Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood
Italy- Early Life and Family Background
- Education and Early Career
- Arctic Expedition and Literary Success
- Diplomatic Career
- Marriage and Family
- Governor General of Canada
- Russia and Turkey
- During his tenure, Great Britain invaded and occupied Egypt
Early Life and Family Background
Frederick Temple Blackwood, later to become the 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava, was born into a prominent family in Florence, Italy, on June 21, 1826. His father, Captain Price Blackwood, was a naval officer who inherited the title of 4th Baron Dufferin and Clandeboye. His mother, Helen Selina Sheridan, was the granddaughter of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan, connecting the family to literary and political circles.
Education and Early Career
Blackwood attended prestigious schools such as Eton and Christ Church College, Oxford, where he became president of the Oxford Union Society. However, he did not complete his studies and inherited the title of 5th Baron Dufferin and Clandeboye upon his father's death in 1841. In 1849, he was appointed a Lord-in-Waiting to Queen Victoria and elevated to the peerage of the United Kingdom as Baron Clandeboye in 1850.
Arctic Expedition and Literary Success
In 1856, Lord Dufferin embarked on an Arctic expedition aboard the schooner Foam. He visited Iceland, including the remote capital Reykjavík, the Thingvellir plain, and the Geysir hot springs. On his return, the Foam was accompanied by Prince Napoleon's schooner La Reine Hortense. Dufferin reached Jan Mayen Island but was unable to land due to ice. His observations of the island were limited due to fog. The expedition proceeded to northern Norway and Spitsbergen.
Dufferin's account of his travels, titled "Letters From High Latitudes," became a huge success due to its adventurous style and lively pace. It is often considered a precursor to humorous travelogues, was reprinted for many years, and was translated into French and German. The original letters were written to his mother, with whom he had grown close after his father's death at age 15.
Diplomatic Career
Despite the success of "Letters From High Latitudes," Dufferin did not pursue a literary career, although his writing talents would be recognized throughout his life. Instead, he entered public service, beginning with an appointment as British Commissioner in Syria in 1860 to investigate a civil war in which the Christian Maronite population had suffered at the hands of Muslim and Druze communities. Working alongside representatives from France, Russia, Prussia, and Turkey, Dufferin proved himself as an effective advocate for British policy in the region.
Dufferin's diplomatic skills continued to shine in subsequent posts. He served as Under-Secretary of State for India in 1864, Under-Secretary of State for War in 1866, and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster under Prime Minister Gladstone in 1868. In 1871, he was bestowed the title of Earl of Dufferin and Viscount Clandeboye.
Marriage and Family
By Royal License dated September 9, 1862, shortly before his marriage to Harriet Georgina Rowan-Hamilton on October 23, 1862, Lord Dufferin adopted the surname of Hamilton. He had connections to the Hamiltons through previous marriages, and the union partly aimed to heal a long-standing feud between the two families.
The couple had seven children, with the last two, a boy and a girl, being born in Canada. Dufferin was deeply hurt when his mother married his friend George Hay, Earl of Gifford, who was 17 years her junior. The marriage shocked society, and Lord Gifford died within weeks. Despite his disapproval of his mother's second marriage, Dufferin was greatly saddened by her death in 1867 and erected the Helen's Tower at Clandeboye Estate in her memory. The adjacent bay was also named Helen's Bay, along with a station he built there which eventually became the town of Helen's Bay in suburban Belfast.
Governor General of Canada
Dufferin's career accelerated after his mother's death. In 1872, he became Governor General of Canada, a position he held for six years during a period of rapid transformation for the country. Prince Edward Island joined the Confederation, and several notable Canadian institutions were founded, including the Supreme Court of Canada, the Royal Military College of Canada, and the Intercolonial Railway.
Dufferin believed that his two predecessors had not given the role of the Governor General the importance it deserved. He resolved to play a more active part and to relate to ordinary Canadians as much as possible. He was at ease conversing with a wide range of people in either English or French and became known for his charm and hospitality. At a time when a weak or unpopular Governor General could have damaged lines of communication with the Empire, Dufferin felt that his engaged presence in Canadian life would strengthen its constitutional ties with Britain. He toured each Canadian province and became the first Governor General to visit Manitoba.
Dufferin involved himself in Canadian politics as much as was permitted, even going as far as cautioning ministers against particular measures he deemed unwise. He took an active interest in Parliament despite the convention that the Queen's representative should keep outside of the House of Commons. He established the Governor General's office in a wing of the Parliament building, and Lady Dufferin listened to some of the debates and relayed them to him.
The Pacific Scandal erupted in 1873, in which John A. Macdonald's Conservative government was accused by the Liberal opposition of financial impropriety in relation to the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Dufferin delayed the prorogation of Parliament and appointed an inquiry commission, which embarrassed the government and led to Macdonald's resignation from power.
Dufferin's contributions to Canadian society extended beyond politics. In 1873, he created the Governor General's Academic Medals to recognize academic achievement by Canadian students. Today, the medals are among the most prestigious awards a Canadian high school student can receive, with over 50,000 having been presented to date. He also established various sporting awards, including the Governor General's Rifle Competition and the Governor General's Curling Match.
Dufferin commissioned several additions and improvements to Rideau Hall, the Governor General's official residence. In 1873, he added a Ballroom Wing and in 1876 constructed a Conservatory to accommodate the growing number of receptions held at Rideau Hall. He also opened Rideau Hall grounds to ordinary Canadians by building a skating rink, for which he contributed $1624 of his own money, later reimbursed by the government. Access to the rink was granted to anyone who was "respectably dressed." These initiatives enhanced the status of Rideau Hall as a central meeting place.
The Dufferins also used the Citadelle in Quebec City as a second vice-regal residence. When the city's municipal officials began tearing down the walls of the old city, Dufferin was dismayed and convinced them to cease their destruction, repair, and restore what had been damaged. Old Quebec was later designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the 1980s. Dufferin's last public appearance as Governor General was in Quebec City, where he laid the cornerstone for the Dufferin Terrace, a promenade overlooking the St. Lawrence River, which had been designed by him.
Russia and Turkey
After leaving Ottawa at the end of his term in 1878, Lord Dufferin returned to Britain, where he continued his diplomatic career. He served as Ambassador to Imperial Russia from 1879 to 1881 and to the Ottoman Empire from 1881 to 1884. Although Dufferin had previously been associated with Liberal Party governments, he gradually drifted away from William Gladstone's policies, particularly regarding Irish land rights. He agreed to become Ambassador to Russia under the Conservative Benjamin Disraeli but declined the same position when offered by the Liberal leader.
Dufferin's stay in Russia was relatively quiet in terms of political and diplomatic intrigue, and his papers from that time mainly document his social life. While in Russia, he began to contemplate the highest diplomatic appointment, Viceroy of India. In the meantime, Lord Ripon succeeded Lord Lytton in the post in 1880. Ripon's Catholicism rendered him unacceptable to Queen Victoria, and Dufferin's next ambassadorial posting was to Constantinople.
