Leandro Preziosi, Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant (1803–1874) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

officer and governor of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

from 1847 to 1852. He later became the Lieutenant Governor of

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native En ...

(1852–1858) and Governor of

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

(1858–1864).

Biography

Le Marchant was the son of

Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

John Le Marchant and the younger brother of Sir Denis Le Marchant, 1st Baronet, and was educated at High Wycombe Royal Grammar School and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry ...

.Government House, Canada
/ref> In 1820, at the age of seventeen, he was commissioned into the

10th Foot The Royal Lincolnshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army raised on 20 June 1685 as the Earl of Bath's Regiment for its first Colonel, John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath. In 1751, it was numbered like most other Army regimen ...

as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diff ...

. In 1821 he transferred to the

57th Foot The 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of line infantry in the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the Middlesex Regiment in 1881. His ...

as a lieutenant and later transferred to the

98th Foot The 98th (Prince of Wales) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army. It was originally raised in 1824 as the 98th Regiment of Foot, before assuming the title of the 98th (Prince of Wales) Regiment of Foot in 1876. Later, in 1 ...

, in which he was promoted major. In 1835 he became

adjutant-general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

of the British Auxiliary Legion in Spain with the rank of

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

. He transferred to the 20th Foot in 1837, the 99th Foot as

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in 1839, the 85th Foot in 1845, and the

11th Foot The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1958 ...

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

in 1862, holding the latter post until his death. He was appointed as a Knight of the

Order of Charles III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III ( es, Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III, originally es, Real y Muy Distinguida Orden de Carlos III) was establ ...

Isabella II Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the success ...

, Queen of Spain in 1838, and was knighted and granted permission to use his Spanish knighthood in Britain. He was also a Knight Commander of the Military Order of St Ferdinand. In 1847 he reluctantly accepted the governorship of

. Le Marchant was opposed to the idea of

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive bra ...

and condemned local merchants of amassing wealth in the Colony and then returning to England. After the fire of 1846 funds were collected for the victims and Le Marchant, acting upon Robert Law's recommendation that no further money be given to victims, then directed funds to the repair of public buildings and construction of roads in St. John's and the outports. Francis_Frith,_Strada_Reale,_Valletta_(No

Francis_Frith,_Strada_Reale,_Valletta_(No

He then served a term as Lieutenant Governor of

(1852–58) and as

Governor of Malta A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

in 1858–64. While in Malta, he had some portrait photos taken of him and his daughters by Maltese photography pioneer Leandro Preziosi. He also had Valletta's then Piazza Tesoreria fenced off as a private orchard, and he had the statue of António Manoel de Vilhena moved from Fort Manoel to the centre of it in 1858. The square was reopened to the public in the 1870s. In 1865 Le Marchant was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the

Madras Army The Madras Army was the army of the Presidency of Madras, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company until the Government ...

before he retired in 1868.

Legacy

*Le Marchant Road, a prominent street in

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North America ...

is named in his honour. *LeMarchant Street in

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

is named in his honour. File:Leandro Preziosi, Portrait photo of Emily Le Marchant.jpg, His first daughter Emily, 1864 File:Leandro Preziosi, Portrait photos of Blanche and Clementina Le Marchant.jpg, His daughters Blanche and Clementina, 1864

References

, - :Note: The year after Sir John Harvey had stepped down as governor of Newfoundland, and until Sir John LeMarchant was appointed, the colony was administered by Robert Law, a British army officer. {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Marchant, John Gaspar 1803 births 1874 deaths People educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst North Staffordshire Regiment officers Lancashire Fusiliers officers Wiltshire Regiment officers Devonshire Regiment officers Royal Lincolnshire Regiment officers 57th Regiment of Foot officers British Army lieutenant generals Knights Bachelor Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Governors of Newfoundland Colony Governors and Governors-General of Malta John Governors of the Colony of Nova Scotia

Biography

Legacy

See also

References