Gaspard Fauteux

Gaspard Fauteux, PC (August 27, 1898 – March 29, 1963) was a Canadian parliamentarian, Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada (1945–1949), and the 19th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (1950–1958).

The Honourable

Gaspard Fauteux
19th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
In office
October 3, 1950 – February 14, 1958
MonarchGeorge VI
Elizabeth II
Governor GeneralThe Viscount Alexander of Tunis
Vincent Massey
PremierMaurice Duplessis
Preceded byEugène Fiset
Succeeded byOnésime Gagnon
21st Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
In office
September 6, 1945 – September 14, 1949
MonarchGeorge VI
Governor GeneralThe Earl of Athlone
The Viscount Alexander of Tunis
Prime MinisterWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King
Louis St. Laurent
Preceded byJames Allison Glen
Succeeded byWilliam Ross Macdonald
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for St. Mary
In office
February 9, 1942 – October 3, 1950
Preceded byHermas Deslauriers
Succeeded byHector Dupuis
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for Montréal–Sainte-Marie
In office
August 24, 1931 – November 25, 1935
Preceded byCamillien Houde
Succeeded byCandide Rochefort
Personal details
Born(1898-08-27)August 27, 1898
Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec
DiedMarch 29, 1963(1963-03-29) (aged 64)
Montreal, Quebec
NationalityCanadian
Political partyLiberal
Other political
affiliations		Quebec Liberal Party
RelationsHonoré Mercier, Grandfather
Joseph Godbout, Grandfather
Lomer Gouin, Uncle
Claude Castonguay, Son-in-law

He was born in St-Hyacinthe, Quebec, to a political family. His grandfather, Honoré Mercier and his uncle, Lomer Gouin, were both former Premiers of Quebec. His grandmother's second husband was Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) and later Senator Joseph Godbout. His brother was the judge Gérald Fauteux.

Fauteux married Marguerite Barré, daughter of the Canadian artist and animator Raoul Barré, on September 18th, 1923. The couple had 4 children; Roger, Paul, Marie (Mimi) and Gaspard Jr.

A dentist by training and then a businessman, he first entered politics at the provincial election defeating Quebec Conservative Party leader and Mayor of Montreal Camillien Houde to win a seat in the Quebec legislature for the Quebec Liberal Party. He lost his seat in 1935 and returned to business. He was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada from the Quebec riding of St. Mary in a 1942 by-election, and was re-elected in the 1945 federal election by again defeating Camillien Houde. He was re-elected in the 1949 election.

In Parliament, Fauteux opposed conscription and was a delegate to the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Conference that followed World War II.

Despite his lack of legal training or long tenure in the House, he was tapped by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King to become Speaker following the 1945 election.

His inexperience in parliamentary procedure caused him difficulties in the Chair. He had a habit of making decisions before MPs had presented their arguments. He preferred the social aspects of the position and entertained and travelled frequently.

He returned to the backbenches after the 1949 election and, in 1950 was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec by Governor General Harold Alexander, Earl Alexander of Tunis, on the advice of his prime minister, Louis St. Laurent.

After his death in 1963, he was entombed at the Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery in Montreal.[1]

References
  1. Répertoire des personnages inhumés au cimetière ayant marqué l'histoire de notre société (in French). Montreal: Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery.
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