Sir Campbell Arthur Stuart (5 July 1885 – 14 September 1972) was a Canadian newspaper magnate. He ran propaganda operations for the British during both World Wars.
Early life
In 1885 Campbell Arthur Stuart was born in
Montreal,
Canada to
stockbroker
A stockbroker is a regulated broker, broker-dealer, or registered investment adviser (in the United States) who may provide financial advisory and investment management services and execute transactions such as the purchase or sale of stocks an ...
Ernest Henry Stuart and Letitia Mary S. Brydges. He was descended from
British Empire loyalists who moved to Canada from the
United States of America following the
American War of Independence
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
.
First World War
In 1915, Stuart raised an
Irish-Canadian regiment drawn from both the
Protestant and
Roman Catholic communities in Quebec. En route to
France he arranged for the officers and men of the regiment to march through
Ireland as a show of solidarity.
The effect of this effort to build a cross denominational consensus caught the attention of
Canadian Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden. Borden arranged for Stuart to travel to the
Vatican City to seek an audience with
Pope Benedict XV and raise Papal interest in French Canada's war effort. Vatican officials were reportedly astonished at the speed in which he obtained his audience.
After his Vatican mission, Borden dispatched Stuart to
Washington D.C. as Assistant
Military Attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission, often an embassy. This type of attaché post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer, who retains a commission while serving with an embassy. Opport ...
. This made Stuart the first Canadian to be officially appointed to the
British Diplomatic Service.
Lord Northcliffe arrived in the United States and had Stuart transferred to his mission as
Military Secretary Military Secretary is a post found in the military of several countries:
* Military Secretary (India)
*Military Secretary of Israel, called Military Secretary to the Prime Minister
*Military Secretary (Pakistan)
*Military Secretary (Sri Lanka)
* Mil ...
in
New York City. He then moved with Northcliffe to
London to work in a
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
role as Deputy Director of Propaganda in Enemy Countries.
At the end of the
First World War, Campbell was a
Lieutenant-Colonel and had been
Mentioned in Dispatches
To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...
.
Inter War Years
Newspapers
Stuart was
demobilized in 1920 and Northcliffe offered to make him a managing director of
The Times (a role which included supervision of editorial staff and news services). The following year Stuart was also made an managing editor at the
Daily Mail
The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
.
Northcliffe said of Stuart -
After Northcliffe's death in 1922, Stuart was instrumental in negotiations which saw a controlling interest in The Times moving to
Major Astor.
Stuart was an active member of The Times board as a director for thirty-seven years until 1960.
Canadian Historical Society
In 1924, Stuart was a leading participant in the foundation of the Canadian Historical Society in France. He arranged for the society to be launched with a meal at the
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 19 ...
in the
Galerie des Batailles. In order to secure use of the palace, Stuart insured the building and contents with
Lloyd's of London.
The meal was attended by descendants of the English and French families who had been prominent in Canadian history as well as members of the French and Canadian governments. Stuart served on the society's committee until 1958, including 10 years as chairman.
Communications Work
In 1928, Stuart served as the Canadian representative at the Imperial Wireless Cables Conference. Then in 1933 he was elected chairman of the Imperial Communications Advisory Committee.
Other Organisations
Further to his other roles Stuart also served on the committees of the following groups -
* Beit Foundation for Scientific Research
* Wolfe Memorial Committee (at
Greenwich, London)
*
Quebec House
Quebec House is the birthplace of General James Wolfe on what is now known as Quebec Square in Westerham, Kent, England. The house is listed Grade I on the National Heritage List for England since September 1954.
The house dates from the mid 16t ...
Committee (at
Westerham)
*
Hudson's Bay Record Society
* King George's Jubilee Trust and Fields Foundation
Second World War
With the outbreak of the
Second World War, Stuart was appointed Director of Propaganda in Enemy Countries. He recruited to his section Ray Shaw of The Times to be his deputy, Sir
Dallas Brooks and
Noel Coward
Noel or Noël may refer to:
Christmas
* , French for Christmas
* Noel is another name for a Christmas carol
Places
* Noel, Missouri, United States, a city
*Noel, Nova Scotia, Canada, a community
* 1563 Noël, an asteroid
*Mount Noel, Britis ...
before leaving his post in 1940.
Honours
He was appointed Knight Commander of the
Order of the British Empire in the
1918 New Year Honours
The 1918 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were published in ''The London Gazette'' and ''The Times'' in Ja ...
and Knight Grand Cross of the
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III.
...
in 1939. Stuart was the Honorary Vice-President of the
Champlain Society from 1964 until his death in 1972.
Personal life
Stuart never married and enjoyed entertaining with his mother acting as hostess. The Times (15 Sept. 1972) noted -
He would entertain at his home, The Grove, in the
Highgate area of London. It was at his home where he died on 14 September 1972.
See also
*
British anti-invasion preparations of World War II#Deception and disinformation
*
Special Operations Executive#History
External links
*
References
* 'STUART, Sir Campbell', Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 200
accessed 10 Jan 2012* https://archive.today/20130131010418/http://press.oxforddnb.com/index/31/101031732/
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stuart, Campbell
1885 births
1972 deaths
Canadian Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Canadian Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Canadian socialites
20th-century Canadian businesspeople