Gaspard Fauteux

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Gaspard Fauteux (August 27, 1898 – March 29, 1963) was a Canadian politician from Quebec who served as the 19th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec and as Speaker of the House of Commons.

Born in Saint-Hyacinthe, Fauteux came from a family with a strong political background. He trained as a dentist and later became a businessman before entering politics. In Quebec’s provincial politics, he won a seat for Montréal–Sainte‑Marie in 1931 as a Liberal, defeating Camillien Houde, but lost the seat in 1935 and returned to business.

Fauteux moved to federal politics and was elected as the Liberal MP for St. Mary in a 1942 by-election, later winning re-election in 1945 and 1949, again defeating Houde. He opposed conscription during World War II and participated in the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Conference after the war.

In 1945, Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King chose him to be Speaker of the House of Commons, a position he held until 1949. His time in the chair was noted for inexperience, but he enjoyed the social and ceremonial aspects of the role.

After leaving Parliament, Fauteux was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, serving from 1950 to 1958. He died in Montreal in 1963 and is entombed at Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery. He had married Marguerite Barré in 1923 and they had four children: Roger, Paul, Marie (Mimi), and Gaspard Jr. Fauteux’s family included several prominent Quebec figures, such as his grandfather Honoré Mercier and his uncle Lomer Gouin.