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Daniel Roland Michener ( April 19, 1900 - August 6, 1991) was Governor General of Canada from 1967 to 1973. His tenure as Canada's Governor General is often considered to be a key turning point in the history of his office. Since his retirement the Governor Generalship has moved dramatically in a less formal, less prominent, and less monarchial direction.
Roland Michener attended the University of Alberta for his undergraduate degree, then earned graduate degrees at Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship. While he was at Oxford he met Lester B. Pearson – the two men would become lifelong friends. He practised law in Toronto while sitting on the Executive Council of Ontario and became the secretary general for the Rhodes Foundation.
He married Norah Willis on February 26, 1927 in St. Mary Magdalen Anglican Church in Toronto, and the couple had three daughters. Sadly, one daughter, Wendy, died at the age of 33 on January 1January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Here a calendar year refers to the order in which the months are displayed, January to December. The first day of the medieval Julian year was usually a day other, 1969For other uses, see Number 1969. For the movie, see 1969 (movie). Events January January 1 Australian media baron Rupert Murdoch purchases the largest selling British Sunday newspaper The News Of The World January 5 The Derry Riots leave over 100 people i, while the Micheners were in office. For her thesis on the French philosopher, Jacques MaritainJacques Maritain ( November 18, 1882 April 28, 1973) was a French Catholic philosopher who had one of the great minds of the 20th century. He was a convert to Catholicism and the author of more than 60 books. He is responsible for reviving St. Thomas Aqui, Mrs. Michener received her doctorate from the University of Toronto in 19531953 is a common year starting on Thursday (click on link for the calendar). Events January events January 7 President Harry S. Truman announces the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb. January 13 Marshal Josip Broz Tito chosen President of Yugosl.
Michener first ran for office as a Progressive Conservative in the Ontario provincial election of 19431943 is the common year starting on Friday. Events January January 4 End of term for Culbert Olson, 29th Governor of California. He is succeeded by Earl Warren. January 11 The United States and United Kingdom give up territorial rights in China. January 1 but was defeated. He was elected to the Ontario legislature in 1945 and became Provincial Secretary in the cabinet of Premier George Drew and was given the task of formalising cabinet procedures so that there would be an agenda and minutes. He was defeated by the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation candidate in the 1948 provincial election. He ran for a seat in the Canadian House of Commons in the 1949 Canadian election but was unsuccessful.
Roland Michener was first elected to parliament in the 1953 Canadian election as a Progressive Conservative. He supported Donald Fleming at the 1956 Progressive Conservative leadership convention that was won by John George Diefenbaker.
When Diefenbaker's Tories won the 1957 Canadian election Michener was not offered a seat in the Canadian Cabinet. He was instead offered the position of Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons after it was turned down by Stanley Knowles.
Michener angered Diefenbaker by allowing the Opposition a great degree of latitute during Question Period and, at one point on May 25 1959 he was so flustered that he refused to sit down when called to order by Michener.
Parliamentary observers were more impressed by the Speaker and a group of university professors began a campaign to make Michener's position as Speaker pemanent. They proposed that, as is the tradition with the Speaker of the British House of Commons, that he run as an Independent in the general election and that the political parties agree not to run candidates against him.
Such an agreement failed to materialise and Michener ran for re-election as a Progressive Conservative in the 1962 Canadian election and was defeated. This was the first time since Canadian Confederation in 1867 that a Speaker was defeated in an election in which his party formed government.
Diefenbaker declined to offer Michener an appointement (such as to the Canadian Senate) and he returned to his law practice in Toronto.
The Conservatives lost the 1963 Canadian election and the new Prime Minister, Lester Pearson, appointed Michener as High Commissioner to India and first Canadian Ambassador to Nepal from 1964 to 1967. A close friend of Prime Minister Lester Pearson, Michener had received overtures from the PM that he would be considered among the leading candidates for the Governor Generalship when he returned from his foreign duty.