Richard Burpee Hanson, PC

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,...

 (March 20, 1879 – July 14, 1948) 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...

 politician who served as interim leader

Interim leader

An interim leader, in Canadian politics, is a party leader appointed by the party's legislative caucus or the party's executive to temporarily act as leader when a gap occurs between the resignation or death of a party leader and the election of a formal successor...

 of the Conservative Party

Conservative Party of Canada (historical)

The Conservative Party of Canada has gone by a variety of names over the years since Canadian Confederation. Initially known as the "Liberal-Conservative Party", it dropped "Liberal" from its name in 1873, although many of its candidates continued to use this name.As a result of World War I and the...

 from May 14, 1940 until November 11, 1941.

Born in Bocabec, Charlotte County

Charlotte County, New Brunswick

Charlotte County is located in the southwestern portion of New Brunswick, Canada.In most of the county, fishing and aquaculture dominate the local economy, although the town of St. Andrews is a tourist mecca and St...

, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

, the son of Richard B. and Hannah Hanson, Hanson was educated in public schools in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Mount Allison University

Mount Allison University

Mount Allison University is a primarily undergraduate Canadian liberal arts and science university situated in Sackville, New Brunswick. It is located about a half hour from the regional city of Moncton and 20 minutes from the Greater Moncton International Airport...

, and Dalhousie Law School. He was admitted to the Bar of New Brunswick in November 1902 and was created a King's Counsel by the Government of New Brunswick in January 1917. From 1918 to 1920, he was Mayor of Fredericton.

First elected as a Conservative Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for the New Brunswick electoral district of York—Sunbury in the 1921 general election

Canadian federal election, 1921

The Canadian federal election of 1921 was held on December 6, 1921 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 14th Parliament of Canada. The Union government that had governed Canada through the First World War was defeated, and replaced by a Liberal government under the young leader...

, Hanson served continuously in the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 until his defeat in the 1935 election

Canadian federal election, 1935

The Canadian federal election of 1935 was held on October 14, 1935 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 18th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal Party of William Lyon Mackenzie King won a majority government, defeating Prime Minister R.B. Bennett's Conservative Party.The central...

. He was appointed to the Cabinet of R. B. Bennett

R. B. Bennett

Richard Bedford Bennett, 1st Viscount Bennett, PC, KC was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He served as the 11th Prime Minister of Canada from August 7, 1930, to October 23, 1935, during the worst of the Great Depression years...

 in 1934 as Minister of Trade and Commerce.

In the 1940 election

Canadian federal election, 1940

The Canadian federal election of 1940 was the 19th general election in Canadian history. It was held March 26, 1940 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 19th Parliament of Canada...

, he returned to Parliament despite the poor showing of the Conservatives in that election and the personal defeat of Robert Manion. Manion resigned two months after the election. The Conservative caucus

Caucus

A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...

 had chosen Hanson as interim leader, and he served as Conservative party leader until Arthur Meighen

Arthur Meighen

Arthur Meighen, PC, QC was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served two terms as the ninth Prime Minister of Canada: from July 10, 1920 to December 29, 1921; and from June 29 to September 25, 1926. He was the first Prime Minister born after Confederation, and the only one to represent a riding...

 was appointed the party's new leader in November 1941. As Meighen did not have a seat in the House (and then failed to win a seat through a by-election

By-election

A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

), Hanson continued as Leader of the Opposition

Leader of the Opposition (Canada)

The Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition , or simply the Leader of the Opposition is the leader of Canada's Official Opposition, the party with the most seats in the House of Commons that is not a member of the government...

until 1943.