The 5th Parliament of Upper Canada was the composition of the Parliament of Upper Canada between February 1809 and May 1812, and consisted of
While references to "parliament" in modern Canadian and British political discourse generally refer to the elected chamber of the legislature, the elected assembly of Upper Canada wielded relatively little power relative to the unelected legislative council and was afforded little deference by either the Lieutenant Governor or the Legislative Council. Accordingly, the Crown and the upper house were both significant elements of parliaments in its role as the legislature of the colony.
The 5th Parliament was convened over four sessions, held between February and March of each of the years 1809, 1810, 1811, and 1812.
All sessions were held at the Palace of Parliament located at the located at the intersection of Front Street and Parliament Street in York, Upper Canada (now City of Toronto, Parliament Street was named due to the building, though Front Street was on the Bay at the time). It would be the last parliament to be in session at the site for its entirety. The Palace of Parliament was set ablaze and destroyed by American Troops in the plundering following the Battle of York on April 27, 1813.
No known copies of the journals for the first session held 1809 survived to this day. Accordingly, some aspect of the 5th Parliament cannot be definitely explained or determined.
The 5th Parliament was dissolved on May 1, 1812 by the Administrator of the Government Isaac Brock who had been frustrated in his efforts to pass legislation preparing the colony for war with the United States. Elections were held in June that year and the 6th Parliament was convened in the last week of July for a very short extraordinary session, the first time more than one session of parliament was convened within a calendar year in Upper Canada.
The composition of the House of Assembly was prescribed by legislation passed in March 1808. The membership of the assembly was expanded from nineteen seats in the 3rd and 4th parliaments to twenty-five seats. The six addition electoral divisions came from the following changes.
The Legislative Council was the appointed upper house of the parliament. It held veto power over all legislations passed by the elected assembly and exercised it regularly with little deference to assembly democratic mandate. Members were appointed for life (but were subject to removal for non-attendance), therefore the date for the end of their term were usually the date of their death.