Lester B. Pearson

Who is Lester B. Pearson?

Lester Bowles Pearson, known as 'Mike,' was born in Newtonbrook, Ontario. A historian by training, he became one of Canada's most influential diplomats, serving as Secretary of State for External Affairs and as President of the United Nations General Assembly. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for his role in resolving the 1956 Suez Crisis, having proposed the creation of the first large-scale United Nations peacekeeping force, an innovation that shaped modern peacekeeping. He served as Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968, leading minority governments that nonetheless introduced sweeping reforms, including universal national Medicare, the Canada Pension Plan, the Canada Student Loans program, and the adoption in 1965 of the red-and-white maple leaf flag as Canada's national flag.

Sources: Lester B. Pearson, 'Mike: The Memoirs of the Right Honourable Lester B. Pearson' (3 vols., 1972–1975) · John English, 'The Life of Lester Pearson' (Shadow of Heaven, 1989; The Worldly Years, 1992) · The Nobel Peace Prize 1957 official citation, nobelprize.org