January 29 1808 – 29 Tevet 5568
Ezekiel Hart caused controversy by taking his oath of allegiance as member for Trois-Rivières in the legislative assembly of Lower Canada, swearing on Hebrew Bible and refraining from using the conventional formula “as a Christian.” The first Jew elected to public office in the British Empire, Hart had won his seat in an election the previous April, but waited to take office because the original inauguration was on a Saturday. His election was short-lived, as already next day the attorney-general, Sewell, objected that the oath was invalid, and soon afterward the runner-up in the election claimed the election should be null and void, and that as a Jew, Hart was not “capable” of sitting in the legislature.
Despite petitioning to retain his seat, Hart was dismissed. He was re-elected that same year, and this time took the same oath as other members, only to be expelled once again from the assembly for being a Jew. It took more than two more decades until in 1832 Canada granted full rights to people practicing the Jewish faith, which was still 27 years before anywhere else in the British Empire.