Austin Cuvillier

Life & Legacy

Austin Cuvillier (August 20, 1779 – July 11, 1849) was a businessman and political figure in Lower Canada and Canada East. He was a successful Canadien businessmen, unusual when most businessmen in Lower Canada were British. He also was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada for twenty years, as a member for the Parti canadien, which tended to oppose the policies of the British-appointed governors. As a result, he served as a bridge between the conservative business community, and the more radical Parti canadien, although he finally broke with the Parti canadien (by then called the Parti patriote) prior to the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1837–1838.
After the Rebellion, when the British government united Lower Canada with Upper Canada as the province of Canada, he again played a bridging role as the first Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, His fluent bilingualism enabled him to deal with both the English and the French speaking members of the Assembly in their own language, a tradition which carries on with the Speakers of the federal House of Commons. His portrait hangs in the Centre Block of the federal Parliament buildings, along with other former speakers.