Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

Vincent Massey

 
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Charles Vincent Massey

(born Feb. 20, 1887, Toronto, Ont., Can. — died Dec. 30, 1967, London, Eng.) Canadian administrator, first Canadian governor-general of Canada (1952 – 59). He taught history at the University of Toronto from 1913 to 1915. During World War I he served as associate secretary of the cabinet war committee. After the war he operated a farm-machinery business until 1925. Active in Liberal Party politics, he served in the cabinet of W.L. Mackenzie King (1925) and was later Canada's first minister to the U.S. (1926 – 30) and high commissioner for Canada in Britain (1935 – 46). After serving as chancellor of the University of Toronto (1947 – 52), he was named governor-general. His brother was the actor Raymond Massey (1896 – 1983).

For more information on Charles Vincent Massey, visit Britannica.com.

Search unanswered questions...
Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics
Biography: Vincent Massey
Top

Vincent Massey (1887 - 1967) already had a long record of service to his home country of Canada when he was appointed the country's first native-born governor general in 1952. From that point onward only Canadians were named to that honorable position, and the Canadian identity was forever changed from a British protectorate to an independent nation that could stand independently.

Massey was born Charles Vincent Massey on February 20, 1887, the son of Chester D. Massey and Anna Vincent, in Toronto, Canada. He was born into the wealthy Massey family, whose business legacy had been established by his grandfather, Hart Massey, who had amassed a fortune expanding the business interests of Massey-Harris, the farm-implement company his own father Daniel Massey had begun in 1847. Massey's brother was Hollywood actor Raymond Massey, whose best-known work included his portrayal of President Abraham Lincoln in the movie Abe Lincoln in Illinois.

Massey received a bachelor of arts degree from St. Andrew's College of the University of Toronto and went on to earn his master of arts in history at Balliol College, Oxford. He held a post as a lecturer in modern history at the University of Toronto from 1913 to 1915, while acting as the dean of residence of Victoria College. Massey married Alice Stuart Parkin, daughter of Sir George Parkin, a former principal of Upper Canada College and secretary of the Rhodes Trust, on June 4, 1915.

From his last year as an undergraduate in 1910, Massey had the idea that the university needed some form of student center wherein the 4,000 students could have a place to gather that would enhance the college experience. Thanks to money from his grandfather's legacy, he was able to add to the $16,290 that students had managed to raise and the building began by the next year. Progress slowed during the years of World War I, and Massey himself served as a staff officer of Canada's Military District No. 2 from 1915 to 1918. Once the war was over, Hart House - named for Massey's grandfather - was nearly completed. During the early 1920s Massey spent time at the Hart House's student theater as both an actor and director. He also worked in his family's business and was president of Massey-Harris from 1921 to 1925.

No Equal in the Arts

In September of 1925 Massey joined Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King's cabinet. Honored as a member of the Canadian delegation to the Imperial Conference in London in 1926, he came back to accept a position as the first Canadian minister to the United States, where he served from 1926 until 1930. From 1932 until 1935 he served as president of the National Liberal Federation of Canada, and from 1935 until the close of World War II he moved to London to serve as high commissioner for Canada. England's King George VI honored his excellent service by investing him with the Companion of Honour in 1946, an order limited to the king and only 50 others. Along with his post in England, Massey concurrently held other positions, including that of Canadian delegate to the League of Nations in 1936 and trustee of the National Gallery and the Tate Gallery from 1941 to 1945, also serving the Tate as chair from 1943 to 1945. Between 1948 and 1952 Massey continued his support of the arts in Canada as chair of the National Gallery of Canada. This position overlapped with his six-year appointment as chancellor of the University of Toronto, which occurred 1947 to 1953.

Between 1949 and 1951 Massey was chair of the newly formed Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters, and Sciences. Massey's own legacy was recognized through the informal designation of the group as the Massey Commission. The commission issued its first report in 1951. Known as the Massey Report, it not only helped create the Canadian Council on the Arts, but also set the groundwork for establishing the National Library of Canada. In The Imperial Canadian, Claude T. Bissell would comment that, during the years when he first headed the arts commission to the end of his term as governor general, Massey, "[more] than any other Canadian," was "responsible for the first major movement of the arts and letters from the periphery of national concern towards the centre. It was a notable achievement." During this period Massey also encountered personal tragedy when he suffered the loss of his wife, Alice, in July of 1950.

Became Governor General

On February 28, 1952, Massey was appointed governor general and commander-in-chief of Canada. During his first years in office the position was not a governing post, but one that required Massey to sign Parliament's official acts. As the first native-born Canadian governor general Massey had followed 17 Britons into the office; after his tenure, only native-born Canadians would served.

Massey's love and devotion to the Crown of England - particularly the British tradition of pageantry - were traits he proudly cultivated. One example of that was his revival of the use of the State carriage in 1953 during the Ottawa celebrations for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. According to the Governor General of Canada Web site, "Amid much pageantry, the carriage brought Vincent Massey and his staff to Parliament Hill under escort by members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Mr. Massey introduced Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation speech, broadcast in London and around the world." As he did in so many areas, Massey set the precedent for the carriage's continual use on opening day for Parliament and official State visits.

Massey's devotion to the Crown of England in no way diminished his devotion and support of his beloved Canada, and he remained committed to promoting Canada's national identity. His extensive travels throughout the vast expanse of the country have been described as "tireless" as he sought to unify the culturally diverse society, and he used all available means of travel - including canoe and sled-dog team - to reach the country's most remote areas. He believed Canadians should be true to their heritage and learn both English and French. He honored both native and immigrant alike with his attention and acted as the grand host and welcoming committee for all who had come to participate in Canada's cultural wealth.

The period of the 1950s was a remarkable decade for Canada. The census count as of June 30, 1951, due to the post-war baby boom and the influx of record numbers of immigrants, was 14,009,429; in 1901, when Massey was 14, Canada's population had numbered only 5,371,315. During the 1950s the country's gross national product doubled, manufacturing capabilities grew, and petroleum production increased five times from the previous decade, as did iron ore output. The Canadian dollar enjoyed a quality exchange with the U.S. dollar, reflecting Canada's relative prosperity. Massey's influence in the promotion of Canadian arts was considered the catalyst for the development of home-grown Canadian radio, music, and ultimately, television programming.

Because Massey was widowed, his daughter-in-law Lilias served as his official hostess during his tenure in office. Massey had two sons and several grandchildren. In a Life profile of the governor general, Lord Salisbury commented on Massey and his elegance. Due to his British schooling and his upper-class background, the ardently Anglophilic Massey was known for his Oxford accent, as well as for his London tailor even though all admitted he was thoroughly Canadian. Salisbury noted that, "Vincent's a fine chap, but he does make one feel like a bit of a savage."

Retired to Family Home

When he left office Massey continued to keep busy, even after retiring to Batterwood, his family home near Port Hope, Ontario. He continued to chair the Massey Foundation as he done since 1926. The two endowments of the fund closest to his heart were Massey College of the University of Toronto and the campus's Hart House.

Innumerable honors fell to Massey throughout his lifetime. In addition to that with which King George VI invested him, Massey also received the Royal Victorian Chain from Queen Elizabeth II on July 22, 1960, for his achievements representing Canada's sovereign. Another honor was the creation in 1961 of the Massey Lectureship, which provides for a public figure or scholar to lecture on any subject of choice. Many Canadians recognize it to be the most important lecture series in Canada. Institutions of higher learning throughout England, Canada, and the United States presented him with honorary degrees throughout his lifetime. Those included both public and private colleges and universities in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, California, New York, New Hampshire, Michigan, and Connecticut, as well as schools in his native Ontario. Massey himself created the Massey Medal in 1959 as a way of honoring outstanding work relating to Canada's geography. The medal is administered by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

During his lifetime Massey wrote and published several books, including On Being Canadian (1948); What's Past Is Prologue (1959); and Confederation on the March (1965). He has also been the subject of several biographies, and his term as Canada's governor general has come increasingly under the scrutiny of scholars and historians. His papers are collected in several libraries, including Canada's Trent University.

In his book On Being Canadian, Massey noted: "I believe in Canada, with pride in her past, belief in her present, and faith in her future." When he died on December 30, 1967, while visiting London, the life of Canada's truest ambassador came to an end. He was given a state funeral in early January of 1968 and was buried in an Anglican cemetery near his Port Hope home.

Books

Bissell, Claude. The Imperial Canadian: Vincent Massey in Office, University of Toronto Press, 1986.

- , Young Vincent Massey, University of Toronto Press, 1981.

Finlay, Karen A., Vincent Massey and Canadian Sovereignty, University of Toronto Press, 2003.

Massey, Vincent, On Being Canadian, University of Toronto Press, 1948.

Periodicals

Canadian Business, May 12, 2003.

Life, March 10, 24, 1952.

National Post, September 5, 2000.

University of Toronto Magazine, Autumn 2000; Spring 2002.

Online

"Charles Vincent Massey Collection," Trent University Web site,http://www.trentu.ca/ (December 4, 2003).

Hart House Web site,http://www.harthouse.utoronto.ca (December 4, 2003).

"His Excellency The Right Honourable Vincent Massey," National Library of Canada Web site,http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/ (December 4, 2003).

"The Right Honourable Charles Vincent Massey," Governors General of Canada Web site,http://www.gg.ca/governor_general/history/bios/massey_e.asp (December 3, 2003).

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Vincent Massey
Top
Massey, Vincent, 1887-1967, Canadian statesman, b. Toronto; brother of actor Raymond Massey. After a brief career as a professor he served (1918-19) as a government official before joining his family's farm machinery company, of which he was (1921-25) president. A Liberal party supporter, he served as Canada's first minister to the United States (1926-30) and as high commissioner in England (1936-46). He was (1947-52) chancellor of the Univ. of Toronto and then served (1952-59) as governor-general of Canada; he was the first native-born Canadian to hold the post.

Bibliography

See his memoirs (1963).

Wikipedia: Vincent Massey
Top
The Right Honourable
 Charles Vincent Massey
 PC, CH, CC, CD, BA Tor, MA Oxon, LLD(hc) BC, LLD(hc) Queen's, LLD(hc) Sask, DCL(hc), FRSC(hon)


In office
28 February 1952 – 15 September 1959
Monarch Elizabeth II
Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent
John Diefenbaker
Preceded by Harold Alexander, Viscount Alexander of Tunis
Succeeded by Georges Vanier


Born 20 February 1887(1887-02-20)
Toronto, Ontario
Died 30 December 1967 (aged 80)
London, United Kingdom
Spouse(s) Alice Massey
Profession Diplomat
Religion Methodist/United, then Anglican

Charles Vincent Massey PC CH CC CD FRSC(hon)[N 1] (20 February 1887 – 30 December 1967) was a Canadian lawyer and diplomat who, until 15 September 1959, served as the Governor General of Canada. He was appointed as such by George VI, King of Canada, on the recommendation of then Canadian Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent to replace as viceroy Harold Alexander, Viscount Alexander of Tunis. The official announcement of the appointment was made on 1 February 1952,[3] just five days before the King's death, and Massey's investiture as the 18th governor general since Confederation took place on 28 February 1952.[3]

Massey was born into a family that was influential in Toronto, and was educated in Ontario and England, obtaining a degree in law, and befriending future prime minister William Lyon Mackenzie King while studying at the University of Oxford. He was commissioned into the military in 1917 for the remainder of the First World War, and after a brief stint in the Canadian Cabinet began his diplomatic career, serving in envoys to the United States and United Kingdom. Upon his return to Canada in 1946, Massey headed a royal commission on the arts between 1949 and 1951, which resulted in the Massey Report, and subsequently the establishment of the National Library of Canada and the Canada Council of the Arts, amongst other grant-giving agencies. He was appointed as the Canadian viceroy at the beginning of the following year, and proved to be a successful transition for the office between empire-born and Canadian-born governors general.

On 16 September 1925, Massey was sworn into the Queen's Privy Council for Canada,[4] giving him the accordant style of The Honourable; however, as a former governor general of Canada, Massey was entitled to be styled for life with the superior form of The Right Honourable.

Contents

Early life, education, and career

Massey was born in Toronto, Ontario, as the son of Chester D. Massey, himself the owner of the Massey-Harris Co. (predecessor company to the Massey-Ferguson Tractor Company), and the patriarch of one of the city's wealthiest families. The clan was strongly Methodist, and played an important role in supporting local religious, cultural, and educational organisations, including Victoria University, Massey Hall, and the Metropolitan Methodist Church (now the Metropolitan United Church). Massey was thus raised amongst Toronto's elite, which would give him a number of social and familial connections throughout his life, as occurred with his younger brother, Raymond Massey, and his children, Anna Massey and Daniel Massey.

The Gate House of Burwash Hall, a residence of Victoria College donated by Massey's father, and where Massey served as the first Dean of Men.

Massey was raised in the family's mansion at 519 Jarvis Street,[5] and educated at St. Andrew's College, in Aurora, Ontario, before enrolling in University College at the University of Toronto (UofT). There, he joined the Kappa Alpha Society, and through that fraternity met his long-time friend, and future prime minister of Canada, William Lyon Mackenzie King. After passing matriculation in 1910 with his Bachelor of Arts degree in history and English,[6] Massey then went on to continue his education at Balliol College at the University of Oxford, earning his Master of Arts in history.[6][7] In 1913, he returned to Toronto and became the first Dean of Men at the Victoria University residence his father had recently donated, Burwash Hall, as well as a lecturer on modern history at the college.[7][8]

Feeling since his time as an undergraduate at UofT that the institution lacked a facility where its 4,000 students could engage in extracurricular activities, in 1911 Massey donated $16,290 to augment the money students had already raised for building a student centre,[8] and thereafter led the endowment and construction efforts.[6] Then, on 4 June 1915, Massey married Alice Parkin, the daughter of Sir George Robert Parkin, who was a former principal of Upper Canada College (UCC) and secretary of the Rhodes Trust; through the marriage, Massey later became the uncle of George Grant (born 1918), and the great-uncle to Michael Ignatieff (born 1947). But, he was not with his new bride long before, at the end of 1915, the United Kingdom, and thus Canada along with it, had declared war on Germany. Massey was commissioned as an officer for Military District No. 2, and was called to work for the Cabinet war committee before being discharged at the cessation of hostilities in 1918.[9]

Once again a civilian, Massey started in 1921 as president of his father's business, while simultaneously pursuing philanthropic interests, mostly in arts and education, such as his collecting paintings and sculpture through his Massey Foundation, which he founded in 1918. By the next year, UofT's social and athletic facility was complete and dedicated in memory of Massey's grandfather, Hart Massey, as Hart House; there, while he headed Massey-Harris Co., Massey participated as an amateur actor and director in the building's theatre.[8] But, in 1925 he resigned from the corporate life he was unsuited for, and, as a friend of the then Prime Minister of Canada, Mackenzie King, Massey was appointed on 16 September, by Governor General Julian Byng, Viscount Byng of Vimy, to the King's Privy Council, and was subsequently made a minister without portfolio in the Cabinet. It was desired that Massey, as a minister, hold a seat in the House of Commons, yet he failed to win his riding of Durham in the 1925 federal election,[7] held on October 29. Though he thereafter resigned his cabinet post, Massey was still included in the Canadian delegation to the 1926 Imperial Conference,[8] where was drafted the Balfour Declaration that would ultimately lead to vast constitutional changes in the role of the monarch and his viceroys throughout the former empire.

Diplomatic career

Massey (right), William Phillips (left), and Charles Lindbergh outside Rideau Hall in July 1927.
A satirical cartoon created by J. E. H. MacDonald to mark the appointment of Massey as Canadian Minister to the United States, and presented to Massey on 5 February 1927.[N 2]

Later in 1926, on 25 November, Governor General Freeman Freeman-Thomas, Marquess of Willingdon, acted on Mackenzie King's advice to appoint Massey as the first Canadian Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States,[11] making Massey Canada's first ever envoy with full diplomatic credentials to a foreign capital.[N 3] Despite this first in international relations, Massey's time in Washington, D.C. was free of notable events, and he returned to Canada in mid-1930, as Mackenzie King had put his name forward for appointment as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. But, merely five days after Massey reliquished his posting to Washington, Mackenzie King's Liberal Party was defeated in the federal election, seeing Richard Bennett appointed as prime minister. The new premier objected to Massey as the government's representative to the UK, on the grounds that, as a former Liberal minister, Massey did not enjoy the political confidence of the new Conservative government that was needed by the individual occupying the position.

Starting in 1932, Massey took on the job of president of the National Liberal Federation of Canada until,[8] three years later, the Liberals were again returned to a majority in the commons, and Mackenzie King was once more installed as prime minister. Within a month, on 8 November 1935, Massey was appointed as the High Commissioner to the United Kingdom for His Majesty's Government in Canada,[11] and arrived at Canada House to find as his secretary the man who would be his future successor as govenror general of Canada, Georges Vanier. The two men set about regular diplomatic business, but, throughout 1936, Massey had to contend with the death of King George V, and the accession and then – before the proposed Canadian postage stamps even arrived for Massey to pass on for the King's approval[14] – abdication of Edward VIII in favour of his younger brother, Prince Albert, Duke of York.

Throughout his time as high commissioner, Massey used his connections to bring to Canada House a litany of personalities from "the highest quarters."[9] Two such persons were the Viscount and Viscountess Astor, who were both the nucleus of the Cliveden set, which itself was a group of aristocratic individuals rumoured to be Germanophiles not only in favour of the appeasement of Adolf Hitler, but also supporters of friendly relations with Nazi Germany.[15] Though these allegations were historically challenged as exaggerations,[16] Irving Abella and Harold Troper claimed in their book None Is Too Many: Canada and the Jews of Europe 1933-1948 that Massey was an enthusiastic supporter of the Munich Agreement, and worked with Ernest Lapointe to put obstacles in the way of Jewish refugees attempting to immigrate to Canada. However, Canadian immigration policy at the time favoured trained farmers, which excluded most Jews, who were largely city dwellers,[17] and the Cabinet of Mackenzie King was already resistant to changes in the law.[N 4] Seven decades later, these accusations against Massey resulted in a campaign in Windsor, Ontario, to rename a high school that had originally been named in his honour.

Nevertheless, Massey was a Canadian and British patriot, and worked not only to maximize Canada's war effort once World War II broke out, but also concurrently served through 1936 as the Canadian delegate to the League of Nations, between 1941 and 1945 as a trustee of the National and Tate Galleries, and additionally as chair of the Tate's board of governors from 1943 to 1945. Though, Massey was honoured for all this work by being inducted in 1946 by King George VI into the Order of the Companions of Honour, upon his return to Canada Massey continued in the same fields. He sat as chair of the National Gallery of Canada from 1948 to 1952, and was selected as Chancellor of the University of Toronto between 1948 and 1953.[8] In 1949, Massey's artistic expertise was of benefit when he was appointed as the head of the Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters and Sciences, which ultimately, resulted in the Massey Report of 1951, and from there to the establishment of the National Library of Canada and the Canada Council of the Arts. All this Massey continued despite the death of his wife in July 1950.[3]

Governor generalship

Massey's tenure as the Governor General of Canada was notable in that he was the first Canadian-born individual to be appointed to the post; previously, all the viceroys since Confederation had been born in another overseas region of the British Empire and later British Commonwealth. As a widower, he was also the first and only unmarried person ever to reside at Rideau Hall. Typically, the governor general's wife would be the viceregal consort, and act as the hostess and Chatelaine of the household. In Massey's case, however, his daughter-in-law, Lilias Massey, fulfilled the role, though she was not accorded the style of Her Excellency usually given to the viceregal consort.

As Governor General-Designate

It was announced from the Prime Minister's office on 1 February 1952 that George VI had, by commission under the royal sign-manual and signet, approved the recommendation of his Canadian prime minister, Louis St. Laurent, to appoint Massey as his representative. Within five days, however, the King was dead, and Massey, upon his swearing-in, would thus be the first Canadian representative of George's daughter, Queen Elizabeth II. To respect the King's passing, there was little fanfare around Massey's appointment; the sitting governor general, Harold Alexander, Viscount Alexander of Tunis, quietly departed Canada shortly after the announcement of Massey as his successor, leaving Chief Justice Thibaudeau Rinfret as Administrator of the Government in his place.

There was, though, some commentary about the soon-to-be representative of the new queen. The notion of a Canadian-born governor general, and one also not elevated to the peerage, was viewed as somewhat controversial by traditionalists. Massey, thus, was to be a compromise: while it was known he was closely associated with the Liberal Party, having been the group's chairman during the 1930s, the Govenror General-Designate was a commoner Canadian by birth but he also embodied loyalty, dignity, and formality, as expected from a viceroy. Massey stated that for his role as governor general, he for inspiration looked to one of his predecessors, and a man Massey had known for decades, John Buchan, Baron Tweedsmuir, whom Massey said he "greatly admired" and had "learnt much from" his tenure as governor general.[19]

Life ran a profile piece on Massey, in which Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury, described Massey as an elegant individual – citing Massey's Oxford schooling and tailored cothing as illustrations – and thoroughly Canadian, though noting that "Vincent's a fine chap, but he does make one feel like a bit of a savage."[8] But the elite demeanour he was sometimes criticised for was not evident in Massey's belief that the Crown belonged to Canadians, and that it was his task as viceroy to act as a link between the people and the monarch.[3] He similarly believed that the arts were a way to assert Canadian sovereignty, and that the various artistic fields should be accessible to all Canadians.[20]

As Governor General

Massey (left) is greeted by his prime minister, John Diefenbaker, prior to delivering the Speech from the Throne at the opening of the 24th parliament.
Massey (left) shares a laugh with an Inuit inhabitant of Frobisher Bay.

On 26 February 1952, Massey was sworn in as the 18th governor general of Canada in a ceremony in the Senate chamber, where he was presented with the Canadian Forces Decoration (subsequently given to all governors general upon taking office).[21] However, Massey's first months as the viceroy were muted, due to the ongoing 16 week period of official mourning.[22] It was not until the coronation of Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953 that Massey was called upon to take charge of any national celebration. For the occasion, he revived the use of the State Carriage when he rode in it, with an accompanying guard of Royal Canadian Mounted Police, from the royal and viceroyal residence of Rideau Hall to Parliament Hill, where he introduced to the gathered crowd the Queen's coronation speech, broadcast around the world via radio. He also gave a silver spoon to each child born on that day.[3]

Massey welcomed Queen Elizabeth II and her consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, to Ottawa on three occasions from 1957 on, and when the royal couple were engaged in a cross-country tour, Massey invited them to stay at his private estate, Batterwood, near Port Hope, Ontario.[23] He also hosted a number of foreign heads of state, including US President Dwight D. Eisenhower on 13 November 1953.[24] As a return gesture, Massey was invited by Eisenhower to Washington, D.C., where, on 4 May 1954, he addressed a joint session of the United States Congress.[25]

It was Massey's intent as governor general to work to unite Canada's diverse cultures. He travelled across the country, using any and all available transportation, including canoe and dog sled, and delivered speeches promoting bilingualism, some 20 years before it became an official national policy. Along with the usual ceremonial duties undertaken by a viceroy, such as opening in 1955 the new home of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum,[26] the Governor General toured the Canadian arctic extensively, journeying to such places as Frobisher Bay and Hall Beach in the Northwest Territories, meeting with local Inuit residents, participating in their activities, and watching their performances. During his governor generalship, Massey also became actively involved with Upper Canada College in Toronto, donating funds and his time to the school, and seeing a number of spaces there named in his honour in return.[27] As part of his effort to unify Canadians, it was Massey's desire to see established an entirely Canadian honours system. Though such a thing was never realised during his viceregal tenure, he helped lay the groundwork for the system that would be implemented by his successor, and in 1967, just months before his death, Massey was inducted as one of the first companions of the Order of Canada.[3]

Legacy

It was said by Claude Bissell in his biography of Massey, The Imperial Canadian, that Massey's most influential years were between 1949 and 1959, when Massey "made his major contribution. More than any other Canadian, he was responsible for the first major movement of the arts and letters from the periphery of national concern towards the centre. It was a notable achievement."[28] In this vein, he created awards for artistic endeavours, such as the Governor General's Medals in Architecture, and promoted the concept of an annual, national arts festival, which eventually led to the founding of the National Arts Centre. Further, Massey initiated in 1954 the Governor General's Gold Medal for the Institute of Chartered Accountants, as well as in 1959 the Massey Medal, for excellence in geographic endeavours for the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.[3]

Post-viceregal life

Upon his final departure from Rideau Hall as governor general, Massey reitred to Batterwood. For his service to the Crown, he was awarded from the Queen the Royal Victorian Chain, making him the first Canadian recipient of that honour, and today only one of two to ever receive it. Yet, Massey continued his philantrhopic work, dedicating his time to the stewardship of the Massey Foundation, and its endowment to the University of Toronto, in particular.[29] While Hart House continued as one of the recipients of Massey's attention and funds, Massey also expanded the scope of his donations to UofT with the establishment in 1963 of Massey College, to which Massey's protegé Robertson Davies was appointed as the college's first master. In 1961, the Massey Lectures were also initated, conceived as a focus on important contemporary issues by leading thinkers,[30] and they remain considered as the most important public lecture series in Canada.[3]

At the end of 1967, Massey was on holiday in the United Kingdom, where, on 30 December, he died. His remains were returned to Canada, and Massey was, as is customary for former governors general, given a state funeral in early January 1968.[8] He was buried alongside his wife at St. Mark's Anglican church in Port Hope; his was the last burial to take place there.[23]

Titles, styles, honours, and arms

Titles

Viceregal styles of
Vincent Massey
Crest of the Governor-General of Canada.svg
Reference style His Excellency The Right Honourable
Son Excellence le très honorable
Spoken style Your Excellency
Votre Excellence
Alternative style Sir
Monsieur
  • 20 February 1887 – 16 September 1925: Mister Vincent Massey
  • 16 September 1925 – 25 November 1926: The Honourable Vincent Massey
  • 25 November 1926 – 23 July 1930: The Honourable Vincent Massey, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States of America
  • 23 July 1930 – 8 November 1935: The Honourable Vincent Massey
  • 8 November 1935 – 1 September 1946: His Excellency The Honourable Vincent Massey, High Commissioner to the United Kingdom for Her Majesty's Government in Canada
  • 1 September 1946 – 28 February 1952: The Honourable Vincent Massey
  • 28 February 1952 – 15 September 1959: His Excellency The Right Honourable Vincent Massey, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada
  • 15 September 1959 – 30 December 1967: The Right Honourable Vincent Massey

Massey's style and title as governor general was, in full, and in English: His Excellency The Right Honourable Charles Vincent Massey, Companion of the Order of the Companions of Honour, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada, and in French: Son Excellence le très honorable Charles Vincent Massey, compagnon de l'ordre du Compagnon d'honneur, gouverneur général et commandant en chef du Canada. It should be noted that, for Massey, Commander-in-Chief was strictly a title, and not a position that he held; the actual commander-in-chief (who can also be, and is, called such) is perpetually the monarch of Canada.[31]

In his post-viceregal life, Massey's style and title was, in English: The Right Honourable Charles Vincent Massey, Companion of the Order of Canada, Companion of the Order of the Companions of Honour, and in French: le très honorable Charles Vincent Massey, compagnon de l'ordre du Canada, compagnon de l'ordre du Compagnon d'honneur.

Honours

Ribbon bars of Vincent Massey
Lint van de Orde Compaions of Honour.jpg Order of Canada (CC) ribbon bar.png Venerable Order of St John Ribbon 1.jpg King George V Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.png RVO-Star (MVO).jpg
King George VI Coronation Medal ribbon.png QEII Coronation Medal ribbon.png Canada100 ribbon.png CD-ribbon.png
Appointments
Medals
Awards

Honorary military appointments

Honorary degrees

Honorific eponyms

Geographic locations
Buildings
Schools
Events

Arms

List of works

  • Massey, Vincent (1928). The making of a nation. Boston; New York: Houghton Mifflin company. pp. 44. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1930). Good neighbourhood: and other addresses in the United States. Toronto: The Macmillan of Canada. pp. 362. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1935). Canada in the world. Toronto: J.M. Dent & Sons. pp. 229. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1942). The sword of Lionheart & other wartime speeches. Toronto: The Ryerson Press. pp. 117. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1948). On being Canadian. Toronto: J.M. Dent. pp. 198. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1952). Things that remain. Toronto. pp. 16. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1954). On books & reading. Toronto: Ryerson. pp. 12. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1955). The Canadian Club of Montreal 1905-1955. Montreal: Canadian Club of Montreal. pp. 16. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1957). Uncertain sounds. Sackville, N.B.: Mount Allison University. pp. 38. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1959). Speaking of Canada: addresses. London: Macmillan. pp. 244. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1961). Canadians and their Commonwealth. Oxford: Clarendon Press. pp. 20. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1963). What's past is prologue: the memoirs of the Right Honourable Vincent Massey, C.H.. Toronto: Macmillan. pp. 540. 
  • Massey, Vincent (1965). Confederation on the march: views on major Canadian issues during the sixties. Toronto: Macmillan. pp. 101. 

See also

Notes

  1. ^ In Massey's Order of Canada citation on the website of the Governor General of Canada, his post-nominal letters are listed as: PC, CH, CC.[1] Massey was, however, entitled to far more letters; his 1948 autobiography On Being Canadian lists him as: CH, DCL, LLD(hon), FRSC. The department of Veterans Affairs page on the Canadian Forces Decoration mentions that Massey was the first governor general to be awarded the medal upon taking office, which entitled him to utilize the post-nominal letters CD. The same page lists him as "The Right Honourable Vincent Massey, CC, CH, GCJ, CD,"[2] although this listing in inconsistent with the accepted Canadian/Commonwealth Order of precedence.
  2. ^ Massey is depicted (centre) as Mercury bearing his caduceus, a symbol of peace and commerce. To either side of Massey are two former prime ministers of Canada; at left, Wilfrid Laurier, and right, John A. Macdonald. Each hold a tablet, Laurier's incribed with the letters P.N., and Macdonald's with N.P., standing for, respectively, Politique national and National Policy.[10]
  3. ^ The government of Canada had sent ministers and other diplomats abroad since the end of the 19th century; for example, the first High Commissioner to the United Kingdom was dispatched on 11 May 1880,[12] and the credentials of the first Canadian mission to the United States were received on 7 November 1918.[13] However, governmental capitals within the British Empire, and later the Commonwealth of Nations, were not considered foreign, and Canadian diplomats received by foreign governments were not considered of a diplomatic rank above chargé d'affaires.
  4. ^ Massey's viceregal successor, Georges Vanier, while posted as Canadian envoy to numerous European governments in exile, and later as the Ambassador to France, fought, along with his wife, Pauline Vanier, to see Canada allow in more refugees from the Second World War. Their efforts, however, were ignored by the government of William Lyon Mackenzie King, and it was not until 1947 that more European refugees were allowed to settle in Canada.[18]

References

  1. ^ Office of the Governor General of Canada. "Honours > Order of Canada > Vincent Massey, P.C., C.H., C.C.". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2161. Retrieved 15 March 2009. 
  2. ^ Department of Veterans Affairs. "Canada Remembers > Records & Collections > Canadian Orders, Medals and Decorations > Canadian Military Medals and Decorations > Efficiency and Long Service Decorations and Medals > Canadian Forces Decoration". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=collections/cmdp/mainmenu/group11/cfd. Retrieved 15 March 2009. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Office of the Governor General of Canada. "Governor General > Former Governors General > The Right Honourable Charles Vincent Massey". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.gg.ca/gg/fgg/bios/01/massey_e.asp. Retrieved 15 March 2009. 
  4. ^ Privy Council Office (30 October 2008). "Information Resources > Historical Alphabetical List since 1867 of Members of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada > M". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?lang=eng&page=information&sub=council-conseil&doc=members-membres/hist/K-O-eng.htm#M. Retrieved 15 March 2009. 
  5. ^ "Jarvis Mansion District > Jarvis Mansions Today > The Massey Mansion > Massey House History". Jarvis Mansion District. http://www.jarvismansiondistrict.com/MasseyHouse.htm. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  6. ^ a b c Faught, Brad (2002). "A Feast of Thought". UofT Magazine (Toronto: University of Toronto) (Spring 2002). http://www.magazine.utoronto.ca/02spring/feast.asp. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  7. ^ a b c Carter, Don (1 February 1998). "Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts, Letters and Sciences > His Excellency The Right Honourable Vincent Massey P.C., C.H. 1887-1967". Library and Archives Canada; Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/massey/h5-200-e.html. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Library > Miscellaneous > Biographies > Vincent Massey". Answers Corporation. http://www.answers.com/topic/vincent-massey. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  9. ^ a b Granatstein, Jack, "The Canadian Encyclopedia", in Marsh, James Harley, Biography > Governors General of Canada > Massey, Charles Vincent, Toronto: Historica Foundation of Canada, http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0005147, retrieved 16 March 2009 
  10. ^ Library and Archives Canada. "MIKAN ID 2837667". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://collectionscanada.gc.ca/pam_archives/index.php?fuseaction=genitem.displayItem&lang=eng&rec_nbr=2837667&rec_nbr_list=140417,2876845,7771,2842110,22070,2896005,2837667,2204949,2186022,3198738&back_url=(http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/lac-bac/result/arch.php?FormName=Fed+Simple+Search&SourceQuery=&PageNum=1&SortSpec=score+desc&Language=eng&SearchIn_1=&SearchInText_1=massey+vincent&Operator_1=AND&SearchIn_2=&SearchInText_2=&Operator_2=AND&SearchIn_3=&SearchInText_3=&Sources_1=amicus&Sources_2=mikan&Sources_3=genapp&Sources_4=web&soundex=on&cainInd=0&ResultCount=10&MaxDocs=-1&Sources=mikan). Retrieved 17 March 2009. 
  11. ^ a b Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. "About the Department > Canadian Heads of Posts Abroad from 1880 > Massey, Hon. Vincent (Non-career)". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.international.gc.ca/department/history-histoire/hplSearch_results-en.asp?frm=person&lan=1&prsnid=904. Retrieved 15 March 2009. 
  12. ^ Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. "About the Department > Canadian Heads of Posts Abroad from 1880 > U > United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.international.gc.ca/department/history-histoire/hplSearch_results.asp?frm=post&lngId=1&cntryid=207. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  13. ^ Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. "About the Department > Canadian Heads of Posts Abroad from 1880 > U > United States of America (Pre-Legation Representation)". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.international.gc.ca/department/history-histoire/hplSearch_results.asp?frm=post&lngId=1&cntryid=211. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  14. ^ Henry, Paul J.. "The Edward VIII Postage Stamp Essay". The Canadian Philatelist (Toronto: Royal Philatelic Society of Canada) (March – April 1999). http://www.rpsc.org/cp/edward_viii_essay.html. Retrieved 17 March 2009. 
  15. ^ Spivak, John (January 2008). Secret Armies. New York: BiblioLife. ISBN 978-1434693471. 
  16. ^ John, Taylor. "A Reevaluation of Cockburn's Cliveden Set". Ex Post Facto (San Francisco: History Department at San Francisco State University) (1999). http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~epf/1999/taylor.html. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  17. ^ English, John (27 February 1994), Shadow of Heaven: The Life of Lester Pearson, 1, Toronto: Lester and Orpen Denys, ISBN 978-0099825500 
  18. ^ "Pauline & Georges P. Vanier and Jewish Refugees". Vanier College. http://www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/events/holocaust08/pauline_vanier.html. Retrieved 14 March 2009. 
  19. ^ Galbraith, William (February 2002), "The Canadian and the Crown", Ottawa Citizen, http://www.johnbuchansociety.co.uk/samples/crown.htm, retrieved 19 March 2009 
  20. ^ "Being Canadian: Massey legacy focus of research", The Ring, 6 June 2000, http://ring.uvic.ca/00june06/massey.html, retrieved 18 March 2009 
  21. ^ Veterans Affairs Canada. "Canada Remembers > Records & Collections > Canadian Orders, Medals and Decorations > Canadian Military Medals and Decorations > Efficiency and Long Service Decorations and Medals > Canadian Forces Decoration". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=collections/cmdp/mainmenu/group11/cfd. Retrieved 20 March 2009. 
  22. ^ "CBC Digital Archives > Society > The Monarchy > Proclamation of Elizabeth as Queen > Did you know?". CBC. http://archives.cbc.ca/society/monarchy/clips/150/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  23. ^ a b "St. Mark's Anglican Church > History". Anglican Church of St. Mark's. http://www.stmarksporthope.ca/history.html. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  24. ^ "Travel and History > Information Tables > Presidential Visits to Foreign Nations > Eisenhower Travels". Online Highways. http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1461.html. Retrieved 9 March 2009. 
  25. ^ "Office of the Clerk U.S. House of Representatives > Art & History > Congressional History > Joint Meetings, Joint Sessions, and Inaugurations > 80th to 90th Congresses (January 6, 1947 to September 18, 1986)". Office of the Clerk. http://clerk.house.gov/art_history/house_history/Joint_Meetings/80to99.html. Retrieved 20 March 2009. 
  26. ^ "Royal Saskatchewan Museum > About Us > Museum History > The Museum's Homes". Royal Saskatchewan Museum. http://www.royalsaskmuseum.ca/about/museum_history_homes.shtml. Retrieved 20 March 2009. 
  27. ^ Killbourn, William (1984). Toronto Remembered. Toronto: Soddart Publishing. pp. 180-187. ISBN 978-0773720299. 
  28. ^ Bissell, Claude T. (1986). The Imperial Canadian: Vincent Massey in Office. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. pp. 361. ISBN 978-0802056566. 
  29. ^ "Great Past > Great Minds for a Great Futuree > Great Minds Banners > Vincent Massey". University of Toronto. http://www.greatpast.utoronto.ca/GreatMinds/ShowBanner.asp?ID=74. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  30. ^ Fraser, John (2 October 2008). "Feeling the Pinch". Maclean's (Toronto: Kenneth Whyte). ISSN 0024-9262. http://www2.macleans.ca/tag/vincent-massey/. Retrieved 20 March 2009. 
  31. ^ Victoria (29 March 1867), Constitution Act, 1867, III.15, Westminster: Queen's Printer, http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/ca_1867.html, retrieved 15 January 2009 
  32. ^ Office of the Governor General of Canada. "Honours > Insignia Worn by the Governor General". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.gg.ca/gg/rr/ins/index_e.asp. Retrieved 27 February 2009. 
  33. ^ "HONORARY DEGREES". Queen's University. 15 December 2008. http://www.queensu.ca/secretariat/HDrecipients.pdf. Retrieved 7 March 2009. 
  34. ^ "University of Saskatchewan Archives > University History > Honorary degree recipients". University of Saskatchewan. http://www.usask.ca/archives/history/hondegrees.php?id=85&view=detail. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  35. ^ "UBC Archives > Honorary Degree Citations 1950-1954". University of British Columbia. http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/hdcites/hdcites3.html. Retrieved 16 March 2009. 
  36. ^ Birrell, David. "Peak Finder > Mount Massey". Dave Birrell. http://www.peakfinder.com/showpeakbyid.asp?MtnId=1114. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  37. ^ "Massey Theatre & Plaskett Gallery > About Massey > History". Massey Theatre Society. http://www.masseytheatre.com/about/history.htm. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  38. ^ "Calgary Board of Education > Schools and Areas > School Websites/Profiles > Vincent Massey School". Calgary Board of Education. http://www.cbe.ab.ca/schools/view.asp?id=114. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  39. ^ "Vincent Massey School". School District 76. http://www.vincentmasseyschool.ca/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  40. ^ "Brandon School Division > Our Schools > Vincent Massey High School". Brandon School Division. http://www.brandonsd.mb.ca/massey/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  41. ^ "Pembina Trails School Division > Schools > Vincent Massey Collegiate". Pembina Trails School Division. http://www.pembinatrails.ca/vincentmassey/pages/home.html. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  42. ^ "Vincent Massey Elementary School". Vincent Massey Elementary School. http://vmes.nbed.nb.ca/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  43. ^ "Vincent Massey Public School". Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board. http://vincentmassey.kprschools.ca/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  44. ^ "Ottawa-Carlton District School Board > Our Programs > Our Schools > School List > Elementary Schools > R to Z > Vincent Massey Public School". Ottawa-Carlton District School Board. http://www.vincentmasseyps.ocdsb.ca/aboutus.htm. Retrieved 19 March 2009. 
  45. ^ "Vincent Massey Collegiate". Vincent Massey Collegiate. http://www.vmc.qc.ca/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  46. ^ "Riverside School Board > Schools and Centres > Elementary Schools > Vincent Massey Elementary School". Riverside School Board. http://www.rsb.qc.ca/vmassey/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  47. ^ "Vincent Massey Community School". Vincent Massey Community School. http://www.srsd119.ca/vm/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  48. ^ "Ecole Massey Elementary School". Regina Public Schools. http://massey.rbe.sk.ca/. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  49. ^ "Saskatoon Public Schools > Schools > Vincent Massey School". Saskatoon Public Schools. http://www.spsd.sk.ca/index.aspx?section=schools&page=VMS. Retrieved 18 March 2009. 
  50. ^ Lingley, Scott (9 November 2004). "Massey lecturer searches past for clues about our future". Express News (Edmonton: University of Alberta). http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=6186. Retrieved 17 March 2009. 
  51. ^ a b c d "Arms of Past and Present Canadian Governors General > MASSEY, The Rt. Hon. Charles Vincent, PC, CC, CH". Royal Heraldry Society of Canada. http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/m/massey.htm. Retrieved 20 March 2009. 

External links

12th Ministry - Government of William Lyon Mackenzie King
Cabinet Posts (1)
Predecessor Office Successor
n/a Minister without portfolio
16 September 1925 – 12 November 1925
n/a
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Howard Ferguson
Canadian High Commissioner
to the United Kingdom

8 November 1935 – 1 September 1946
Succeeded by
Norman Robertson
Preceded by
New title
Canadian Envoy Extraordinary
and Minister Plenipotentiary to the
United States of America

25 November 1926 – 23 July 1930
Succeeded by
William Duncan Herridge
Academic offices
Preceded by
Henry John Cody
Chancellor of the University of Toronto
1947 – 1953
Succeeded by
Samuel Beatty
Preceded by
New title
Dean of Men of Burwash Hall
1913 – 1915
Succeeded by
Unknown

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Biography. © 2006 through a partnership of Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/ Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Vincent Massey" Read more