The Marquess of Lansdowne - Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice
5th Governor General of Canada
Term:
1883-1888
Born:
January 14, 1845 London, England
Died:
June 4, 1927 Clonmore, Ireland
Before becoming Governor General of Canada in 1883, Lord Lansdowne had a successful parliamentary career in England. He succeeded his father to the title of Marquess of Lansdowne in 1869 and, at that time, assumed his seat in the House of Lords. He immediately took the post of junior Lord of the Treasury (1869-72). He later served as Under Secretary for War (1872-74) and Under Secretary for India (1880).
Lansdowne, only 38 when he came to Canada, was an avid outdoorsman who fished for salmon in New Brunswick and travelled through western Canada by steamboat and on horseback. During his term as Governor General, he supported the Canadian Pacific Railway which was completed in 1885, and diplomatically worked with the Canadian Government during the North West Rebellion (1885). While on a visit to London in 1886, he also interceded on Canada's behalf in a fishing dispute with the Americans.
Lord Lansdowne also recruited 386 "Voyageurs", most of whom were lumbermen, for the Nile Expedition in 1884. The Nile Expedition was put together to paddle up the Nile and rescue a British general who had became trapped in Khartoum while on a rescue mission of his own. The Voyageurs were paid by the British Government, and John A. MacDonald, who respected the administrative ability of Lansdowne, did not interfere in the mission. The Nile Expedition did not rescue the general, however, for Khartoum fell to Muslim forces in January, 1885 and the general was killed.
In 1888, the Marquess of Lansdowne became Viceroy of India (1888-1893). As a Member of the House of Lords, he later held the positions of Secretary of State for War (1895-1900), Foreign Secretary (1900-05) and Minister without Portfolio (1915-16).
