Category: Profiles - The Maple Monarchists

Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

9/11/2016

Picture Credit: Quaco Museum

Over the last year the Quaco Museum
in St. Martins, New Brunswick, has
been trying to raise money to buy a
long-lost ship's figurehead. Earlier
this month they succeeded in their
quest to bring the figurehead home.

There is a little bit of a dispute over
who the figurehead actually depicts.
The Quaco Museum claims it is a
representation of Prince Albert
Victor, the grandson of Queen
Victoria. However, Ronald J. Jack
over at The Lost Valley Blog has put
together a good argument for a
different candidate:

Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg

Article One
Article Two
Article Three
Article Four

Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg was the nephew of
Queen Victoria. As a child he found school irksome and after
receiving an undeserved punishment from his tutor he ran
away. However, he quickly ran out of money and was hauled
back. Queen Victoria, after hearing about her nephews desire
for adventure, suggested he join the Royal Navy to see the
world. He became an officer in the Royal Navy in 1848. He
served in the Mediterranean and Far East before retiring from
active service in 1866.

At that point in time he took up sculpting and became quite
skilled. Wikipedia maintains a good listing of his works.
But his most famous work is probably the statue of Alfred the
Great:

It is unfortunate that the Quanco Museum seems opposed to
the idea that the figurehead just might represent Prince Victor
of Hohenlohe-Langenburg. He led an interesting life and
deserves a bit more attention.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Monarchist Profile: Elsie Wayne

8/29/2016

On Saturday the body of Elsie Wayne was
laid to rest. During her life she served as
Mayor of Saint John and later as Member
of Parliament representing the same city.
Like many Maritimers Elsie Wayne was
fiercely proud of her community and her
country. She was also a strong monarchist
and a vocal one at that. In tribute to this
great lady I would like to take a look back
at some of her statements in Parliament.

"I heard the hon. member from the NDP say how sorry he was that we were
referring to the monarchy. I am so pleased and proud that the monarchy is still part
of our citizenship oath. I represent Canada's first city to be incorporated by royal
charter. We and our people played a major role in building all of this country. We
date back to 1783. There are those who say they want to eliminate our ties to the
monarchy. I cannot believe that the people who say that sit in the House of
Commons."
~Debate on Citizenship of Canada Act, February 3rd, 1999

Elsie Wayne often made reference to the fact Saint John was
the first city incorporated by royal charter. It was a particular
point of pride that she had had the chance to represent her
city of Saint John.

"Mr. Speaker, for 40 years Canada has shared with Australia and New Zealand in
seconding a public servant to serve in Her Royal Majesty's press office at
Buckingham Palace. It is once again Canada's turn. However, the Prime Minister
has unilaterally refused to send a representative. I was told today by the London
press that the PMO's press officer said they knew nothing about the monarchy or
any ties. My question is for the Prime Minister. Is he denouncing Canada's ties with
the monarchy? Will he reconsider his position and second a public servant to
continue this important longstanding tradition?"
~Question Period, March 18th, 1998

Throughout the late 1980s and 1990s there was a slow
degradation of royal symbols and traditions. This process of
erosion has become known as 'republicanism by stealth'. To
carry this process out successfully it helps if no one bothers to
point it out. Elsie Wayne was not one to let even the smallest
thing slide. She would ask similar questions of the
government. I believe that this helped make 'republicanism by
stealth' much harder for the government. It certainly annoyed
them. After the above question was asked Prime Minister
Jean Chretien remarked that if Elsie Wayne wanted to go he
would be happy to send her!

Elsie Wayne had far less patience for those who openly
expressed republican sympathies.

"Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister is scheduled to be the official escort to Her
Majesty the Queen when her royal tour brings her to the nation's capital, this
notwithstanding that on Friday last he told reporters in Montreal that he favours
severing all ties with the monarchy after the Queen's reign ends. By my count, the
Deputy Prime Minister has sworn an oath of loyalty and service to Her Majesty no
fewer than four times in the last two years, yet he has used his position as a
minister of the Crown as a podium from which to rail against our history and our
heritage. The minister says that instead of the monarchy he would prefer an
entirely Canadian institution, but he fails to recognize that the monarchy is as
Canadian as the House of Commons itself. I pray that the Deputy Prime Minister
will apologize to the Queen when he hosts her. In fact, he should go to the Prime
Minister and say that he should not be her host and that the Prime Minister should
put someone else in his position when the Queen comes to Ottawa."
~Statements by Members, October 8th, 2002

It is my profound wish that the politicians we have today
would be granted a double share of Elsie Wayne's passion for
our monarchy.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Queen Victoria's Humour

5/7/2015

There is a certain impression that
Queen Victoria did not have a sense
of humour. This is in fact false. The
impression was gained for three
primary reasons.

Most of the pictures people see of the
Queen show her with a blank
expression. The first thing to
consider is that photography was still
in its infancy at the time. Camera
exposure times were long meaning
one had to keep still for extended
periods of time. Smiling was only good if you wanted a blurry
picture.

The second consideration was that the Queen felt that if she
smiled in public the people might think her frivolous. She was
anxious to avoid this as she was unpopular during the early
part of her reign. In private she is said to have often "roared
with laughter". Indeed a photo from 1887 shows her to be in
much better spirits in public:

The third reason is due to to a phrase often attributed to her; "We are not amused." Supposedly it was said at Windsor
Castle after a particular male attendee at her court told a
somewhat lewd joke in front of the Queen and the other women present. Speaking for all the women present (hence the 'we') she replied with the famous phrase. While an
interesting account there is little hard evidence the Queen
ever said it or, for that matter, that the event even occurred.

This raises the interesting question of why the story gained
such traction. One possibility is that it was commenting on
the changed decorum of the court. Her predecessors had been
somewhat lacking in the morals department and it is possible
such raunchy humour was common then. The Queen, in her
efforts to re-create the monarchy as a role model for society
would be disinclined to tolerate the same kind of behavior
her father had. The men at the court were perhaps not pleased
with such a development. If so, the Queen got the last laugh as
she reigned for 63 years.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Princess Alberta

12/31/2014

By: Mr. Windsor

I remember I was taking the Alberta Legislature guided tour for the third time when I first got interested in the Monarchy and its effects and influences on Canadian politics. I stood beside the fountain of the rotunda looking at all the old flags mounted on the marble walls. Our tour guide talked about the massive paintings of our current and past monarchs through the centuries and how they helped carve the identity and image of the culture and traditions of Canadians today. I then realized there was a missing jewel in Canadian politics that I’d completely overlooked. Today, I would like to boast about how my province was named after a member of the Canadian Royal Family.

Princess Louise was the Duchess of Argyll and the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. She was born on March 18th 1848 at Buckingham palace as Princess Louise Caroline Alberta. She would later marry John Campbell the Marquess of Lorne on March 21st 1871. The Marquess of Lorne would later become Canada’s fourth Governor General and the couple would both take a great interest in Canada. They hosted countless balls, dinners, ice skating parties and even tobogganing parties while helping encourage the arts and sciences in Canada. Louise became a patroness for various organizations including the Ladies Educational Association, Women’s Protective Immigration Society, and the Society of Decorative Arts showing how she was a strong supporter of the feminist movement. In the winter of 1880 Louise and Lorne were victims of a sleigh accident. The carriage they were riding in was overturned and both coachmen fell off. The horses then panicked and dragged the overturned cart 370 meters until they calmed down from another carriage ahead. Princess Louise was knocked unconscious and her earring got caught on the carriage walls cutting her ear lobe in half. However, the accident didn't stop the couple from being active in Canadian politics and activities. In 1881 the couple visited the North-West Territories and two years later the territory was split into four districts Assiniboia, Athabasca, Saskatchewan and Alberta. The district of Alberta was named by the Marquess of Lorne in a famous poem he wrote which compared the beauty of the district to the beauty of his wife. In 1905, Alberta would become a province. Princess Louise died on December 3rd 1939 in Kensington Palace, London. Today, countless locations and organizations have been named after the couple. Alberta’s famous Lake Louise, The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Also known as Princess Louise's), 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise's), The Princess Louise Fusiliers, and Mount Alberta all have been named honouring Princess Louise.

Profiles of the Canadian Royal Family: Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

11/7/2014

Today Canada enjoys the advantages of being a constitutional monarchy with a monarch who is above the partisan politics of the day. It was not always like this and for centuries monarchs had been heavily involved in political concerns. The transition from a partisan, executive monarchy to a non-partisan, ceremonial one is a long complicated series of events. However, one man certainly helped cement this change: Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Born in 1819 in the Saxon duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld he would marry his first cousin, Queen Victoria, at the age of twenty. Prince Albert was not initially popular with the British public but after an assassination attempt on him and the Queen he was praised in the newspapers for his courage & calmness under fire. His reputation began to improve.

Prince Albert was not made a peer (due to his initial unpopularity) but insisted he did not want to be made one. Indeed he would eventually refine a model of 'soft power' and moral suasion for the Royal Family. While Prince Albert found the position of consort to be constraining early on he eventually realized it was an opportunity to define the position in wider terms. He took on several public roles within the first few months of his marriage including the presidency of the Society for the Extinction of Slavery. Early on he would also express his support for eliminating child labour, improved schooling, and freer trade. He also found various ways to help his queen carry out her duties including assisting with government paperwork and modernizing the royal finances. The revenues from the Duchy of Cornwall would steadily increase under his watch.

Chrystal Palace interior

A champion of science he was the committee chairman of the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations of 1851. The famed 'Chrystal Palace' was built to hold the exhibition. The entire event was a great success selling over 6 million tickets in five and a half months. It realized a profit of £186,000 which was used to help purchase land in South Kensington where the Science Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the Victoria and Albert Museum stand today.

Before Queen Victoria's marriage in 1840 she had supported the Whigs and even blocked a Tory Prime Minister (although given the circumstances I would have too). After her marriage it is suggested Prince Albert advised her to be less partisan in her dealing with Parliament. This may be why only one member of the Royal Family was identified with a political party during this time. Indeed, by the end of Queen Victoria's reign the principle that the monarch 'reigns but does not rule' was firmly established. That is not to say Prince Albert, or the Queen, thought the Royal Family shouldn't have a strong voice, as demonstrated above.

Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, & 5 of their 9 children

Before and after Prince Albert's untimely death at the age of 42 many places were named after him. Albert County (NB), Prince Albert (SK), and the Victoria & Albert Mountains (NU) are just some of the more prominent places named for him in Canada. The province of Alberta is not, however, instead being named for his daughter Princess Louise Caroline Alberta.

Prince Albert was an example of a royal that could have a prominent role in the nation without governing it and created the template future members of the Royal Family would follow. His early death prevented him from fully realizing this new model for the Royal Family and one wonders what he would have accomplished had he been able to. It is an interesting question to consider.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Monarchist Profile: Lt. Richard Wilson

6/16/2014

Uniform of the 22nd of Foot

Born in Ireland in the year 1740. Richard Wilson joined the British Army around 1757 at the age of 17. He was made a sergeant of his Majesty's 22nd Regiment of Foot. The 22nd had been formed in 1689 by the Duke of Norfolk but had yet to receive any battle honours. Richard Wilson would serve in the regiment for eight years and participate in the sieges of Louisbourg (1758) and Quebec (1759). The regiment next moved to the Caribbean to fight against the Spanish. With the capture of Havana in 1762 the French and Spanish sued for peace and brought The Seven Years War to an end.

Richard Wilson went with the regiment to the newly acquired Louisiana territory. In August of 1765 the regiment was ordered back to the British Isles. However, before they left they discharged any colonists who had enlisted in the regiment as well as any men who had reached the end of their terms and wished to stay in the colonies. Richard Wilson decided to stay and settled in North Carolina. It is possible he had been there around 1760 as two companies were detached from his Majesty's 22nd Regiment of Foot to deal with an uprising by the Cherokee in nearby South Carolina. However, since records indicate him being present at the capture of Dominica and Martinico this is questionable. Whatever the reason, Richard was happy to make North Carolina his home.

Richard Wilson re-enlisted in 1771 and was made a Lieutenant of a Company of Artillary by Governor Tryon. He fought in the final battle against a group of North Carolina rebels known as the 'Regulators' at Alamance. Afterwards he was given a commission as a Lieutenant of the Garrison at Fort Johnston, where he would serve until the 18th of July, 1775.

By the time the first rumblings of the revolution had started Lt. Richard Wilson was doing well for himself having a plantation, two houses, two lots in the town of Brunswick, and one house in the town of Crosscreek. He later built another house at Fort Johnston. He was married in 1767 and had four children. His wife died around 1776 from an unrecorded cause.

The only good public domain map of North Carolina I could find.

In 1775 the rebels stirred up his tenants to stop paying rent unless he accepted a commission in the rebel army; an offer he reported refused "with horror and contempt". At this point he probably realized he stood to lose everything he had built in his new home. It would have been very easy to side with the rebels or simply desert and remain neutral. However, he was not going to betray his oath to his king nor his support for the legitimate governing authority in the colonies. He would pay a high price for his principles as would others like him.

Lt. Richard Wilson and Captain John A. Collet were ordered by Governor Martin to dismantle the fort and transport the guns to Boston as the fort's defence could not be guaranteed due to lack of supplies and desertions (some likely due to the same ultimatum given to Wilson). They managed to save the guns, and embark for Boston. As the men waited for transport they watched their property being burned by the rebels. They arrived in Boston on July 21, 1775, delivering to General Gage "a very valuable and costly set of artillery, arms, stores, and ammunition belonging to the Crown". Both Lt. Richard Wilson and Captain John A. Collet would join the Royal Fencible Americans, a loyalist regiment, serving under Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Gorham at Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia. Richard Wilson would serve in the regiment until 1782 eventually rising to the rank of captain.

Fort Beausejour (aka Fort Cumberland)

The revolution wasn't quite done with Richard Wilson however, and in late 1776 Fort Cumberland was attacked by rebels led by Jonathan Eddy. The British were outnumbered 2-1 and endured a siege from November 10-29th. Matters were only made worse by the fact that the regiment had not received their uniforms and warm clothes were scarce. Thus the men were "permitted to wear the barrack ruggs and blankets". It must have been a miserable time.

Belt buckle and uniform button

However the regiment's courage to hold out despite some close calls helped greatly. The effect of the failed siege was the dampening of revolutionary sympathies in Nova Scotia. The colony would remain loyal throughout the rest of the American Revolution. The years following the failed siege were chaotic as the rebels brief control of the region and reprisals against their supporters afterwards resulted in a wave of litigation that crippled the judiciary in Cumberland County.

Richard Wilson would build a new life for himself in the nearby town of Sackville. He married Ann Harper, daughter of Christopher Harper. Christopher Harper himself had lost property during Eddy's Rebellion and it is easy to imagine the two men becoming quick friends through shared experiences and values.

Richard Wilson would continue his military career when he was made Lt. Col. of the Westmorland County Regiment of Militia consisting of two battalions. Militia drills were conducted on the field behind his house and provided a day of entertainment for the townspeople as the militiamen went through their maneuver.

Lt. Col. Richard Wilson died in 1810 having served king and country faithfully and well.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Monarchist Profile: Michael Valpy

6/12/2014

Born in Toronto to a family Michael Valpy described as "strongly Tory monarchist British imperialist-quite right wing". Perhaps as a reaction to that Valpy's political views are consistently leftist. Remarkably (and it is sad I need to use that term) he maintained a strong belief in monarchy as the best fit for Canada.

Valpy started what was to be a long career in journalism in 1961 which only recently ended in 2012 with his retirement from the Globe and Mail. He used his position to expound upon the many positive aspects of retaining the monarchy and upbraided republicans for having unrealistic plans for establishing a republic. It would take awhile to go through all of his articles, stories, and opinion pieces on the monarchy so I'll let you do the leg work.

He famously described the monarch's constitutional role as being that of a "national fire extinguisher" by providing a source of non-partisan legitimacy in times of crisis.

In 2000 Valpy ran for Parliament in the riding of Trinity—Spadina under the NDP banner. Sadly, he didn't win. It would be nice for there to be a monarchist on the Dipper's bench to educate misinformed MPs such as Pat Martin and Nathan Cullen. Perhaps more importantly it would show the party membership that being a socialist and a monarchist are not incompatible beliefs and that there is no reason to hide that you are one. That is an entire article by itself though.

While retired Michael Valpy still writes articles on a freelance basis. He has been a steadfast champion of the monarchy in his writings and we could use more journalists like him.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Monarchist Profile: Sir David Kirke

5/28/2014

Sir David Kirke was born in Dieppe, France in 1597 to an English father and a French mother. Kirke is an interesting character in Canadian history not least because of his daring plan to rescue King Charles I from execution.

In 1627 some London merchants formed a company with the intent to trade and found settlements along the St. Lawrence River. When war broke out later that same year between England and France (as tended to happen in those days) the company financed an expedition to the New World under Kirke in order to drive out the French. Accompanied by his brothers he set out with three ships. The campaign went well with a quick capture of Tadoussac as well as a supply ship headed for Quebec. Kirke had surrender conditions delivered to Champlain (then in charge of the outpost). Champlain, confident in the settlement's defences and expecting supplies from France, refused to surrender. Kirke for his part decided not to attack the well-armed outpost. However, Champlain just couldn't catch a break. The French supply ships were captured by the English and Champlain was eventually forced to come to terms.

A small wrinkle in all this was that peace had been declared in April and Quebec captured in July. It would be several years of negotiation before the French colony was returned in 1632. In 1633 for his service to his king (and perhaps as compensation for having to give Quebec back) Kirke was knighted.

In 1637 he was made co-proprietor of Newfoundland along with the Marquis of Hamilton and the earls of Pembroke and Holland. He would become Governor of the island in 1639. He was given a grant of arms that in the intervening period would fall into obscurity only to re-emerge later and be adopted as Newfoundland's coat of arms. He had an unenviable position as governor as he had to contend with a foreign fishery that did not want local settlement on the island. Nevertheless he brought about 100 colonists to the settlement of Ferryland where he also erected fortifications.

King Charles I

During the English Civil War Sir David Kirke sided with the Royalists. This is when a most daring plan was concocted. He implored King Charles to seek sanctuary at the Ferryland settlement. This is not as far-fetched as it sounds since, when well supplied, the settlement was virtually unassailable by sea. Sir David began improving the colony's defences and outfitting a fleet. In 1648 the plan became even more feasible when a large part of the English Navy deserted to the Royalists. Prince Rupert, a leader on the Royalist side, wanted to use the fleet to rescue the King who was being held on the Isle of Wright. It is an open question whether the two men were actively working together but Cromwell did fear the island would be used as a Royalist base to strike at English shipping and kept it under strict monitoring. Alas, the planning and preparation of both men came to naught and King Charles was murdered by the Cromwell regime in early 1649.

It seems Sir David may have intended to continue the fight as he hired 400 sailors, ostensibly as fishermen, in 1649. However, Cromwell had access to the colony too strictly controlled and Sir David was forced to make peace with him. The remains of the Royalist fleet commanded by Prince Rupert was reduced to a handful of ships by 1653.

Sir David was recalled to England where he died of natural causes but his family would remain at the Ferryland settlement for some time. It would take a raid on the settlement in 1673 and another in 1696 to finally dislodge the Kirkes from Newfoundland.

It is interesting to speculate on what might have been had King Charles made his escape to Newfoundland. It is unlikely Parliament would have recalled a man they had just fought a bitter war with. It is indeed possible that the centre of of what was at the time still a modest empire would have shifted to Canadian shores.

Regardless, Sir David Kirke showed loyal service to his king and the fledgling colony of Newfoundland.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Profiles of the Canadian Royal Family: Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn

5/26/2014

Prince Edward is an oft over-looked royal partially because, although his daughter Victoria became Queen, he was never king. However, his importance to Canada can not be overstated. In fact columnist Michael Taube has dubbed him the "Father of the Canadian Crown".

Originally posted to Gibralter, he was soon re-assigned to Lower Canada at his request. Apparently he couldn't take the hot Mediterranean climate (a man after my own heart). He ended up staying in Canada for nine years from 1791 to 1800. He would be the first royal to spend more than a brief period in what was to become Canada. As a result he has left a lasting legacy on Canada.

During a stay in Charlesbourg in 1792 he performed his most famous act. A riot had broken out between the French and the English at a polling station which he went to break up. This is not all that unusual as he was a military man and furthermore as a strict disciplinarian he abhorred disorder. What he choose to say to the rioters as order was being restored is the important part. Before the rioters he spoke these words:

"Part then in peace. Let me hear no more of the odious distinction of English and French. You are all His Britannic Majesty's beloved Canadian subjects."

It is often taken for granted today that 'Canadian' is a civic, not ethnic, term that includes everyone in Canada rather than a single group. In 1792 that was not the case. Canadian (or Canadien) meant the French of Lower Canada exclusively. Prince Edward's remark is the first recorded use of Canadian in a civic sense. This makes him in a way the father of Canada as we know it.

This contribution to the formation of the idea of Canada would be followed by another. In 1814 Prince Edward was forwarded a letter from Jonathan Sewell, a friend whom he had met while in Canada. The letter was a plan for a federal union of the British North American
colonies. Prince Edward supported the idea and offered comments and critiques that would later be cited during the Charlottetown and Quebec Conferences (1864).

In terms of physical contributions he was responsible for several important building projects in Halifax after he moved there in 1794. Much like his future descendent Prince Charles he had an interest in architecture. In this case, Halifax's lack of notable structures. Halifax's Citadel Clock Tower and St.George’s Round Church were two notable structures he helped construct.

It should not be surprising that he has many places in Canada named after him including, of course, Prince Edward Island. As well you have Kent County in New Brunswick and numerous Kent Streets and parks.

Father of the Canadian Crown is a fitting sobriquet.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour