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Jeanne-Mathilde Sauvéb. 26 Apr 1922, Prud'homme, Saskatchewan |
| Title: | Governor General and Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada = Gouverneur général et Commandant en chef au Canada |
| Term: | 14 May 1984 - 29 Jan 1990 |
| Chronology: | 23 Dec 1983, appointed by Commission under the Royal Sign Manual and Signet |
| 14 May 1984, oath of allegiance, oath of office and oath of Keeper of the Great Seal of Canada taken, Senate Chamber, Parliament Buildings, Ottawa, Ontario | |
| 7 Oct 1999, expiration of term with formal installation of appointed successor | |
| Names/titles: | née Jeanne-Mathilde Benoît; surname changed to Sauvé on her marriage (24 Sep 1948) |
| Biography: | |
Studied at Collège Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire in Ottawa, universities of Ottawa and Paris; served as national president of the Young Catholic Students Group (1942-1947); married Maurice Sauvé (1948), who later was a member of Parliament (1962-1968) and forestry minister (1964-1968); began her career as a free-lance journalist; was elected to Parliament, representing the Montréal riding of Ahuntsic (1972-1979) and the riding of Laval-des-Rapides (1979-1984); was one of the founders (1972) of the Institute of Political Research, a government-sponsored agency formed to advise the federal cabinet; occupied the posts of minister of state in charge of science and technology (1972-1974), minister of the environment (1974-1975), minister of communications (1975-1979) in the federal government; assumed the role as adviser to the secretary of state for external affairs, before she was elected as the first woman Speaker of the House of Commons (14 Apr 1980 - 1984); was actively engaged in the reform of the administration of the House; as Governor General, adopted a more formal approach than her predecessor; angered some when she closed to the public the gardens and lawns of Rideau Hall, the official residence. |
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| Sources and notes: | |
| [1] | The Canadian encyclopedia: year 2000 edition. McClelland & Stewart Inc., Toronto. |
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