The office of the High Commissioner: Canada's public link to gentlemanly capitalism in the City of London, 1869-1885 (Canadian Pacific Railway, Sir John Rose, Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, Sir Charles Tupper, England)

Canada's post-Confederation economy was marked by a search for capital that was used to complete large infrastructure projects such as the Canadian Pacific Railway. Since Canada's small tax base could not pay for the transcontinental railway, financiers in the City of London were the first choice as a source for this capital by the Canadian government. As P. J. Cain and A. G. Hopkins explained in British Imperialism: Innovation and Expansion, however, the ability to tap this resource was dependent on the gentlemanly credentials of the government's representative because the City's social culture was dominated by ideals of "propertied wealth", family connections and social activity. Sir John A. Macdonald's Conservatives, therefore, installed a representative in London that possessed these gentlemanly qualities in the hopes of securing capital for the completion of the CPR and promoting Canada's interests in the London business community. Three men between 1869 and 1885 served as Canada's High Commissioner. Sir John Rose, Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt and Sir Charles Tupper were all chosen for their apparent gentlemanly qualities. The men used these qualities with varying success to promote and eventually secure the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway.