David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow

David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow

David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow GCMG , (born March 31, 1833 in Edinburgh , Midlothian , Scotland , † December 13, 1915 in Fairlie , Ayrshire , Scotland), was a captain in the Royal Navy and from 1892 to 1897 Governor of New Zealand .

Life

Boyle was born the fourth child and first son of Patrick Boyle of Shewalton . His mother was Mary Frances Dalrymple-Horn-Elphinstone . When his father died on September 4, 1874, he took over the title and called himself David Boyle of Shewalton . On July 23, 1873 he married Dorothea Elizabeth Thomasina , the eldest daughter of Edward Hunter-Blair . The marriage resulted in three daughters and five sons.

When, in 1888, Boyle's cousin George Frederick Boyle, 6th Earl of Glasgow , was unable to hold the Kelburn Castle family estate with a million pounds in debt , Boyle sold all of his estates to save the family estate. After his cousin's death on April 23, 1890, Boyle inherited the latter's title of Earl of Glasgow . David Boyle died on December 13, 1915 at the age of 82 in his home in Scotland, bequeathing his title to his first-born son Patrick James .

Military career

Boyle completed his military service in the Royal Navy , was stationed in the Russian White Sea during the Crimean War , took part in the Second Opium War in 1857 and rose to captain in the navy. After he was shipwrecked with his ship HMS Niobe off the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon on May 21, 1874, he resigned from service in the Royal Navy after his discharge and from then on devoted himself to civilian tasks.

Political career

Little is known of Boyle's professional career outside of his military service prior to his appointment as governor of New Zealand . A source states that he was a member of the UK's House of Commons , serving as justice of the peace and holding the position of deputy lord lieutenant , who is the highest official in a county in Great Britain.

Governor of New Zealand

Boyle was appointed governor of New Zealand on February 24, 1892 , undoubtedly thanks to his cousin James Fergusson, 6th Baronet , who himself had once been governor of New Zealand. In the New Zealand colony, the press publicly asked what made Boyle stand out for the position. Statements and statements about Boyle's intentions have also met with astonishment and skepticism in New Zealand, where the impression arose that with an annual income of £ 7,500 and the provision of family members in New Zealand, the money should be made in the colony and spent in Europe . Public fears were confirmed from the start of his term in office on June 7, 1892. Boyle quarreled with his ministers and with Prime Minister John Ballance , he received instructions from the Colonial Office in London to follow his ministers' advice and correspond to a self-governing colony , also did not miss out on affairs in which he showed that diplomacy was not exactly his forte, and even so did not appear particularly positive for the people of the country. His declaration at the end of his tenure that he had no plans to be governor for more than five years anyway, and his efforts to leave office a few months earlier, underscored his politically stupid behavior. Boyle left New Zealand on February 6, 1897.

Back in England

Back in England, Boyle was bestowed the hereditary British title Baron Fairlie , of Fairlie in the County of Ayr , on July 23, 1897 . In contrast to his Scottish titles, this was directly connected to a seat in the House of Lords .

Orders and awards

• In 1892 he was beaten to the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (GCMG).
• He received honorary doctorates in law (LL.D.) from the University of Glasgow and the University of Dublin .

literature

• Gavin McLean : The Governors - New Zealand's Governors and Governors-General . Otago University Press, Dunedin 2006, ISBN 978-1-877372-25-4 (English).

Web links

• Bernard John Foster : Glasgow, David Boyle, Seventh Earl of . Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand , accessed June 9, 2010 . 

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b} Capt David Boyle, GCMG . boyle.family.btinternet.co.uk , archived from the original on October 11, 2012 ; accessed on June 9, 2010 (English).  
2. ↑ Patrick Boyle on thepeerage.com , accessed August 19, 2015.
3. ^ Kelburn History . Kelburn Country Center, Fairlie, Ayrshire , archived from the original on August 6, 2010 ; accessed on August 31, 2012 (English, original website no longer available, link to WaybackMachine from August 6, 2010).  
4. ↑ ^{a b c} David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow on thepeerage.com , accessed August 19, 2015.
5. ^ McLean : The Governors - New Zealand's Governors and Governors-General . 2006, p.  140 .
6. ^ The Social Sphere . In: The New Zealand Observer and Free lance . Volume XI, Issue 693. Auckland April 9, 1892, pp.  6 (English, online [accessed June 9, 2010]).
7. ^ McLean : The Governors - New Zealand's Governors and Governors-General . 2006, p.  141 ff .

predecessor	Office	successor
William Onslow, 4th Earl of Onslow	Governor of New Zealand 1892–1897	Uchter Knox, 5th Earl of Ranfurly
George Frederick Boyle	Earl of Glasgow 1890-1915	Patrick James Boyle
New title created	Baron Fairlie 1897-1915	Patrick James Boyle