William Stevens Fielding

Rt. Hon. William Stevens Fielding

William Stevens Fielding, PC (Halifax November 24, 1848-June 23, 1929 Ottawa) was a Canadian journalist, politician, and Premier of Nova Scotia. Fielding became leader of the anti-confederation Nova Scotia Liberal Party. In 1884, he became Premier and won the 1886 election on a pledge to remove Nova Scotia from confederation. When he failed to do this, he turned to economic matters including developing the coal industry.

In 1896, he left provincial politics to become Minister of Finance in the Liberal government of Sir Wilfrid Laurier. In 1910, he negotiated a reciprocity or free trade agreement with the United States which led to the government's defeat in the 1911 general election. Fielding lost his seat, and became editor of the Daily Telegraph of Montreal.

Fielding supported the Unionist government of Sir Robert Borden during the Conscription Crisis of 1917 and returned to the House of Commons as a Liberal-Unionist member. Fielding had widely been seen as Laurier's successor but his betrayal of the party over the conscription issue cost him the 1919 Liberal leadership convention where he lost to William Lyon Mackenzie King by 38 votes. He served again as minister of finance in King's first government formed after the 1921 election. He retired from politics in 1925.

In 1923, Fielding was sworn into the Privy Council of the United Kingdom allowing him to be styled as Right Honourable, a rare privilege among Canadian politicians who have not been Prime Minister.

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Preceded by William T. Pipes	Premier of Nova Scotia 1884 – 1896	Succeeded by George H. Murray
Preceded by Sir George Eulas Foster	Minister of Finance 20 July 1896 – 6 October 1911	Succeeded by Sir Thomas White
Preceded by Andrew George Blair	Minister of Railways and Canals (acting) July 21, 1903 – January 14, 1904	Succeeded by Henry Emmerson
Preceded by Henry Emmerson	Minister of Railways and Canals (acting) April 9, 1907 – August 29, 1907	Succeeded by George Perry Graham
Preceded by Sir Henry Drayton	Minister of Finance 29 December 1921 – 4 September 1925	Succeeded by James Robb

Premiers of Nova Scotia
Colonial: Uniacke \| Young \| Johnston \| Young \| Howe \| Johnston \| Tupper Provincial: \| Tupper \| Blanchard \| Annand \| Hill \| Holmes \| Thompson \| Pipes \| Fielding \| Murray \| Armstrong \| Rhodes \| Harrington \| Macdonald \| MacMillan \| Macdonald \| Connolly \| Hicks \| Stanfield \| Smith \| Regan \| Buchanan \| Bacon \| Cameron \| Savage \| MacLellan \| Hamm \| MacDonald

Ministers of Finance of Canada
Galt \| Rose \| Hincks \| Tilley \| Cartwright \| Tilley \| McLelan \| Tupper \| Foster \| Fielding \| White \| Drayton \| Fielding \| Robb \| Bennett \| Robb \| Dunning \| Bennett \| Rhodes \| Dunning \| Ralston \| Ilsley \| Abbott \| Harris \| Fleming \| Nowlan \| Gordon \| Sharp \| Benson \| Turner \| Macdonald \| Chrétien \| Crosbie \| MacEachen \| Lalonde \| Wilson \| Mazankowski \| Loiselle \| Martin \| Manley \| Goodale \| Flaherty