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Jacques Hébert, journalist, travel writer, publisher, Senator (born 21 June 1923 in Montreal, QC; died 6 December 2007 in Montreal). Jacques Hébert was a crusading Quebec journalist and a trailblazing book publisher before and during the Quiet Revolution. He founded Canada World Youth, an exchange program dedicated to world peace, and co-founded Katimavik, a youth program offering volunteer positions across the country. As a member of the Senate, Hébert held a 21-day fast to protest the government’s cancellation of funding for Katimavik. His travels took him to over 130 countries; notably, he visited the People’s Republic of China in 1960 with longtime friend Pierre Trudeau. Hébert was also a noted critic of Quebec premier Maurice Duplessis and a federalist who scorned Quebec nationalism. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1978.

Claude de Ramezay, (born 15 June 1659 in La Gesse, France; died 31 July 1724 in Quebec City). Claude de Ramezay came to New France as an officer in the troupes de la marine. He served as governor of Trois-Rivières (1690–99), commander of Canadian troops (1699–1704), governor of Montreal (1704–24), and as acting governor general of New France (1714–16). Throughout his time in New France, he pursued fur trade and lumber interests. He is also remembered for his home, Château Ramezay. Built in 1705, it is now a museum and one of Montreal’s landmark historical buildings.

Blaine Myron Higgs, engineer, politician, premier of New Brunswick (born 1 March 1954 in Woodstock, New Brunswick). Higgs is a mechanical engineer who first won elective office in 2010 as a Progressive Conservative Member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick. He was sworn in as premier on 9 November 2018 and won reelection on 14 September 2020.

Frances Elizabeth Owen “Feo” Monck, author (born 1 August 1835 in Charleville, Enniskerry, County Wicklow, Ireland; died 31 July 1919). Feo Monck’s brother-in-law was governor general Viscount Monck, and her husband, Richard Monck, was military secretary to the governor general from 1864 to 1869. When Lady Monck was absent, she acted as the hostess for viceregal social occasions, including the ball held during the Quebec Conference of 1864. She recorded her experiences in the book, My Canadian Leaves: An Account of a Visit to Canada in 1864–1865.

Gertrude Guerin (née Ettershank; traditional name Klaw-law-we-leth; also known as “Old War Horse”), chief, politician, community advocate, elder (born 26 March 1917 on the Mission Reserve in North Vancouver, BC; died 25 January 1998). Guerin, born into the Squamish First Nation (see Central Coast Salish), was a fierce protector of Indigenous people and culture. She represented the Musqueam nation locally as an elected chief, and on the national stage in challenges to Canadian jurisdiction over traditional Musqueam territory (see Coast Salish).

John Napier Turner, PC, CC; politician, lawyer, prime minister, athlete (born in Richmond, England, 7 June 1929; died 19 September 2020 in Toronto, ON). John Turner is best known for his early political service as federal justice minister (1968–72) and finance minister (1972–75) in the cabinet of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, and for the 1988 election battle with Brian Mulroney over free trade. Turner's 11-week term as prime minister in 1984 is the second shortest in Canadian history, after Sir Charles Tupper (10 weeks).

John Joseph Horgan, 36th premier of British Columbia, 2017–present; political aide (born 7 August 1959 in Victoria, BC). John Horgan worked as a political staffer for BC New Democratic Party (NDP) premiers Mike Harcourt, Glen Clark and Dan Miller. In 2005, he became a member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for the riding of Malahat-Juan de Fuca. He then revitalized the BC NDP after it had spent 16 years on the opposition benches. Following the 2017 election, Horgan engineered a power-sharing coalition with the Green Party to topple a weakened Liberal regime. After Horgan called a snap election in October 2020, the NDP won 53 of 87 seats and Horgan converted his minority government into a governing majority.

Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David, HRH Prince of Wales from 1910 to 1936, HM King Edward VIII from 20 January to 11 December 1936, HRH The Duke of Windsor from 1936 to 1972 (born 23 June 1894 in White Lodge Richmond, Surrey, England; died 28 May 1972 in Paris, France). Edward toured Canada on several occasions and purchased a ranch in Alberta. He is best known for abdicating the crown and marrying American divorcee Wallis Simpson. Edward is mentioned in novels by several Canadian authors, including Robertson Davies, Lucy Maud Montgomery and Timothy Findley.

Lady Elizabeth Louise Mary Monck, Viscountess Monck of Ballytrammon, viceregal consort of British North America from 1861 to 1867 and viceregal consort of the Dominion of Canada from 1867 to 1868 (born 1 March 1814; died 16 June 1892 in Charleville, Enniskerry, County Wicklow, Ireland). Lady Monck was the first viceregal consort of the Dominion of Canada and the first to live at Rideau Hall.

Richard John Philip Jermy Gwyn, OC, journalist, author, bureaucrat (born 26 May 1934 in Bury St. Edmunds, England; died 15 August 2020 in Toronto, ON). Richard Gwyn was one of Canada’s preeminent political analysts. He spent 30 years as a columnist with the Toronto Star, winning two National Newspapers Awards and a National Magazine Award. He was a regular panelist on public affairs programs and published several award-winning books, including definitive biographies of Joey Smallwood, Pierre Trudeau and Sir John A. Macdonald. Gwyn was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2002 and served as Chancellor of St. Jerome’s University at the University of Waterloo from 2002 to 2007.

Scott Moe, 15th premier of Saskatchewan (2018–present), Cabinet minister, businessman (born circa 1973 near Shellbrook, SK). In January 2018, Scott Moe won the leadership of the Saskatchewan Party and was sworn in as premier on 2 February 2018. After completing a university degree in agriculture, he worked in the agricultural equipment industry for several years. Moe entered politics in 2011 as an MLA representing the Saskatchewan Party and served several posts in government, including as environment minister. In January 2018, Moe won the leadership of the Saskatchewan Party and replaced Brad Wall as premier.

Andrew James Scheer, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and leader of the Opposition (2017–20), Speaker of the House of Commons, member of Parliament (born 20 May 1979 in Ottawa, ON). Andrew Scheer was first elected as a Member of Parliament when he was 25. He was the youngest Speaker of the House of Commons when elected to that position in 2011 at age 32. Six years later, he became the second leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) since its formation in 2004. Under Scheer, the Conservatives won 121 seats in the 2019 federal election, increasing their presence in the House of Commons. However, they failed to defeat the governing Liberals, who won a minority government. Scheer announced his resignation as leader of the CPC on 12 December 2019.

Charles Le Moyne de Longueuil et de Châteauguay, soldier, seigneur (born 2 August 1626 in Dieppe, France; died February 1685 in Ville-Marie, New France). He is an important figure in the settlement history of Montreal and its surroundings. He was granted the lands that would become the present-day city of Longueuil. His descendants share a long history with New France.

Douglas George Phillips, businessman, politician, commissioner of Yukon 2010–18 (born 4 December 1946 in Toronto, ON).

The Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) was a militant Quebec independence movement that used terrorism to try and achieve an independent and socialist Quebec. FLQ members — or felquistes — were responsible for more than 200 bombings and dozens of robberies between 1963 and 1970 that left six people dead. Their actions culminated in the kidnapping of British trade commissioner James Cross and the kidnapping and subsequent murder of Quebec cabinet minister Pierre Laporte, in what became known as the October Crisis.

Henri Bourassa, politician, journalist (born 1 Sept 1868 in Montreal; died 31 Aug 1952 in Montreal). Henri Bourassa was an important Canadian nationalist leader who supported Canada’s increased independence from the British Empire. Bourassa was also an advocate for French Canadian rights within Canada.

Mary Irene Parlby (née Marryat), Alberta MLA (1921–35), women’s rights advocate, activist (born 9 January 1868 in London, UK; died 12 July 1965 in Red Deer, AB). Irene Parlby served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) of Alberta for 14 years. She was the first woman in Alberta, and the second in the British Empire, to be appointed to a cabinet position. One of the Famous Five appellants in the Persons Case, Parlby was a compelling advocate for women’s rights. Known as the “Women’s Minister,” her career in activism and legislation was dedicated to improving the lives of rural women and children, such as with Alberta’s Dower Act in 1917. She was also a delegate to the League of Nations in 1930. However, she has also been criticized for her views on eugenics and for her support of Alberta’s Sexual Sterilization Act. She was named a Person of National Historic Significance in 1966 and an honorary senator in 2009.

Robert Bourassa, premier of Québec (1970–1976 and 1985–1994), politician, lawyer, economist (born 14 July 1933 in Montréal, QC; died 2 October 1996 in Montréal).

Alberta’s “Famous Five” were petitioners in the groundbreaking Persons Case. The case was brought before the Supreme Court of Canada in 1927. It was decided in 1929 by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, Canada’s highest appeals court at the time. The group was led by judge Emily Murphy. It also included  Henrietta Edwards, Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney and Irene Parlby. Together, the five women had many years of active work in various campaigns for women’s rights dating back to the 1880s and 1890s. They enjoyed a national — and in the case of McClung, an international — reputation among reformers.

Eva Aariak, politician, second premier of Nunavut (born 10 January 1955 in Arctic Bay, Northwest Territories [now Nunavut]). Eva Aariak has the distinction of being Nunavut’s first female premier, and she has been instrumental in the promotion of Inuit languages in the territory. (See also Inuktitut and Indigenous Languages in Canada.)