Sir Alexander Bannerman (7 October 1788 – 30 December 1864) was a Scottish merchant,

vintner A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes: *Cooperating with viticulturists *Monitoring the maturity of grapes to ensure their quality and to d ...

, politician and British colonial governor.

Early life

Known as "Sandy", he was born on 7 October 1788 in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. He was the eldest son of merchant Thomas Bannerman (1743–1820) and his wife, Jean (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth ...

Simson) Bannerman (1745–1817), who married in 1779. His younger brother, Thomas, was the father of

Sir George Bannerman, 10th Baronet ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only ...

and grandfather of

Sir Alexander Bannerman, 11th Baronet Major Sir Alexander Bannerman, 11th Baronet (16 December 1871 – 10 March 1934) was a pioneer British military aviator. Bannerman was born in Brackley in Northamptonshire and educated at Wellington College and subsequently at the Royal Milita ...

. His maternal grandfather was George Simson of Hazlehead. His paternal grandparents were Aberdeen merchant Alexander Bannerman and Margaret (née Burnett) Bannerman. His uncle was Sir Alexander Bannerman, 6th Baronet. Bannerman was a prominent businessman in his hometown of Aberdeen managing the family wine business as well as having a hand in trading and

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

. Bannerman served as the city's provost and in 1837, was elected dean of

Marischal College, Aberdeen Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has acted as the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. However, the building was constructed for and is on long- ...

Career

Alexander Bannerman joined the town council of Aberdeen in 1811. He was a reformer, challenging the long-standing oligarchy led by James and Gavin Hadden, and was instrumental in establishing an elected trust to manage the new Aberdeen Harbour.Fry, Michael (2013), ''A New Race of Men: Scotland 1815 – 1914'', Birlinn, Edinburgh, pp. 137–143 In 1832 he became Member of Parliament (MP) for

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), ...

in the British House of Commons, sitting as a Radical, and remained an MP until his retirement in 1847. Together with his wife, Margaret Gordon the granddaughter of former Governor Walter Patterson, Bannerman returned to the colony of her birth, when he took up the appointment in 1851 as

governor of Prince Edward Island The following is a list of the governors and lieutenant governors of Prince Edward Island, known as ''St. John's Island'' until 1799. Though the present day office of the lieutenant governor in Prince Edward Island came into being only upon the ...

. On this occasion he was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are t ...

. Bannerman instituted

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 ...

on the island but was removed in 1854 due to political unrest in which he favoured the Reformers. Subsequently, he was

governor of the Bahamas This is a list of governors of the Bahamas. The first English settlement in the Bahamas was on Eleuthera. In 1670, the king granted the Bahamas to the lords proprietors of the Province of Carolina, but the islands were left to themselves. The l ...

until 1857, when he returned north to become

governor of Newfoundland The lieutenant governor of Newfoundland and Labrador () is the viceregal representative in Newfoundland and Labrador of the , who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada, as w ...

, the second governor since responsible government had been granted. He clashed with John Kent, the

premier of Newfoundland The premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Since 1949, the premier's duties and office has been the successor to the ministerial position of the pri ...

, who he felt was corrupt. Bannerman accused Kent's government, as did Bishop Mullock, of using relief aid as patronage and also accused Kent of being unreasonable in negotiations with France over the

French Shore The French Shore (French: ''Côte française de Terre-Neuve''), also called The Treaty Shore, resulted from the 1713 ratifications of the Treaty of Utrecht. The provisions of the treaty allowed the French to fish in season along the north coast of ...

. In 1861, after Kent had accused Bannerman of conspiring with the courts and opposition

Conservative Party of Newfoundland The Conservative Party of Newfoundland was a political party in the Dominion of Newfoundland prior to confederation with Canada in 1949. The party was formed by members and supporters of the establishment around 1832. In the 1840s they opposed ...

against a proposal to reduce the salaries of judges, Bannerman dismissed the Kent government and appointed the

leader of the opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Hugh Hoyles Sir Hugh Hoyles (October 17, 1814 – February 1, 1888) was a politician and lawyer who served as the third premier of the colony of Newfoundland. Hoyles was the first premier of Newfoundland to have been born in the colony, and served from 18 ...

as the new

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

. Kent's

Liberal Party of Newfoundland The Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador is a political party in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The party is the provincial branch, and affiliate of the federal Liberal Party of Canada. It has served as the Government o ...

defeated the Conservative government in a

Motion of No Confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

resulting in an election campaign that was fought along

sectarian Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

lines with

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

largely voting Liberal and

Protestants Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

largely voting Conservative. The Protestant

narrowly defeated Kent's Liberals. Extensive rioting led to disputed results, with the Conservatives having a majority of only two until in a peaceful by-election

Harbour Grace Harbour Grace is a town in Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. With roots dating back to the 16th century, it is one of the oldest towns in North America. It is located about northwest ...

returned two Conservatives. Bannerman' initial action in dismissing Kent had been rash and the Colonial Office told him so, but Hoyles, the new Premier, moved towards non-sectarian government, both bishops called for order, and the politics of class replaced the politics of religion. Bannerman resigned as governor in 1864 and returned to England.

Personal life

In 1825, Bannerman married Margaret Gordon, a daughter of Guthrie Gordon, Esq. Lady Bannerman, as she was known, was born in

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city i ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

, and was a granddaughter of Walter Patterson who had been the Island's first governor. She was later identified as "Carlyle's first love" by her biographer, who tells of the young schoolmaster

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, ...

, in

Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy ( ; sco, Kirkcaldy; gd, Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, ...

, Scotland, "who was attracted by her intelligence and wit." Her family considered Carlyle as an unsuitable marriage prospect, and she eventually married Bannerman, a distant cousin. While in England, he caught a cold and, in his enfeebled state, fell down a flight of stairs causing his death on 30 December 1864 in Mayfair, London aged 76.

Legacy

Bannerman Park in St. John's commemorates his name in Newfoundland.

References

External links

* *
Biography at Government House ''The Governorship of Newfoundland and Labrador''Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bannerman, Alexander 1788 births 1864 deaths British governors of the Bahamas Knights Bachelor Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Aberdeen constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies Governors of Newfoundland Colony People from Aberdeen 19th-century Scottish businesspeople UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 Wine merchants Lieutenant Governors of the Colony of Prince Edward Island Rectors of the University of Aberdeen