Leslie Orme Wilson
Encyclopedia
Sir Leslie Orme Wilson, GCSI
, GCMG
, GCIE
, DSO
, PC (1 August 1876 – 29 September 1955) was a British
soldier, Conservative
politician and Governor of Queensland
.
, and St Paul's School, London.
Wilson married Winifred May, daughter of Charles Smith, of Sydney
, Australia
, in 1909. They lived at the Manor House at Waltham St Lawrence in Berkshire
. They had 3 children:
On his retirement as Governor of Queensland, Leslie Wilson and his wife Winifred returned to live in Surrey
, England
. However, they visited Queensland on a number of occasions, including the marriage of their son Peter.
He died after being hit by a truck while walking in September 1955, aged 79.
, where he was wounded, mentioned in despatches and awarded the Queen's Medal
with five clasps and the Distinguished Service Order
. In 1901 he achieved the rank of Captain.
From 1903 to 1909, he served as aide-de-camp
to the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Harry Rawson
.
During the First World War he commanded the Hawke Battalion of the Royal Naval Division with the rank of temporary Lieutenant-Colonel in the Royal Marines
and fought at Gallipoli
, where he was again mentioned in despatches, and in France
, where he was severely wounded.
On 2 December 1915, he was carrying dispatches on the Greek ship "Spetzia" when officers from a German submarine boarded the ship and captured him and another officer, Colonel Napier.
candidate for Poplar
. In December 1910, he was Unionist candidate for Reading
, but was defeated by the sitting Liberal
candidate, Sir Isaac Rufus, the Attorney-General.
In 1913 Wilson was returned to Parliament for Reading
, a seat he held until 1922.
In 1919 Wilson was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Shipping in the coalition government
headed by David Lloyd George
, a position he held until the Ministry of Shipping was abolished in 1921, and then served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
from 1921 to 1922. He was also the Conservative Chief Whip.
At the general election
he abandoned his Reading constituency to contest the Westminster St. George's division, but was defeated by an Independent Conservative. However within a few weeks he was re-elected at a by-election at Portsmouth South. He was again Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1922 to 1923 under Andrew Bonar Law and later Stanley Baldwin
, and was admitted to the Privy Council in 1922.
on his appointment as Governor of Bombay. Wilson remained in Bombay until 1928.
On 13 May 1937, he planted a small bunya tree
on North Quay, Brisbane
to mark the name change of the River Road to Coronation Drive to commemorate the coronation of King George VI.
From 1932 to 1942, Leslie Wilson was the Chief Scout of the Queensland's Boy Scout Association, resigning in 1942 when he disagreed with the decision to make the Chief Commissioner of the Scouts a paid position.
Leslie Wilson retired at the end of his service as Governor of Queensland.
in 1916, a GCIE
in 1923, a GCSI
in 1929 and a GCMG
in 1937.
Order of the Star of India
The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes:# Knight Grand Commander # Knight Commander # Companion...
, GCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, GCIE
Order of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:#Knight Grand Commander #Knight Commander #Companion...
, DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, PC (1 August 1876 – 29 September 1955) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
soldier, Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician and Governor of Queensland
Governors of Queensland
The Governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the Queen of Australia. The Governor performs the same constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level as does the Governor-General of Australia at the national level....
.
Personal life
Wilson was the son of Henry Wilson, a stockbroker, and his wife Ada Alexandrina (née Orme), and was educated at St Michael's School, WestgateWestgate-on-Sea
Westgate-on-Sea is a seaside town in northeast Kent, England, with a population of 6,600. It is within the Thanet local government district and borders the larger seaside resort of Margate...
, and St Paul's School, London.
Wilson married Winifred May, daughter of Charles Smith, of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, in 1909. They lived at the Manor House at Waltham St Lawrence in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
. They had 3 children:
- son Peter Leslie Orme, born 4 June 1910 in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
,farmer and grazier, died 6 July 1980 aged 70 years in Queensland and buried in Caloundra cemetery - son David Orme, who was killed on 30 November 1941 in North Africa in World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
- daughter Majorie.
On his retirement as Governor of Queensland, Leslie Wilson and his wife Winifred returned to live in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. However, they visited Queensland on a number of occasions, including the marriage of their son Peter.
He died after being hit by a truck while walking in September 1955, aged 79.
Military service
He was commissioned into the Royal Marine Light Infantry and served in the Second Boer WarSecond Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
, where he was wounded, mentioned in despatches and awarded the Queen's Medal
Queen's South Africa Medal
The Queen's South Africa Medal was awarded to military personnel who served in the Boer War in South Africa between 11 October 1899 and 31 May 1902. Units from the British Army, Royal Navy, colonial forces who took part , civilians employed in official capacity and war correspondents...
with five clasps and the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
. In 1901 he achieved the rank of Captain.
From 1903 to 1909, he served as aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Harry Rawson
Harry Rawson
Admiral Sir Harry Holdsworth Rawson, GCB, GCMG RN , is chiefly remembered for overseeing the British Benin Expedition of 1897 that burned and looted the city of the Kingdom of Benin, now in Nigeria...
.
During the First World War he commanded the Hawke Battalion of the Royal Naval Division with the rank of temporary Lieutenant-Colonel in the Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
and fought at Gallipoli
Battle of Gallipoli
The Gallipoli Campaign, also known as the Dardanelles Campaign or the Battle of Gallipoli, took place at the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire between 25 April 1915 and 9 January 1916, during the First World War...
, where he was again mentioned in despatches, and in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where he was severely wounded.
On 2 December 1915, he was carrying dispatches on the Greek ship "Spetzia" when officers from a German submarine boarded the ship and captured him and another officer, Colonel Napier.
Political life
In January 1910, at the General Election, he unsuccessfully stood as the ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate for Poplar
Poplar (UK Parliament constituency)
Poplar was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Poplar district of the East End of London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-History:...
. In December 1910, he was Unionist candidate for Reading
Reading (UK Parliament constituency)
Reading was a parliamentary borough, and later a borough constituency, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It comprised the town of Reading in the county of Berkshire....
, but was defeated by the sitting Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
candidate, Sir Isaac Rufus, the Attorney-General.
In 1913 Wilson was returned to Parliament for Reading
Reading (UK Parliament constituency)
Reading was a parliamentary borough, and later a borough constituency, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It comprised the town of Reading in the county of Berkshire....
, a seat he held until 1922.
In 1919 Wilson was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Shipping in the coalition government
Coalition Government 1916-1922
The Coalition Government of David Lloyd George came to power in the United Kingdom in December 1916, replacing the earlier wartime coalition under H.H. Asquith, which had been held responsible for reverses during the Great War. Those Liberals who continued to support Asquith served as the Opposition...
headed by David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
, a position he held until the Ministry of Shipping was abolished in 1921, and then served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury is a junior ministerial position in the British Government. The holder is usually the Government Chief Whip in the House of Commons. However, the office is no longer attached to the Treasury...
from 1921 to 1922. He was also the Conservative Chief Whip.
At the general election
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
he abandoned his Reading constituency to contest the Westminster St. George's division, but was defeated by an Independent Conservative. However within a few weeks he was re-elected at a by-election at Portsmouth South. He was again Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1922 to 1923 under Andrew Bonar Law and later Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
, and was admitted to the Privy Council in 1922.
Governor of Bombay
In July 1923 he resigned from this position and his seat in the House of CommonsBritish House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
on his appointment as Governor of Bombay. Wilson remained in Bombay until 1928.
Governor of Queensland
In 1932 Leslie Wilson was made Governor of Queensland, a post he held until 1946, one of the longest gubernatorial tenures in British history.On 13 May 1937, he planted a small bunya tree
Araucaria bidwillii
Araucaria bidwillii, the Bunya Pine, is a large evergreen coniferous tree in the genus Araucaria, family Araucariaceae. It is native to south-east Queensland with two small disjunct populations in northern Queensland's World Heritage listed Wet Tropics, and many fine old specimens planted in New...
on North Quay, Brisbane
North Quay, Brisbane
North Quay is a location in the Brisbane central business district and the name of street in the same area, running along the Brisbane River from an intersection near Makerston Street to the top of the Queen Street.-Location:...
to mark the name change of the River Road to Coronation Drive to commemorate the coronation of King George VI.
From 1932 to 1942, Leslie Wilson was the Chief Scout of the Queensland's Boy Scout Association, resigning in 1942 when he disagreed with the decision to make the Chief Commissioner of the Scouts a paid position.
Leslie Wilson retired at the end of his service as Governor of Queensland.
Honours
He was appointed a CMGOrder of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
in 1916, a GCIE
Order of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:#Knight Grand Commander #Knight Commander #Companion...
in 1923, a GCSI
Order of the Star of India
The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes:# Knight Grand Commander # Knight Commander # Companion...
in 1929 and a GCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
in 1937.