author
Sir Joseph Pope
1854–1926
A key figure in Canada’s early civil service, he worked closely with Sir John A. Macdonald and helped shape the country’s external affairs machinery. He also left behind memoirs and historical writing that offer a firsthand view of political life in his era.
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About the author
Born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, in 1854, Sir Joseph Pope became one of Canada’s best-known senior public servants. After early work in Prince Edward Island government and banking, he moved to Ottawa in 1878 as private secretary to his uncle, James Colledge Pope.
He is best remembered for serving as private secretary to Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald from 1882 to 1891. Later, he held senior posts including Assistant Clerk to the Privy Council and Under-Secretary of State for Canada, and from 1909 to 1925 he served as the first permanent under-secretary of the department then responsible for External Affairs.
Pope was also a writer, publishing memoirs and works on public life and history. He died in Ottawa in 1926, and his career is still noted as an important part of the development of Canada’s federal public service.