George Bowen
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| In office 10 December 1859 – 4 January 1868 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Blackall |
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| In office 5 February 1868 – 19 March 1873 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Sir George Grey |
| Succeeded by | Sir James Fergusson |
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| In office 30 July 1873 – 22 February 1879 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Sir John Manners-Sutton |
| Succeeded by | George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby |
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| In office 1879 – 1883 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
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| In office 30 March 1883 – 6 October 1887 |
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| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | Sir John Pope Hennessy |
| Succeeded by | Sir George William Des Vœux |
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| Born | 2 November 1821 County Donegal, Ireland, UK |
| Died | 21 February 1899 (aged 77) Brighton, Sussex, England, UK |
| Nationality |  British |
| Spouse | Contessa Diamantina Roma Florence Bowen |
| Alma mater | Brasenose College, Oxford |
| Profession | colonial administrator |
| Religion | Church of England |
Sir George Ferguson Bowen GCMG (2 November 1821 – 21 February 1899) was a British colonial administrator whose appointments included postings to the Ionian Islands, Queensland (Australia), New Zealand, Victoria (Australia), Mauritius and Hong Kong.
[edit] Early life
George Bowen was born the eldest son of the Rev. Edward Bowen[1], in Taughboyne, County Donegal, Ireland. He was educated at Charterhouse School and Trinity College, Oxford, where two of his predecessors were also educated. Bowen, twice President of the Union, was awarded a first class Bachelor of Arts degree in classics in 1844[1], and was elected a fellow of Brasenose College. He received an MA degree in 1847 and entered Lincoln's Inn in 1844. From 1847 to 1851 he was president of the Ionian University of Corfu.
[edit] Service in the Ionian Islands
From 1854 to 1859, George Bowen served as the chief secretary of government in the Ionian Islands[1]. While in that post, he married the Contessa Diamantina di Roma on 28 April 1856. Diamantina was the daughter of Conte Giorgio-Candiano Roma and his wife Contessa Orsola, née di Balsamo. The Roma family were local aristocracy; her father being the President of the Ionian Senate, titular head of the Ionian Islands, from 1850 to 1856.
[edit] Governor of Queensland
Five years later in 1859, he was appointed the first Governor of Queensland, a colony that had just been separated from New South Wales. He was interested in the exploration of Queensland and in the establishment of a volunteer force, but incurred some unpopularity by refusing to sanction the issue of inconvertible paper money during the financial crisis of 1866. But overall, he was quite popular in Queensland, so much so that the citizens requested an extension of his 5-year term as governor, resulting in his staying for a further two years[2].
[edit] Governor of New Zealand
In 1867 Bowen was made Governor of New Zealand, where he was successful in reconciling the Māori reaction to the British rule there, and saw the end of the struggle between the colonists and the natives. (For a rather different view of the conflict and its partial resolution, see New Zealand land wars). He also instituted the New Zealand Cross, one of the rarest bravery awards in the world, equivalent to the Victoria Cross.
[edit] Governor of Victoria
In 1872 Bowen was transferred to Victoria (Australia) as Governor of Victoria, where he embarked on an endeavour to reduce the expenses of the colony.
[edit] Governor of Mauritius
George Bowen was 13th Governor of Mauritius from 4 Apr 1879 to 9 Dec 1880.[3]
[edit] Governor of Hong Kong
On 30 March 1883, Bowen was made Governor of Hong Kong, a position in which he served until 1887, when he retired due to ill health. This was his last post in the Colonial Service.
During his tenure, Bowen established the Royal Observatory, which became the meteorological institute for all of Hong Kong. He also established the first college in the territory, and ordered the construction of the Typhoon Shelter in Causeway Bay, and a government hospital.
[edit] Post-governorship
Bowen retired to England after his tenure as Governor of Hong Kong, and was appointed as a chief of a Royal Commission which was sent to Malta with regard to the new constitution for the island in December 1887. All recommendations made by Bowen were adopted. Afterwards, Bowen served as a privy councillor.
[edit] Personal life
Bowen was married twice.
His first wife was Contessa Diamantina di Roma, daughter of Count Candiano di Roma. They had the following children:
- first child, a son who died twelve days old, born in the Ionian Islands
- Adelaide Diamantina (Nina) Bowen, born 17 August 1858 in the Ionian Islands
- Zoe Caroline Bowen, born 28 August 1860 at Adelaide House (the temporary Government House), Brisbane, Queensland
- Agnes Herbert Bowen, born 26 July 1862 at Government House in Brisbane, Queensland
- George William Howard Bowen, born 9 April 1864 at Government House, Brisbane, Queensland
- Alfreda Ernestina Albertina Bowen, born 10 April 1869 at Government House, Auckland, New Zealand
Diamantina died in London in 1893 aged about 60 years old[4].
George married his second wife, Letitia Florence White, in late 1896 at Chelsea, London[4]. Florence was the daughter of Dr Thomas Luby, a mathematician, and was the widow of Henry White, whom she married in 1878[4].
George Ferguson Bowen died on 21 February 1899 in Brighton, Sussex, England aged 77 years old[4]. He died from bronchitis after a short illness of 2 days. He was buried on 25 February 1899 in Kensal Green cemetery, London.
[edit] Honours
- K.C.M.G., 1856
- G.C.M.G., 1860
- Privy Councillor, 1886
- Honorary DCL Degree, Oxford, 1875
- Honorary LLD Degree, Cambridge, 1886.
[edit] Literary works
- Ithaca, 1850 (London, 1854 translated into Greek in 1859)
- Mount Athos, Thessaly and Epirus (London, 1852);
- Murray's Handbook for Greece (London, 1854).
- Thirty Years of Colonial Government (London, 1889, edited by S. Lane-Poole)
[edit] Places named in his honour
- The town of Bowen, Queensland
- Bowen Road, and Bowen Drive in Hong Kong.
- Bowen Street (now part of the RMIT campus) in Melbourne, Victoria
His wife Diamantina appears to have been more popular than George in Queensland, as there are many Queensland places named after her.
[edit] See also
Read about his wife Lady Diamantina Bowen for a more fullsome account of the social and personal life of the couple.
[edit] Government Offices
| Government offices | ||
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| Preceded by none |
Governor of Queensland 1859–1867 |
Succeeded by Colonel Sir Samuel Blackall |
| Preceded by Sir George Grey |
Governor of New Zealand 1867–1872 |
Succeeded by Sir James Fergusson |
| Preceded by Sir John Manners-Sutton |
Governor of Victoria 1873–1879 |
Succeeded by George Phipps, Marquess of Normanby |
| Preceded by Sir Arthur Purves Phayre |
Governor of Mauritius 1879–1880 |
Succeeded by Sir Frederick Napier Broome |
| Preceded by William H. Marsh (Administrator) |
9th Governor of Hong Kong 1883–1885 |
Succeeded by William H. Marsh (Administrator) |
[edit] References
- Sir George Ferguson Bowen, Australian Dictionary of Biography
- Dictionary of Australian Biography - Project Gutenberg
- The Arrival & Reception of His Excellency Sir G.F. Bowen, First Governor of Queensland, Moreton Bay Courier, Tuesday 13 December 1859, page 2
- Departure of Governor Sir G.F. Bowen, The Brisbane Courier, Monday 6 January 1868, page 2
- Reception of Sir G.F. Bowen in New Zealand, The Brisbane Courier, Tuesday 3 March 1868, page 3
- Farewell Ball to the Governor, Waikato Times, Volume III, Issue 135, 20 March 1873, Page 2
- Death of Sir George Bowen, Brisbane Courier, Thursday 23 February 1899
- The Late Sir George Bowen, Brisbane Courier, Monday 27 February 1899
- Death of Sir George Bowen, Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 9676, 23 February 1899, Page 2
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c Death of Sir George Bowen, Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 9676, 23 February 1899, Page 2
- ^ The Late Lady Bowen, Brisbane Courier, Monday 27 November 1893
- ^ http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Mauritius.htm
- ^ a b c d www.freebmd.org
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
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