Saint Laurent, san law RAHN, Louis Stephen (1882-1973), served as prime minister of Canada from 1948 to 1957. He was the second French Canadian to hold the office. Like Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the first French-Canadian prime minister, St. Laurent was a Liberal.
Under St. Laurent's leadership, Canada took an increasingly important part in world affairs. St. Laurent was one of the chief architects of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a military alliance of Western nations. He also had a leading role in transforming the British Empire into the modern, multiracial Commonwealth of Nations. In Canada, he helped bring Newfoundland (now Newfoundland and Labrador) into the nation as the 10th province in 1949. But as a Canadian who was half Irish and half French, St. Laurent considered his outstanding contribution to be the promotion of greater understanding and cooperation between English- and French-speaking Canadians.
Louis St. Laurent entered politics unusually late in life. He was 59 years old when he was first elected to Parliament. St. Laurent then became minister of justice and later, at the age of 66, took office as prime minister. He had already earned a reputation as an outstanding lawyer. Many Canadians thought St. Laurent was too modest and reserved to be an effective politician. But he led the Liberals to victory with overwhelming majorities in 1949 and 1953.
A lean, quick-moving man, St. Laurent had a shy manner and a friendly smile. He had piercing black eyes, white hair, and a neat white mustache. St. Laurent spoke French and English equally well. When he used English, listeners could hear a trace of Irish brogue. St. Laurent's gestures, particularly an expressive hunch of the shoulders, were French.
