Spouses of the Prime Ministers of Canada 386306 218655934 2008-06-11T16:24:30Z G2bambino 3011388 copyed, links The '''spouse of the Prime Minister of Canada''' is the wife or husband of the [[Prime Minister of Canada]]. As a public figure, some spouses will, from time to time, participate in various ceremonial, diplomatic, or partisan activities, alongside and on behalf of the Prime Minister. ==Public role== The [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] is not the [[head of state]]; thus, his or her spouse does not play as active a role in Canadian affairs as the [[List of Canadian monarchs#List of Royal Consorts of Canada|royal consorts]] and [[Viceregal consorts of Canada|vice-regal consorts]]. The Prime Minister's spouse, however, frequently accompanies the Prime Minister on campaign and other public appearances, and often hosts dignitaries at the Prime Minister's residence, [[24 Sussex Drive]]. At times, prime ministers' spouses have used their public status to promote charitable causes{{ndash}} [[Mila Mulroney]] was a spokesperson for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and other children's charities, and [[Aline Chrétien]] was an active campaigner for literacy programs. Some prime ministers' spouses have attracted a great deal of attention for other reasons: [[Maryon Pearson]] was noted for her prickly wit, having made a number of famous quips which are still regularly featured in anthologies of famous [[quotation]]s. [[Margaret Trudeau]], whom [[Pierre Trudeau]] married while in office, became a notable celebrity in her own right. [[Maureen McTeer]], spouse of [[Joe Clark]], attracted controversy when she became the first spouse of a Prime Minister to retain her own surname after marriage. Mila Mulroney also rose to some notoriety due to her spending habits, and was satirized in ''[[Frank (magazine)|Frank]]'' as [[Imelda Marcos|Imelda]] because of her purportedly large collection of shoes. Some commentators have tried to style prime ministers' wives as ''First Lady of Canada'', similar to the style of [[First Lady]] used in republics, but this title is incorrect. Use of the term is based on the pervasive influence of American media, and not a defined public role or title for the Prime Minister's spouse. ==Other notes== Canada has had two prime ministers who were bachelors{{ndash}} [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] and [[R.B. Bennett]]. [[Mackenzie Bowell]], a widower whose wife, Harriet, died in 1884, was also not married during his term in office. [[Pierre Trudeau]], the first Canadian Prime Minister to get married ''during'' his term in office, also began his term as a bachelor{{ndash}} and ended it separated from Margaret Trudeau. Three Canadian Prime Ministers{{ndash}} [[John A. Macdonald]], [[Alexander Mackenzie]] and [[John Diefenbaker]]{{ndash}} were also widowers, who were each married to their second wives during their terms as Prime Minister. Macdonald's first wife was [[Isabella Clark]], Mackenzie's was Helen Neil, and Diefenbaker's was [[Edna Brower]]. Canada has also had one female Prime Minister, [[Kim Campbell]]; however, as she was not married during her term in office. There has never been a male spouse of the Prime Minister, although Campbell's first husband, [[Nathan Divinsky]], tried to attract media attention in [[1993]] by billing himself as the '''ex-'''husband of the Prime Minister. Campbell had finalized her divorce from her second husband, Howard Eddy, in early 1993. She briefly dated [[Gregory Lekhtman]], the inventor of [[Exerloper]]s, during her term as Prime Minister, but kept the relationship relatively private and did not involve him in the [[Canadian federal election, 1993|election campaign]]. ==Spouses of the Prime Ministers== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Rank ! Name ! Dates ! Spouse of |- | 1. | [[Agnes Macdonald]] | [[July 1]], [[1867]] – [[November 5]], [[1873]] | Sir [[John A. Macdonald]] |- | 2. | [[Jane Mackenzie]] | [[November 7]], [[1873]] – [[October 8]], [[1878]] | [[Alexander Mackenzie]] |- | | [[Agnes Macdonald]] | [[October 17]], [[1878]] – [[June 6]], [[1891]] | Sir [[John A. Macdonald]] |- | 3. | [[Mary Abbott]] | [[June 16]], [[1891]] – [[November 24]], [[1892]] | Sir [[John Joseph Caldwell Abbott]] |- | 4. | [[Annie Thompson]] | [[December 5]], [[1892]] – [[December 12]], [[1894]] | Sir [[John Sparrow David Thompson]] |- | | none (widower) | [[December 21]], [[1894]] – [[April 27]], [[1896]] | Sir [[Mackenzie Bowell]] |- | 5. | [[Frances Tupper]] | [[May 1]], [[1896]] – [[July 8]], [[1896]] | Sir [[Charles Tupper]] |- | 6. | [[Zoé Laurier]] | [[July 11]], [[1896]] – [[October 7]], [[1911]] | Sir [[Wilfrid Laurier]] |- | 7. | [[Laura Borden]] | [[October 10]], [[1911]] – [[July 10]], [[1920]] | Sir [[Robert Laird Borden]] |- | 8. | [[Isabel Meighen]] | [[July 10]], [[1920]] – [[December 29]], [[1921]] | [[Arthur Meighen]] |- | | none (never married) | [[December 29]], [[1921]] – [[June 29]], [[1926]] | [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] |- | | [[Isabel Meighen]] | [[June 29]], [[1926]] – [[November 25]], [[1926]] | [[Arthur Meighen]] |- | | none (never married) | [[November 25]], [[1926]] – [[August 7]], [[1930]] | [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] |- | | none (never married) | [[August 7]], [[1930]] – [[October 23]], [[1935]] | [[R.B. Bennett]] |- | | none (never married) | [[October 23]], [[1935]] – [[November 15]], [[1948]] | [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] |- | 9. | [[Jeanne St. Laurent]] | [[November 15]], [[1948]] – [[June 21]], [[1957]] | [[Louis Stephen St. Laurent]] |- | 10. | [[Olive Diefenbaker]] | [[June 21]], [[1957]] – [[April 22]], [[1963]] | [[John George Diefenbaker]] |- | 11. | [[Maryon Pearson]] | [[April 22]], [[1963]] – [[April 20]], [[1968]] | [[Lester B. Pearson]] |- | | none (unmarried as of 1968; married in office) | [[April 20]], [[1968]] – [[March 4]], [[1971]] | [[Pierre Trudeau]] |- | 12. | [[Margaret Trudeau]] | [[March 4]], [[1971]] – [[1977]]* | [[Pierre Trudeau]] |- | | none (separated) de facto [[Margaret Trudeau]] | [[1977]] – [[June 4]], [[1979]]* | [[Pierre Trudeau]] |- | 13. | [[Maureen McTeer]] | [[June 4]], [[1979]] – [[March 2]], [[1980]] | [[Joe Clark]] |- | | none (separated) de facto [[Margaret Trudeau]] | [[March 2]], [[1980]] – [[April 2]], [[1984]]* | [[Pierre Trudeau]] |- | | none (divorced) | [[April 2]], [[1984]] – [[June 30]], [[1984]]* | [[Pierre Trudeau]] |- | 14. | [[Geills Turner]] | [[June 30]], [[1984]] – [[September 17]], [[1984]] | [[John Turner]] |- | 15. | [[Mila Mulroney]] | [[September 17]], [[1984]] – [[June 25]], [[1993]] | [[Brian Mulroney]] |- | | none (divorced twice, remarried after term ended) | [[June 25]], [[1993]] – [[November 4]], [[1993]] | [[Kim Campbell]] |- | 16. | [[Aline Chrétien]] | [[November 4]], [[1993]] – [[December 12]], [[2003]] | [[Jean Chrétien]] |- | 17. | [[Sheila Martin]] | [[December 12]], [[2003]] – [[February 6]], [[2006]] | [[Paul Martin]] |- | 18. | [[Laureen Harper]] | [[February 6]], [[2006]] – present | [[Stephen Harper]] |} (*)The Trudeaus separated in [[1977]] but did not obtain a divorce until [[April 2]] [[1984]]. Trudeau left office in June of 1984, two months after his divorce was finalized. {{Prime Minister of Canada see also}} [[Category:Spouses of the Prime Ministers of Canada|*]]