Lester B. Pearson

**Lester Bowles "Mike" Pearson**  (April 23, 1897 – December 27, 1972) was the eighteenth Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968.  He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for organizing the first peacekeeping force.

As Prime Minister, Pearson's government created universal health care and the Canada Pension Plan. They also created the Canada Student Loan Program, the Order of Canada, and changed the flag of Canada to the one with maple leaves. Pearson kept Canada from fighting in the Vietnam War and _de facto_ stopped capital punishment from being used in Canada. Many people think he is one of the most important Canadians of the 20th century.

## Early life

Pearson was born in Newtonbrook, Ontario, the son of Edwin Arthur Pearson, a Methodist minister and Anne Sarah Bowles. He went to the University of Toronto and Oxford University. Pearson was ambassador to the United States and the United Nations. He played for the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club while on a scholarship at Oxford University.

## Political career

Pearson entered politics in 1948, as Minister of External Affairs in the Liberal government of Louis St. Laurent.  He became leader of the Liberal Party in 1958.  He lost two elections as leader, until winning a third to become Prime Minister in 1963. His government brought in social programs and new standards for workers.  Pearson signed the Canada-United States Automotive Agreement, also called the Auto Pact.  He retired in 1968.  The next Prime Minister was Pierre Trudeau.

## Death

Pearson died from liver cancer in Ottawa, Canada, aged 75.

## Infobox (prime minister)

- **honorific-prefix**: The Right Honourable
- **birthname**: Lester Bowles Pearson
- **caption**: Pearson in 1957
- **office**: 18th Prime Minister of Canada
- **monarch**: Elizabeth II
- **governor general**: Georges Vanier
Roland Michener
- **predecessor**: John Diefenbaker
- **successor**: Pierre Trudeau
- **office2**: Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
- **predecessor2**: Louis St. Laurent
- **successor2**: Pierre Trudeau
- **office3**: Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada), Leader of the Opposition
- **monarch3**: Elizabeth II
- **primeminister3**: John Diefenbaker
- **predecessor3**: Louis St. Laurent
- **successor3**: John Diefenbaker
- **office4**: 8th Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada), Secretary of State for External Affairs
- **primeminister4**: William Lyon Mackenzie King, W. L. Mackenzie King
Louis St. Laurent
- **predecessor4**: Louis St. Laurent
- **successor4**: John Diefenbaker
- **order5**: 2nd
- **office5**: List of Canadian ambassadors to the United StatesCanadian Ambassador to the United States
- **term start5**: 1944
- **term end5**: 1946
- **primeminister5**: W. L. Mackenzie King
- **predecessor5**: Leighton McCarthy
- **successor5**: H. H. Wrong
- **order6**: 8th
- **office6**: President of the United Nations General Assembly
- **term6**: 1952
- **predecessor6**: Luis Padilla Nervo
- **successor6**: Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
- **riding9**: Algoma East
- **parliament9**: Canadian
- **predecessor9**: Thomas Farquhar
- **successor9**: None (district abolished)
- **birth place**: Newtonbrook, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- **death place**: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- **restingplace**: Maclaren Cemetery, MacLaren Cemetery, Wakefield, Quebec
- **party**: Liberal Party of Canada, Liberal
- **children**: 2, including Geoffrey Pearson
- **profession**: Diplomat, historian, soldier
- **nationality**: Canadians, Canadian
- **blank1**: Awards
- **data1**: Nobel Prize for Peace (1957)
- **signature**: Lester B Pearson Signature 2.svg
- **nickname**: "Mike"
- **serviceyears**: 1915–18
- **battles**: World War I