Canada's Secretary of State for External Affairs was, from 1909 to 1993, the member of the Cabinet of Canada responsible for overseeing the federal government's international relations and the former Department of External Affairs. The first two Secretaries of State for External Affairs from 1909 until 1912 (Charles Murphy under Sir Wilfrid Laurier and William James Roche under Sir Robert Borden) concurrently served as Secretary of State for Canada. The two portfolios were permanently separated in 1912. The position was then held concurrently by the Prime Minister of Canada until 1946.
Noted Secretaries of State for External Affairs have included Louis St. Laurent, Lester B. Pearson, Howard Charles Green, Paul Joseph James Martin, Allan MacEachen, Mitchell Sharp, and Joe Clark.
The position was replaced by the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1993.
The position is referenced in the passport note (Page 1) of the Canadian Passport beyond 2000 with current passports corrected with the title of Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Key:
| No. | Portrait | Name | Term of office | Political party | Ministry | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles Murphy | May 19, 1909 | October 6, 1911 | Liberal | 8 (Laurier) | |
| 2 | William James Roche | October 10, 1911 | April 1, 1912 | Conservative (historical) | 9 (Borden) | |
| 3 | Robert Borden | April 1, 1912 | October 11, 1917 | Conservative (historical) | ||
| October 12, 1917 | July 9, 1920 | Unionist | 10 (Borden) | |||
| 4 | Arthur Meighen (1st time) |
July 10, 1920 | December 29, 1921 | N. L. C. | 11 (Meighen) | |
| 5 | William Lyon Mackenzie King (1st time) |
December 29, 1921 | June 28, 1926 | Liberal | 12 (King) | |
| (4) | Arthur Meighen (2nd time) |
June 29, 1926 | September 25, 1926 | Conservative (historical) | 13 (Meighen) | |
| (5) | William Lyon Mackenzie King (2nd time) |
September 25, 1926 | August 7, 1930 | Liberal | 14 (King) | |
| 6 | Richard Bedford Bennett | August 7, 1930 | October 23, 1935 | Conservative (historical) | 15 (Bennett) | |
| (5) | William Lyon Mackenzie King (3rd time) |
October 23, 1935 | September 3, 1946 | Liberal | 16 (King) | |
| 7 | Louis St. Laurent | September 4, 1946 | September 9, 1948 | Liberal | ||
| 8 | Lester B. Pearson | September 10, 1948 | November 15, 1948 | Liberal | ||
| November 15, 1948 | June 20, 1957 | 17 (St. Laurent) | ||||
| 9 | John Diefenbaker | June 21, 1957 | September 12, 1957 | Progressive Conservative | 18 (Diefenbaker) | |
| 10 | Sidney Earle Smith | September 13, 1957 | March 17, 1959 | Progressive Conservative | ||
| – | John Diefenbaker (2nd time; Acting) |
March 19, 1959 | June 3, 1959 | Progressive Conservative | ||
| 11 | Howard Green | June 4, 1959 | April 21, 1963 | Progressive Conservative | ||
| 12 | Paul Joseph James Martin | April 22, 1963 | April 20, 1968 | Liberal | 19 (Pearson) | |
| 13 | Mitchell Sharp | April 20, 1968 | August 7, 1974 | Liberal | 20 (Trudeau) | |
| 14 | Allan MacEachen (1st time) |
August 8, 1974 | September 13, 1976 | Liberal | ||
| 15 | Don Jamieson | September 14, 1976 | June 3, 1979 | Liberal | ||
| 16 | Flora MacDonald | June 4, 1979 | March 2, 1980 | Progressive Conservative | 21 (Clark) | |
| 17 | Mark MacGuigan | March 3, 1980 | September 9, 1982 | Liberal | 22 (Trudeau) | |
| (14) | Allan MacEachen (2nd time) |
September 10, 1982 | June 29, 1984 | Liberal | ||
| 18 | Jean Chrétien | June 30, 1984 | September 16, 1984 | Liberal | 23 (Turner) | |
| 19 | Joe Clark | September 17, 1984 | April 20, 1991 | Progressive Conservative | 24 (Mulroney) | |
| 20 | Barbara McDougall | April 21, 1991 | June 24, 1993 | Progressive Conservative | ||
| 21 | Perrin Beatty | June 25, 1993 | November 3, 1993 | Progressive Conservative | 25 (Campbell) | |