of 1944

Conscription Crisis of 1944

The Conscription Crisis of 1944 was a political and military crisis following the introduction of conscription in Canada during World War II. It was similar to the Conscription Crisis of 1917, but was not as politically damaging....
). King forced him to resign, replacing him with Andrew McNaughton

Andrew McNaughton

General Andrew George Latta McNaughton, Order of the Companions of Honour, Order of the Bath, Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Distinguished Service Order, Canadian Forces Decoration, Queen's Privy Council for Canada was a Canada army officer, politician and diplomat....
on November 1, 1944.

Ralston left politics the following year and died in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal, or Montr?al, is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada of Quebec and the List of largest cities and second largest cities by country List of the 100 largest municipalities in Canada by population....
in 1948.

The Colonel James L. Ralston Armoury in Amherst, Nova Scotia is named in his honour and is the historic home of the Nova Scotia Highlanders Regiment.

James Ralston

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