Louis-Philippe Brodeur

Who was Louis-Philippe Brodeur?

Louis-Philippe Brodeur, PC QC baptised Louis-Joseph-Alexandre Brodeur was a Canadian parliamentarian and public servant.

Born in Beloeil, Quebec, he was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 1891 election as Liberal Member of Parliament for Rouville, Quebec. He represented the riding continuously until his retirement prior to the 1911 election.

Brodeur was a firm supporter of Sir Wilfrid Laurier and came from a Rouges family. His father fought in the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1837, and his grandfather was killed in the Rebellion's Battle of Saint-Charles.

As a young man, Brodeur studied law and engaged in journalism for Liberal newspapers such as la Patrie and L'Électeur before becoming editor of Le Soir. He was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons at the age of 29. After the Liberals won the 1896 election, Brodeur was appointed deputy speaker. He became Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons following the 1900 election. He was appointed as a Queen's Counsel in 1899.

In 1904, he was appointed to the Laurier Cabinet as Minister of Inland Revenue where he introduced anti-trust legislation to protect tobacco farmers from the monopolistic practices of the American Tobacco Company.