Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau

Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau
5th Premier of Quebec
In office 31 October 1879 – 29 July 1882
Preceded by	Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière
Succeeded by	Joseph-Alfred Mousseau
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for Terrebonne
In office 1867–1882
Preceded by	Provincial district created in 1867
Succeeded by	Guillaume-Alphonse Nantel
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Terrebonne
In office 1882–1892
Preceded by	Guillaume-Alphonse Nantel
Succeeded by	Pierre-Julien Leclair
Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
In office 1892–1898
Monarch	Victoria
Preceded by	Auguste-Réal Angers
Succeeded by	Louis-Amable Jetté
Personal details
Born	November 9, 1840(1840-11-09) Sainte-Thérèse, Lower Canada
Died	June 13, 1898( 1898-06-13) (aged 57) Montreal, Quebec
Political party	Conservative Party of Quebec
Other political affiliations	Conservative
Cabinet	Solicitor General (1873-1874) Minister Without Portfolio (1876-1878) Provincial Secretary (1876-1878) Commissioner of Agriculture and Public Works (1879-1881) Commissioner of Railways (1880-1881) Secretary of State of Canada (1882-1892) Minister of Customs (1892)
Religion	Roman Catholic

Sir Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau, PC, KCMG (November 9, 1840 – June 13, 1898), born in Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec, was a French-Canadian lawyer and politician.

As a lawyer, he defended Ambroise-Dydime Lépine against the charge of murdering Thomas Scott during the Red River Rebellion of 1869 – 1870.

He served as the fifth Premier of the Canadian province of Quebec, federal Cabinet minister, and the seventh Lieutenant Governor of Quebec.

After the 1878 Quebec election, he was the Leader of the Opposition. He became premier in 1879 after the fall of the minority government of Henri-Gustave Joly de Lotbinière. He won the 1881 election, but resigned on July 29, 1882 to seek election to the federal House of Commons. He won a by-election held on August 16, 1882.

Chapleau planned to quit politics in 1885 when Louis Riel was sentenced to be hanged but decided to stay, fearing it would only inflame the situation. After Riel was hanged, he was attacked by Quebecers who accused him of the death of Riel along with John A. Macdonald.

He served as cabinet minister under prime ministers John A. Macdonald and John Abbott, but declined to serve under John Thompson. He resigned in 1892, and was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Quebec from December 1892 until January 1898. He died in June of that same year in Montreal.

Elections as party leader

He won the 1881 election.

See also

• Politics of Quebec
• List of Quebec general elections
• Timeline of Quebec history

References

• National Assembly biography (French)
• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
• Joseph-Adolphe Chapleau - Parliament of Canada biography