Brooke Claxton
Encyclopedia
Brooke Claxton, PC
, DCM
, KC (23 August 1898 – 13 June 1960) was a Canadian
veteran of World War I
, federal Minister of National Health and Welfare and Minister of National Defence
.
and received his early education at Lower Canada College
. He was a gifted student and entered McGill University
in September 1915 after completing grade 11. After a year at university he left McGill in 1916 and enlisted with the Victoria Rifles of Canada. While at McGill he was a member of The Kappa Alpha Society
.
.
Returning to Canada
after the War, Brooke Claxton completed his course at McGill, graduating with honours in Law. He practised his profession in Montreal. In 1939 he was created a King's Counsel
. He had an academic post at McGill where he was associate professor of commercial law until 1944.
Brooke Claxton was active in community service. He served as President of the Canadian Club of Montreal, Chairman of the Montreal branch of the Canadian Institute of International Affairs, Chairman of the Board of Governors of Lower Canada College
from 1925 until 1934, and was a graduate fellow of the Corporation of McGill University. The burgeoning nationalism after World War I led Brooke Claxton to become involved in associations such as the Canadian League and the League of Nations
Society. He was also an intervenor on behalf of the federal government in the constitutional
issue concerning jurisdiction over radio
broadcasting. He was active in laying the foundations for the establishment of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
.
His political career began in the general election of 1940 when he was first elected to the House of Commons as Liberal Member for the constituency of St. Lawrence-St. George, Montreal. He was re-elected in 1945 and again in 1949. He was appointed in 1943 as Parliamentary Assistant to the Prime Minister
. He served in the federal Liberal cabinets of Mackenzie King
and Louis St. Laurent. In 1944 he was named the first Minister of the newly created Department of National Health and Welfare (1944–46). He was responsible for the organization of the Department and implementation of the administration system for the universal Family Allowances social welfare scheme. In 1946 Brooke Claxton became Minister of National Defence in which portfolio he served until 1954.
In 1947 he headed the Canadian delegation to the British Commonwealth
Conference on Japan
held in Australia
. As vice-chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Newfoundland
, in 1949 he signed the terms of union
on behalf of Canada. He represented Canada at the meetings of the Defence Committee under the North Atlantic Treaty
in Washington, D.C.
, Paris
and The Hague
. As Minister of National Defence he guided post-war demobilization, helped shape Canadian Cold War
foreign policy, and presided over Canada’s participation in the Korean War
.
In 1947, Claxton reopened RMC as a 3-service cadet college offering a 4-year academic degree. He said, "The role of the officer in modern war can only be properly discharged if they have education and standing in the community comparable to that of any of the other professions as well as high qualities of character and physique.”
In 1949 he appointed Rear-Admiral Rollo Mainguy
to head a commission of inquiry into the so-called "mutinees" on several navy ships that year. The Mainguy Report found no sign of Communist subversion, and noted that the sailors involved had some justified grieveances (see Royal Canadian Navy#"Mutinees" in 1949).
in Kingston Ontario. Savage, who served in the Army, Royal Engineers, 56th Field Coy informed Claxton about the recruiting (hazing
) practises then in place at the RMC
. As Minister of National Defence, Brooke Claxton gave instructions that abuses would not be tolerated when RMC
reopened after the war.
. He was just sixty-one when he died. At his death in 1960, The Montreal Gazette wrote that the Honourable Brooke Claxton “faced death … with unbreakable courage.” He astounded associates by working hard right to the end and “never relaxing his grip.”
He was honoured by the University of Saskatchewan
with the degree of Doctor of Laws at its Golden Jubilee Convocation in 1959.
The Brooke Claxton Building in Ottawa
, where the Department of Health is based, was named in his honour.
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
, DCM
Distinguished Conduct Medal
The Distinguished Conduct Medal was an extremely high level award for bravery. It was a second level military decoration awarded to other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to non-commissioned personnel of other Commonwealth countries.The medal was instituted in 1854, during the Crimean...
, KC (23 August 1898 – 13 June 1960) was a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
veteran of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, federal Minister of National Health and Welfare and Minister of National Defence
Minister of National Defence (Canada)
The Minister of National Defence is a Minister of the Crown; the Canadian politician within the Cabinet of Canada responsible for the Department of National Defence which oversees the Canadian Forces....
.
Early life
He was born in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and received his early education at Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College of Montreal is an elementary and secondary level private school.The college was founded by the Church of St John the Evangelist in 1861 as St. John's School and changed its name to Lower Canada College in 1909, replacing an older school by that name that was founded in...
. He was a gifted student and entered McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in September 1915 after completing grade 11. After a year at university he left McGill in 1916 and enlisted with the Victoria Rifles of Canada. While at McGill he was a member of The Kappa Alpha Society
Kappa Alpha Society
The Kappa Alpha Society , founded in 1825, was the progenitor of the modern fraternity system in North America. It was the first of the fraternities which would eventually become known as the Union Triad...
.
Professional career and achievements
He served overseas with the Royal Canadian Artillery and saw action, which experience marked him profoundly. He was promoted to the rank of Battery Sergeant-Major in the field and was awarded the Distinguished Conduct MedalDistinguished Conduct Medal
The Distinguished Conduct Medal was an extremely high level award for bravery. It was a second level military decoration awarded to other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to non-commissioned personnel of other Commonwealth countries.The medal was instituted in 1854, during the Crimean...
.
Returning to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
after the War, Brooke Claxton completed his course at McGill, graduating with honours in Law. He practised his profession in Montreal. In 1939 he was created a King's Counsel
Queen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
. He had an academic post at McGill where he was associate professor of commercial law until 1944.
Brooke Claxton was active in community service. He served as President of the Canadian Club of Montreal, Chairman of the Montreal branch of the Canadian Institute of International Affairs, Chairman of the Board of Governors of Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College
Lower Canada College of Montreal is an elementary and secondary level private school.The college was founded by the Church of St John the Evangelist in 1861 as St. John's School and changed its name to Lower Canada College in 1909, replacing an older school by that name that was founded in...
from 1925 until 1934, and was a graduate fellow of the Corporation of McGill University. The burgeoning nationalism after World War I led Brooke Claxton to become involved in associations such as the Canadian League and the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
Society. He was also an intervenor on behalf of the federal government in the constitutional
Constitution of Canada
The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada; the country's constitution is an amalgamation of codified acts and uncodified traditions and conventions. It outlines Canada's system of government, as well as the civil rights of all Canadian citizens and those in Canada...
issue concerning jurisdiction over radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
broadcasting. He was active in laying the foundations for the establishment of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
.
Political career
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
. He served in the federal Liberal cabinets of Mackenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King, PC, OM, CMG was the dominant Canadian political leader from the 1920s through the 1940s. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Canada from December 29, 1921 to June 28, 1926; from September 25, 1926 to August 7, 1930; and from October 23, 1935 to November 15, 1948...
and Louis St. Laurent. In 1944 he was named the first Minister of the newly created Department of National Health and Welfare (1944–46). He was responsible for the organization of the Department and implementation of the administration system for the universal Family Allowances social welfare scheme. In 1946 Brooke Claxton became Minister of National Defence in which portfolio he served until 1954.
In 1947 he headed the Canadian delegation to the British Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
Conference on Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
held in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. As vice-chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Newfoundland
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...
, in 1949 he signed the terms of union
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
on behalf of Canada. He represented Canada at the meetings of the Defence Committee under the North Atlantic Treaty
North Atlantic Treaty
The North Atlantic Treaty is the treaty that brought NATO into existence, signed in Washington, D.C. on 4 April 1949. The original twelve nations that signed it and thus became the founding members of NATO were:...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. As Minister of National Defence he guided post-war demobilization, helped shape Canadian Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
foreign policy, and presided over Canada’s participation in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
In 1947, Claxton reopened RMC as a 3-service cadet college offering a 4-year academic degree. He said, "The role of the officer in modern war can only be properly discharged if they have education and standing in the community comparable to that of any of the other professions as well as high qualities of character and physique.”
In 1949 he appointed Rear-Admiral Rollo Mainguy
Rollo Mainguy
Vice-Admiral Edmond Rollo Mainguy, OBE, CD, RCN was a Canadian naval officer.He was born in Victoria, British Columbia in 1901 and attended the Royal Naval College of Canada during World War I....
to head a commission of inquiry into the so-called "mutinees" on several navy ships that year. The Mainguy Report found no sign of Communist subversion, and noted that the sailors involved had some justified grieveances (see Royal Canadian Navy#"Mutinees" in 1949).
Family
Brooke Claxton's brother-in-law was Second Lieutenant Donaldson Lizars Savage who died on November 15, 1916 at the age of 20. Savage was killed in action in Somme, France the same year he graduated from the Royal Military College of CanadaRoyal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
in Kingston Ontario. Savage, who served in the Army, Royal Engineers, 56th Field Coy informed Claxton about the recruiting (hazing
Hazing
Hazing is a term used to describe various ritual and other activities involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a group....
) practises then in place at the RMC
Royal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
. As Minister of National Defence, Brooke Claxton gave instructions that abuses would not be tolerated when RMC
Royal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
reopened after the war.
Later life
In 1954 he retired from politics, but continued to play an important role in the creation of the Canada CouncilCanada Council
The Canada Council for the Arts, commonly called the Canada Council, is a Crown Corporation established in 1957 to act as an arts council of the government of Canada, created to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts. It funds Canadian artists and...
. He was just sixty-one when he died. At his death in 1960, The Montreal Gazette wrote that the Honourable Brooke Claxton “faced death … with unbreakable courage.” He astounded associates by working hard right to the end and “never relaxing his grip.”
He was honoured by the University of Saskatchewan
University of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
with the degree of Doctor of Laws at its Golden Jubilee Convocation in 1959.
The Brooke Claxton Building in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, where the Department of Health is based, was named in his honour.