LIBERAL PARTY OF CANADA

French Parti Libral Du Canada, one of the major Canadian political parties. The party originated in the opposition groups that began to emerge during the formation of the party system in the century prior to Canada's confederation as the Dominion of Canada in 1867. Early opposition groups were known as Reformers, but their factional tendencies prevented them from developing into a party proper until the period of the Rebellion of 1837. The Reformers were first able to form a government in 1848, holding power until 1854. In that year a major realignment of political forces occurred: a large number of moderate liberals allied with the conservatives, leaving radical or advanced liberalsknown as Clear Gritsas the nucleus of the Liberal Party that was to develop in the ensuing decade. The first Liberal government was formed in 1873 with Alexander Mackenzie at its head. It was swept from power in elections of 1878, largely because of its free-trade policy, and did not regain office until 1896, when Wilfrid Laurier, a French-Canadian, led it to 15 years of uninterrupted rule. In 1921 the party came back into office with a majority of only one but survived as the ruling party for almost four years through the astuteness of its leader, W.L. Mackenzie King, and through support from the Progressives. Following a three-month interlude of Conservative rule, King returned to office in 1926, remaining in power, except for the period 193035, until his retirement in 1948. The leadership of the party then fell for a second time to a French-Canadian, Louis St. Laurent, under whom it gained large majorities in 1949 and 1953. In 1957 the party lost power to the Progressive Conservatives and did not come back into office until Lester B. Pearson was able to form a minority government in April 1963; another indecisive election in November 1965 continued its predicament of ruling without a majority. In 1968 the leadership passed to Pierre Elliott Trudeau, who in June of that year led the party to a decisive victory. Except for a brief Progressive Conservative government in 197980, the Liberals remained in power through the early 1980s, but by then the popularity of both the party and Trudeau had declined. Trudeau resigned as party leader in 1984, and the party subsequently lost to the Progressive Conservatives. The Liberals regained power in 1993 under the leadership of Jean Chrtien.