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When the Duke of
Connaught took office as Canada's tenth
Governor General in 1911. he became the
first member of the Royal House to
occupy that post.
The third and last
surviving son of Queen Victoria, H.R.H.
the Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was
born on May 1st, 1850 on the 81st
birthday of the Duke of Wellington, one
of his godfathers from whom he took his
first name, Arthur.
Destined for the Army, he
received his education at the Royal
Military College at Woolwich; served in
Egypt and rose to the rank of general in
may 1893. He occupied senior army
training posts on the home front, saw
service in Ireland, was Inspector
General of the Imperial Forces, and in
1907 was Commander in Chief of the
Mediterranean area.
The Duke was no stranger
to Canada. He had served with the Royal
Marines in Montreal in 1870 and had
taken part in the suppression of the Red
river uprising of that year. Port
Arthur, Ontario had been named in his
honour and in 1890, he travelled across
Canada on his return journey from India.
The family, including the
charming Princess Patricia, was
interested in many activities,
particularly horsemanship. During a
visit to Montreal the Duke presented the
Connaught Cup for competition in the
Montreal Horse show, and to this day the
award is still a coveted trophy.
His term of office was
troubled by the outbreak of the First
World War, but his military background
enabled him to offer valuable and
enthusiastic support to Canada's war
effort. He helped to organize the second
expeditionary force and the Canadian
Patriotic Fund. Princess Patricia lent
her patronage to the raising of a
regiment and with 16 days a full
compliment had been recruited. She
presented the regiment with colours made
by herself, bearing the gold monogram
'PP' on one side. he "Princess Pats"
went on to make military history by
their exploits and heroism.
On his return to England
in 1916, he resumed his military service
and fulfilled many royal functions. He
died on January 16, 1942 and was
succeeded by his grandson, the Earl of
MacDuff.
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