Hercules Robinson, 1st Baron Rosmead

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Hercules Robinson, 1st Baron Rosmead

Hercules George Robert Robinson, 1st Baron Rosmead GCMG , Kt. , PC , (born December 19, 1824 in Rosmead House, County Westmeath , Ireland ; † October 28, 1897 in London , England ) was Lieutenant Governor of the British Colonies of Saint Christopher and Governor from Hong Kong , Ceylon , New South Wales , Fiji , New Zealand and Cape Colony .

Life

Hercules George Robinson was born the second son of Admiral Hercules Robinson , of Rosmead, and his wife Frances Elizabeth Wood at Rosmead House, 14 miles northeast of Mullingar , County Westmeath.

Trained at the Sandhurst Military Academy , he joined the 87th Regiment of the British Army, the Royal Irish Fusiliers , in which he acquired a lieutenant's license in 1844 and rose to the rank of captain . The forced sale of the family estate meant that he left the army in 1846 and until 1849 under the Public Works Commissioners of Ireland ( for public functions in Ireland Agents ) assistance to the victims of the Great Famine in Ireland watched with organized and. Also in 1846 he married Nea Arthur Ada Rose D'Amour , daughter of Arthur Annesley, 10th Viscount Valentia . The marriage resulted in three daughters and one son.

Before he started his career abroad in 1854 with the entry into the presidency of the British colony and island of Montserrat in the Caribbean , he was appointed chief representative for the Irish market for two years from 1852.

Career as governor

When he was appointed lieutenant governor of Saint Christopher in the Caribbean in 1855, his career as governor began, which he continued on September 9, 1859 when he took office as governor of Hong Kong. During his tenure, the annexation of Kowloon falls and in 1863 he was also a member of the commission that dealt with the financial issues of the Straits Settlement .

From 1865 to 1872 he moved as governor to Ceylon, where he organized the telegraph and railway system, and when he arrived in Sydney on June 3, 1872, he took over the post of governor in New South Wales, which he held until March 19, 1879. The political instability with four governments and four dissolutions of the parliament and the associated dissatisfaction in the public, Robinson knew how to use for himself and played an important role in the stabilization and development of the colony. But despite his success and popularity he had a certain disdain for the colony and the people, as he was not used to running a semi-independent colony with democratic structures.

In September 1874 Robinson was sent to Fiji on behalf of the Colonial Office and with the authority of the British Crown to negotiate the cession of the Fiji Islands with the thirteen clan chiefs. On October 10, 1874, the treaty was signed and Robinson was used to build a government and administration as governor of Fiji until he was replaced by Arthur Hamilton Gordon in June 1875 and returned to New South Wales.

1877 started with a government crisis, which in autumn 1878 led to a paralysis of parliament and government, as he himself reported to the Colonial Office. Using a clever strategy, he brought the adversaries Henry Parkes and John Robertson to form a coalition that led to one of the most stable governments of its time.

On April 14, 1879 Robinson took office as governor of New Zealand in Wellington . Bald and plump, he made himself popular in New Zealand as a gifted speaker with a keen interest in horse racing and cricket . His ability to deal with George Edward Gray , who himself was former Governor of New Zealand and was about to fail as Prime Minister, was positively remembered by the people. After all, his predecessor, George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby , had been preoccupied with Gray for nearly five years in political confrontation and personal mutual dislike. Robinson let Gray appear with his power games and dissolved the government at a point in time when it was clear to him that Gray no longer had political majorities. On October 8, 1879, John Hall was Prime Minister and the Colonial Office was grateful to Robinson for getting the headstrong power politician Gray out of government responsibility.

Robinson himself remained governor in New Zealand until September 8, 1880, after which he became governor of the Cape Colony and British high commissioner of South Africa . He was this from 1881 to 1889. In South Africa he was confronted with the complicated conflict between Boers , British and African natives and showed in the peace negotiations ( London Convention ) after the First Boer War (1880-1881) a tact and wisdom seldom seen in him . He also negotiated in the conflict over Bechuanaland , which was annexed by the British in 1895. His retirement was postponed twice, on May 1, 1889, the day he left the Cape Colony. When he arrived in London, he took over the seat as a director in the London and Westminster Bank .

In 1895, however, he was called back to the Cape Colony to negotiate in the Jameson uprising , to prevent a war and to get the rebels out of prison, which happened in June 1896. For his services he was raised to baron on August 11, 1896 , which was also associated with a seat in the British House of Lords .

Weakened by illness, he came back to London on April 23, 1897 and died there on October 28, 1897. His hereditary titles of nobility passed to his son Hercules Arthur Temple Robinson .

Knights and titles of nobility

  • In 1859 he was raised to the lower nobility as a Knight Bachelor and was henceforth allowed to use the title Sir .
  • In 1869 he was inducted into the Order of St. Michael and St. George as Knight Commander .
  • In 1875 he was raised to Knight Grand Cross in the Order of St. Michael and St. George , for his negotiations about the cession of the Fiji Islands by King Thakombau (1815-1883).
  • In 1891 he was honored with the hereditary title of Baronet , of Ennismore Gardens, in the Parish of St. Margaret, Westminster, in the County of London.
  • In 1896 he was awarded the hereditary title Baron Rosmead , of Rosmead in the County of Westmeath and of Table Mountain in South Africa to peer collected.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Tarquin Blake: Rosmead House, Co. West Meath. Abandoned Ireland, accessed May 21, 2010 (Rosmead House was built by the Wood family in the early 18th century).
  2. ↑ a b Bernard John Foster: Robinson, Sir Hercules George Robert, Bt., First Baron Rosmead, PC, GCMG, Kt. Ed .: Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. 1966 (English, online [accessed May 21, 2010]).
  3. ^ The Deed of Cession of Fiju to Great Britain. University of the South Pacific - Emalus Campus, archived from the original ; accessed on January 20, 2016 (English, original website no longer available).
  4. ^ Fiji's Chiefs and Rulers 1700s to date. Interactive Presentations Pty Ltd., accessed May 21, 2010 .
  5. ^ The London Gazette : 23512, 3750 , July 1, 1869.
  6. ^ The London Gazette: No. 24175, p. 347 , January 29, 1875.
  7. ↑ The London Gazette: No. 26132, p. 680 , February 6, 1891.
  8. ↑ The London Gazette: No. 26767, p. 4571 , August 11, 1896.
predecessor Office successor
Edward Hay Drummond Hay Lieutenant Governor of Saint Christopher
1855-1859 		Benjamin Pine
George William Des Voeux Governor of Hong Kong
1859–1865 		Henry Arthur Blake
Charles Justin MacCarthy Governor of Ceylon
1865–1872 		William Henry Gregory
Somerset Lowry-Corry, 4th Earl Belmore Governor of New South Wales
1872–1879 		Augustus Loftus
Office newly created Governor of Fiji
1874–1875 		Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore
George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby Governor of New Zealand
1879–1880 		Arthur Hamilton Gordon
Henry Bartle Frere Governor of the Cape Colony
1881–1889 		Henry Brougham Hole
Henry Brougham Hole Governor of the Cape Colony
1895–1897 		Alfred Milner
New title created Baron Rosmead
1896-1897 		Hercules Robinson
personal data
SURNAME Robinson, Hercules, 1st Baron Rosmead
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Robinson, Hercules George Robert 1st Baron Rosmead
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Lieutenant Governor of the British Colonies of Saint Christopher, as well as Governor of Hong Kong, Ceylon, New South Wales, Fiji, New Zealand and Cape Colony
DATE OF BIRTH December 19, 1824
PLACE OF BIRTH County Westmeath
DATE OF DEATH October 28, 1897
Place of death London