The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the

viceregal A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

representative in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

of the , who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada, as well as the other

Commonwealth realm A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state in the Commonwealth of Nations whose monarch and head of state is shared among the other realms. Each realm functions as an independent state, equal with the other realms and nations of the Commonwealt ...

s and any subdivisions thereof, and resides predominantly in oldest realm, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The lieutenant governor of Ontario is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the monarch's constitutional and ceremonial duties. The current Lieutenant Governor of Ontario is

Elizabeth Dowdeswell Violet Elizabeth Dowdeswell (née Patton; born November 9, 1944) is a Canadian public servant who currently serves as the lieutenant governor of Ontario, the 29th since Canadian Confederation. She is the viceregal representative of the King ...

Role and presence

The lieutenant governor of Ontario is vested with a number of governmental duties and is also expected to undertake various ceremonial roles. For instance, the lieutenant governor acts as patron of certain Ontario institutions, such as the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

. Also, the viceroy, him- or herself a member and Chancellor of the order, will induct deserving individuals into the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is adm ...

, and upon installation customarily becomes a Knight or Dame of Justice and the Vice-Prior in Ontario of the

Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

. The viceroy further presents the Royal Canadian Humane Association medal, the Lincoln M. Alexander Award, the Ontario Volunteer Service Award, the Outstanding Achievement Award for Voluntarism in Ontario, the

Ontario Medal for Young Volunteers The Ontario Medal for Young Volunteers is an honour presented annually by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario for outstanding contributions by young volunteers in the province of Ontario. The medal is not part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

, and numerous other provincial honours and decorations, as well as various awards that are named for and presented by the lieutenant governor; these are generally created in partnership with another government or

charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

and linked specifically to their cause. These honours are presented at official ceremonies, which count amongst hundreds of other engagements the lieutenant governor partakes in each year, either as host or guest of honour: In the 18 months following September 23, 2014, Lieutenant Governor

conducted 1066 engagements, equivalent to 711 per year. At these events, the lieutenant governor's presence may be marked by the post's official flag, consisting of a blue field bearing the escutcheon of the Arms of Majesty in Right of Ontario surmounted by a crown and surrounded by ten gold maple leaves, symbolizing the ten provinces of Canada. Within Ontario, the lieutenant governor also follows only the sovereign in the province's order of precedence, preceding even other members of the

Canadian Royal Family The monarchy of Canada is Canada's form of government embodied by the Canadian sovereign and head of state. It is at the core of Canada's constitutional federal structure and Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. The monarchy is the founda ...

and the King's federal representative. Since 2011, the incumbent lieutenant governor has served ''ex officio'' as the

Colonel of the Regiment Colonel (Col) is a rank of the British Army and Royal Marines, ranking below brigadier, and above lieutenant colonel. British colonels are not usually field commanders; typically they serve as staff officers between field commands at battalio ...

of the

Queen's York Rangers la, celer et audax, lit=swift and bold , colors = Green and amethyst blue , identification_symbol = , identification_symbol_label = , march = "Braganza" , notable_commanders ...

, a unit in the Canadian Army. The honorary appointment recognizes the regiment's links to

John Graves Simcoe John Graves Simcoe (25 February 1752 – 26 October 1806) was a British Army general and the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada from 1791 until 1796 in southern Ontario and the Drainage basin, watersheds of Georgian Bay and Lake Superior. ...

, the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada and the regiment's commander during 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 ...

History

The lieutenant governor of Ontario came into being in 1867, upon the creation of Ontario at

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

, and evolved from the earlier position of lieutenant governor of Canada West. Since that date, 29 lieutenant governors have served the province, among whom were notable firsts, such as

Pauline Mills McGibbon Pauline Mills McGibbon (21 October 1910 – 14 December 2001) served as the 22nd Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1974 to 1980. In addition to being the first woman to occupy that position, she was also the first woman to serve as a vi ...

—the first female lieutenant governor of the province—and

Lincoln Alexander Lincoln MacCauley Alexander (January 21, 1922 – October 19, 2012) was a Canadian lawyer who became the first Black Canadian member of Parliament in the House of Commons, the first Black federal Cabinet Minister (as federal Minister of Labou ...

—the first lieutenant governor of

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

ancestry. The shortest mandate by a lieutenant governor of Ontario was

Henry William Stisted Lieutenant-General Sir Henry William Stisted (5 June 1817 – 10 December 1875), served as the first Lieutenant Governor of Ontario after Confederation, from 1867 to 1868. Biography Born 1817, at St-Omer, France, to Lt.-Colonel Charles St ...

, from 1 July 1867 to 14 July 1868, while the longest was

Albert Edward Matthews Albert Edward Matthews (May 17, 1873 – December 16, 1949) was the 16th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. Matthews was born in Lindsay, Ontario. He worked as an investment broker in Toronto and rose to the position of director of various c ...

, from November 1937 to December 1946. With the election in 1937 of the Liberal Party to a majority in the Legislative Assembly, the lieutenant governor in Ontario was targeted for spending cutbacks.

Government House Government House is the name of many of the official residences of governors-general, governors and lieutenant-governors in the Commonwealth and the remaining colonies of the British Empire. The name is also used in some other countries. Gover ...

was closed and the viceroy given a suite at the Legislative Building as a replacement. The post then remained relatively low-key until 1985, when the personal discretion of Lieutenant Governor

John Black Aird John Black Aird (May 5, 1923 – May 6, 1995) was a Canadian lawyer, corporate director and political figure. He served in the Senate of Canada from 1964 to 1974, and he was Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1980 to 1985. Life and career ...

was required in the exercise of the

royal prerogative The royal prerogative is a body of customary authority, privilege and immunity, recognized in common law and, sometimes, in civil law jurisdictions possessing a monarchy, as belonging to the sovereign and which have become widely vested in th ...

: After

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'' and subsequen ...

that year lost the

confidence Confidence is a state of being clear-headed either that a hypothesis or prediction is correct or that a chosen course of action is the best or most effective. Confidence comes from a Latin word 'fidere' which means "to trust"; therefore, having ...

of the Legislative Assembly, the opposing

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

managed to negotiate a deal with both the

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

(NDP) and independent members of the assembly and Aird, rather than dissolve the legislature only 55 days after the last election, called upon Liberal leader

David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Backgro ...

to serve as premier.

References

External links

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
{{Representatives of the monarch in Commonwealth realms and Dominions *

Role and presence

History

See also

References

External links