What is Ezekiel Hart?
{{unsourced|date=June 2014}} [[Image:EzekielHart.jpg|right|thumb|Ezekiel Hart]] '''Ezekiel Hart''' ({{lang-he|יחזקאל הרט}}; May 15, 1770 - September 16, 1843) was a [[Jew]]ish [[Canada|Canadian]] [[Businessperson|businessman]] and [[politician]], and the first Jew to be elected to public office in the [[British Empire]]. He was born May 15, 1770 at [[Trois-Rivières, Quebec|Trois-Rivières]], [[Quebec]] to Aaron Hart and Dorothea Judah. Ezekiel Hart created a [[brewery]] with his brothers in Trois-Rivières and, on April 11, 1807 was elected to the ''Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada''. Because he was [[Jew]]ish, he swore his [[oath]] on a [[Hebrew Bible]], instead of a [[Bible|Christian Bible]], and while wearing a [[kippah]]. At the time, British laws did not let Jews have important positions like these, and Hart was expelled from the assembly. He was elected again in 1808 and expelled again. He did not run for public office again. He continued to live in Trois-Rivières where he was a successful businessman and well-respected member of the community. He served in the [[militia]] during the [[War of 1812]] and became colonel in 1830. He came from a very important and rich family. His father, Aaron Hart, was member of the British forces, and a well-known [[businessperson|businessman]] in Canada. His brothers, Moses and Benjamin, were important businessmen at Trois-Rivières and [[Montreal]]. His cousin, Henry Judah, later became a member of the ''Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada''. Ezekiel Hart died on September 16, 1843 at Trois-Rivières, at the age of 76. {{bio-stub}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Ezekiel}} [[Category:1770 births]] [[Category:1843 deaths]] [[Category:Canadian Jews]] [[Category:Canadian politicians]] [[Category:People from Trois-Rivières]]