A CONFERENCE is being held today to mark 200 years since the birth of Glasgow born Sir John Macdonald who became Canada's first Prime Minister.

Keynote speaker at the event called Son of Glasgow, Father of Canada will be leading Scottish historian Sir Tom Devine.

It has been organised by the British Association for Canadian Studies with the support of the Canadian High Commission and Glasgow City Council.

The conference will be followed by a civic reception tonight in the City Chambers.

John Macdonald was born on January 11, 1815, the third of five children and lived in Bath Street and Brunswick Lane next to the Mitre and Fox and Hound bars.

His father Hugh was an unsuccessful merchant and when his business ventures left him in debt, the family emigrated to Canada in 1820.

The family lived over a store which Hugh Macdonald ran but it failed and they moved to a new area where a second shop also failed.

John attended local schools but when he was 10, his family scraped together the money to send him to the local grammar school.

His formal schooling ended at the age of 15 and his parents decided he should become a lawyer.

He would later complain: "I had no boyhood. From the age of 15, I began to earn my own living."

The young man travelled by steamboat to Toronto where he passed an exam set by the Law Society of Upper Canada and began an apprenticeship with a prominent young lawyer.

He died before Macdonald qualified so he opened his own practice although not yet entitled to do so.

Macdonald was involved in several high-profile cases and quickly became prominent in Kingston where he lived.

Macdonald first stood for election as a political candidate in 1844 but as he was being carried victorious through the streets was accidentally dropped by his supporters onto a slushy street.

He served in the legislature of the colonial United Province of Canada and by 1857 had become premier under the colony's unstable political system.

When in 1864 no party proved capable of governing for long, Macdonald agreed to a proposal from his political rival that the parties unite in a great coalition to seek political reform.

He was the leading figure in the subsequent discussions and conferences which resulted in the British North America Act and the birth of Canada as a nation on July 1, 1867.

Macdonald was designated as the first Prime Minister of the new nation and served in that capacity for most of the rest of his life.

In total, he served 19 years as Canadian Prime Minister with only one person serving longer.

Macdonald is credited with creating a Canadian confederation, despite many obstacles, and expanding what was a relatively small country to cover the northern half of north America.

By the time of his death in 1891, Canada had secured most of the territory it occupies today.

During his life, Macdonald experienced a number of tragedies. Soon after arriving in Canada his younger brother James died from a blow to the head by a servant who was supposed to look after the boys.

In August 1847, the Glasgow politician's wife gave birth but he died suddenly three years later.

Glasgow Lord Provost Sadie Docherty said: "Sir John A MacDonald was a statesman who made a huge contribution to Canada.

"I am thrilled his home city is hosting this significant academic conference and civic dinner to explore his legacy.

"Becoming Canada's first Prime Minister is a momentous achievement and one that we are proud to celebrate."