Robert Wilkes was an Irish

Irish people

The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...

-Canadian politician and businessman. Wilkes came to Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 from his native Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 at sixteen, working as a clerk before buying a jewelry firm, Rossin Brothers, which he expanded into a cross-country operation. He later invested in railroads, and in 1871 he was appointed director of the Canadian Bank of Commerce

Canadian Bank of Commerce

The Canadian Bank of Commerce was a Canadian bank cofounded in 1867 by William McMaster. The Canadian Bank of Commerce opened in Toronto with a charter in 1866 that it purchased from the defunct Bank of Canada, which folded in 1858....

.

In 1872 he was elected 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,...

 for Toronto Centre

Toronto Centre

Toronto Centre is a federal electoral district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1872 to 1925, and since 1935, under the names Centre Toronto , Toronto Centre , Rosedale and Toronto Centre—Rosedale .Toronto Centre covers the heart of...

, as a Liberal

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

. The election was regarded by observers on both sides as rife with enmity, bribery and corruption. In 1874 he was re-elected, but the return was voided and he retired from politics.

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