Birth of John Alexander Macdonald11 January 1815
Birth of John Alexander Macdonald
Historical person
John Alexander Macdonald Biography
Historical biography and chronological timeline for John Alexander Macdonald, based on 19 World History Database records associated with Canada.
19 records1815–189118 events6 places
Chronological biography
1815
1857
Joint Premier1857
Serves briefly as joint premier before Confederation.
1864
Great Coalition22 June 1864
Helps form the Great Coalition to pursue Confederation.
Charlottetown Conference1 September 1864
Attends the Charlottetown Conference where Confederation is discussed.
Quebec Conference10 October 1864
Helps draft the Quebec Resolutions for Confederation.
1866
London Conference4 December 1866
Helps finalize Confederation terms at the London Conference.
1867
Prime Minister of Canada1867
Appointed Prime Minister of Canada
Reform of Political System1867
Influential in the passage of the British North America Act
Confederation1 July 1867
Becomes first prime minister as Confederation creates the Dominion of Canada.
First Election20 September 1867
Wins the first federal election after Confederation.
1869
Rupert Land Purchase19 November 1869
Arranges transfer of Rupert Land from the Hudson Bay Company.
1870
Manitoba Act12 May 1870
Oversees passage of the Manitoba Act.
1871
British Columbia Joins Confederation20 July 1871
Brings British Columbia into Confederation with a railway promise.
1873
Pacific Scandal5 November 1873
Resigns after the Pacific Scandal damages his government.
1878
Prime Minister of Canada1878
Appointed Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada
National Policy17 September 1878
Returns to power advocating tariffs, railways and western settlement.
1880
Arctic Islands1 September 1880
Accepts transfer of British Arctic territories to Canada.
1885
Execution of Louis Riel16 November 1885
Refuses clemency before Louis Riel is executed.
1891
Death of John Alexander Macdonald6 June 1891
Dies in office after dominating early Canadian federal politics.
Titles and roles
Attorney General · Delegate · Joint Premier of Province of Canada · Leader Federation Movement · Prime Minister of Canada
Record provenance
This biography is assembled from World History Database records filtered by country and personal-name fields. Exact duplicate display records are removed. The database is an index rather than a complete narrative biography; formal research should verify entries against relevant primary or specialist sources.