Lord Durham (John Lambton)

A reformist Whig politician known as 'Radical Jack', Durham was dispatched to Canada in 1838 following the armed uprisings led by Papineau and Mackenzie. Spending five months investigating colonial grievances, he produced his landmark Report on the Affairs of British North America in 1839.

Durham famously characterized Canada as 'two nations warring in the bosom of a single state'. His recommendation that colonial governors must choose cabinet ministers possessing the confidence of the elected assembly laid the foundational blueprint for modern parliamentary democracy across the British Commonwealth.