Zara, Countess of Gowrie
Encyclopedia
Zara Eileen Hore-Ruthven, Countess of Gowrie (20 January 1879 – 19 July 1965) was the Irish
-born wife of the 1st Earl of Gowrie
, Governor of South Australia 1928-34, Governor of New South Wales 1935-36 and the longest-serving Governor-General of Australia
1936-44. She was renowned for her work in promoting the welfare of children in Australia, and the Lady Gowrie Child Centres were named in her honour.
. She studied music in Vienna
when she was young. On 1 June 1908 at St George's, Hanover Square
, London
, she married Alexander Hore-Ruthven
, over the objections of her family, who considered him "the impecunious son of an impoverished family, with indifferent prospects". The following month they came to Australia
where he took up the post of military secretary to Lord Dudley
, the Governor-General
. He had previously served as aide-de-camp to Lord Dudley when he was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
. In 1928 he was appointed Governor of South Australia and was knighted, she becoming Lady Hore-Ruthven.
In January 1935 he became Governor of New South Wales, and in January 1936 Governor-General. He had earlier been elevated to the peerage as Baron Gowrie of Canberra and Dirleton, and she became Baroness Gowrie.
In the 1930s Lady Gowrie heard the budding opera singer Joan Hammond
, and she fostered her career, including organising the costs of her travel to Europe to study music, and putting her in touch with the director of the Vienna Boys' Choir
, then visiting Australia. Hammond called her "my fairy godmother", and her first real success came only after this assistance from Lady Gowrie.
in Hobart
. There is also a Lady Gowrie Library and Resource Centre in Hobart, which contains a range of specialised early childhood publications to support early childhood professionals. The Lady Gowrie Child Centre in Melbourne
is now known as "Gowrie Victoria". In Perth
, Western Australia, a Centre was established in about 1940 in Victoria Park. Unfortunately the Centre has now been supplanted by local council administrative offices.
, which raised the very considerable sum for those days of ₤3,500, and she also donated some of her personal belongings for a raffle. The Lady Gowrie Services Club was opened on 13 March 1941, and she was the inaugural president until the Gowries returned to the United Kingdom in 1944. In April 2009 the Lady Gowrie Hall at the Canberra Services Club was formally dedicated.
She also organised various other concerts and fairs at Government House for the war effort. She made a radio broadcast to the women of Australia on New Year's Day 1941, calling for hope and courage. Lord Gowrie made a similar broadcast the following year. She was an enthusiast for the Girl Guides
movement, president of the South Australian branch of the Red Cross Society
and was associated with the Victoria League.
took up his post as Japan's first Ambassador to Australia. He met Lady Gowrie and offered to present her with a bonsai
pine tree. Australia declared war on Japan in December 1941, and Kawai was placed under house arrest pending repatriation to Japan. In 1942, Lady Gowrie was advised by Sir John Latham, Australia's former representative in Tokyo
who was returning to Australia to resume his post as Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia
, that Kawai now wanted to honour his offer. Lady Gowrie made it known that she would be delighted to accept the gift, even though the two nations were now at war and over 20,000 Australian soldiers were in Japanese captivity following the fall of Singapore
. Her reply to Kawai was stopped by the Secretary of the Department of External Affairs, and the bonsai tree was never presented to her.
Dame Joan Hammond
's career had come to an end through illness, and she sang in public for the last time at the funeral of her devoted champion Lady Gowrie, on 30 July 1965, at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
. This occasion was also memorable for the fact that Hammond was the first woman ever granted Royal permission to sing in that Chapel.
, a poet and soldier, was born on 30 August 1913 and was killed on active service in Libya
on 24 December 1942, after leading a commando raid on Tripoli
. A collection of his poetry, The Happy Warrior, was published in 1943, with a preface by his mother. Patrick's elder son, Grey Ruthven, succeeded his grandfather as 2nd Earl of Gowrie.
east of the CBD. It is situated adjacent to Kirribilli House
, the Sydney residence of the Prime Minister of Australia
.
Lady Gowrie was also a keen horticulturist, and the "Zara Hore-Ruthven" rose
was named after her.
There is a Lady Gowrie Drive that runs through various suburbs of Adelaide
.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
-born wife of the 1st Earl of Gowrie
Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie
Brigadier General Alexander Gore Arkwright Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie VC, GCMG, CB, DSO & Bar, PC was a British soldier and colonial governor and the tenth Governor-General of Australia. Serving for 9 years and 7 days, he is the longest serving Governor-General in Australia's history...
, Governor of South Australia 1928-34, Governor of New South Wales 1935-36 and the longest-serving Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
1936-44. She was renowned for her work in promoting the welfare of children in Australia, and the Lady Gowrie Child Centres were named in her honour.
Biography
Zara Eileen Pollok was born near Ballinasloe, County Galway, Ireland in 1879, the daughter of John Pollok and his wife the Honourable Florence Madeline, née Bingham, daughter of the 4th Baron ClanmorrisBaron Clanmorris
Baron Clanmorris, of Newbrook in the County of Mayo, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for John Bingham. He was a descendant of John Bingham of Foxford in County Mayo, whose brother Sir Henry Bingham, 1st Baronet, of Castlebar, was the ancestor of the Earls of Lucan...
. She studied music in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
when she was young. On 1 June 1908 at St George's, Hanover Square
Hanover Square, London
Hanover Square, London, is a square in Mayfair, London W1, England, situated to the south west of Oxford Circus, the major junction where Oxford Street meets Regent Street....
, London
London
London 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...
, she married Alexander Hore-Ruthven
Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie
Brigadier General Alexander Gore Arkwright Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie VC, GCMG, CB, DSO & Bar, PC was a British soldier and colonial governor and the tenth Governor-General of Australia. Serving for 9 years and 7 days, he is the longest serving Governor-General in Australia's history...
, over the objections of her family, who considered him "the impecunious son of an impoverished family, with indifferent prospects". The following month they came to 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...
where he took up the post of military secretary to Lord Dudley
William Ward, 2nd Earl of Dudley
William Humble Ward, 2nd Earl of Dudley, KP, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, KStJ, PC, TD, DL , styled Viscount Ednam before 1885, was a British Conservative politician...
, the Governor-General
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
. He had previously served as aide-de-camp to Lord Dudley when he was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
. In 1928 he was appointed Governor of South Australia and was knighted, she becoming Lady Hore-Ruthven.
In January 1935 he became Governor of New South Wales, and in January 1936 Governor-General. He had earlier been elevated to the peerage as Baron Gowrie of Canberra and Dirleton, and she became Baroness Gowrie.
In the 1930s Lady Gowrie heard the budding opera singer Joan Hammond
Joan Hammond
Dame Joan Hilda Hood Hammond, DBE, CMG was an Australian operatic soprano, singing coach and champion golfer.- Early life :...
, and she fostered her career, including organising the costs of her travel to Europe to study music, and putting her in touch with the director of the Vienna Boys' Choir
Vienna Boys' Choir
The Vienna Boys' Choir is a choir of trebles and altos based in Vienna. It is one of the best known boys' choirs in the world. The boys are selected mainly from Austria, but also from many other countries....
, then visiting Australia. Hammond called her "my fairy godmother", and her first real success came only after this assistance from Lady Gowrie.
Lady Gowrie Child Centres
Starting from around 1939, the Lady Gowrie Child Centres in the state capital cities were established by the Commonwealth Government to demonstrate exemplary benchmarks of quality in early childhood practice. This followed lobbying by Lady Gowrie and others for the establishment of centres across Australia to improve the health and wellbeing of Australian children, particularly disadvantaged children. The first Lady Gowrie Child Centre was established at Battery PointBattery Point, Tasmania
Battery Point is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is immediately south of the Central business district. It is in the local government area of City of Hobart....
in Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
. There is also a Lady Gowrie Library and Resource Centre in Hobart, which contains a range of specialised early childhood publications to support early childhood professionals. The Lady Gowrie Child Centre in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
is now known as "Gowrie Victoria". In Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Western Australia, a Centre was established in about 1940 in Victoria Park. Unfortunately the Centre has now been supplanted by local council administrative offices.
Canberra Services Club
Lady Gowrie played an active role in the establishment of the Canberra Services Club, then known as the Canberra Services Welfare Association. The Association wanted to build a "rest hut" for use by members of the forces. She hosted a Garden Fair at Government House, CanberraGovernment House, Canberra
Government House, Canberra, commonly known as Yarralumla, is the official residence of the Governor-General of Australia. It is located in the suburb of Yarralumla, in the City of Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory....
, which raised the very considerable sum for those days of ₤3,500, and she also donated some of her personal belongings for a raffle. The Lady Gowrie Services Club was opened on 13 March 1941, and she was the inaugural president until the Gowries returned to the United Kingdom in 1944. In April 2009 the Lady Gowrie Hall at the Canberra Services Club was formally dedicated.
She also organised various other concerts and fairs at Government House for the war effort. She made a radio broadcast to the women of Australia on New Year's Day 1941, calling for hope and courage. Lord Gowrie made a similar broadcast the following year. She was an enthusiast for the Girl Guides
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
movement, president of the South Australian branch of the Red Cross Society
Australian Red Cross
The Australian Red Cross is one of the many national Red Cross societies around the world. The Australian organisation was established in 1914, nine days after the commencement of World War I, by Karen Tenenbaum, when she formed a branch of the British Red Cross.the organisation grew at a rapid rate...
and was associated with the Victoria League.
Diplomatic incident
In the early part of 1941, Tatsuo KawaiTatsuo Kawai (diplomat)
was a Japanese diplomat and author . He was a leaning proponent of expansionism in Japan before World War II but later became a pacifist and was Japan's first Ambassador to Australia.-Early years:...
took up his post as Japan's first Ambassador to Australia. He met Lady Gowrie and offered to present her with a bonsai
Bonsai
is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ...
pine tree. Australia declared war on Japan in December 1941, and Kawai was placed under house arrest pending repatriation to Japan. In 1942, Lady Gowrie was advised by Sir John Latham, Australia's former representative in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
who was returning to Australia to resume his post as Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia
High Court of Australia
The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. It has both original and appellate jurisdiction, has the power of judicial review over laws passed by the Parliament of Australia and the parliaments of the States, and...
, that Kawai now wanted to honour his offer. Lady Gowrie made it known that she would be delighted to accept the gift, even though the two nations were now at war and over 20,000 Australian soldiers were in Japanese captivity following the fall of Singapore
Battle of Singapore
The Battle of Singapore was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of the Second World War when the Empire of Japan invaded the Allied stronghold of Singapore. Singapore was the major British military base in Southeast Asia and nicknamed the "Gibraltar of the East"...
. Her reply to Kawai was stopped by the Secretary of the Department of External Affairs, and the bonsai tree was never presented to her.
Return to England
At the end of Lord Gowrie's term as Governor-General in 1945 they returned to England. Later that year, Baron Gowrie was created 1st Earl of Gowrie, and Baroness Gowrie became the Countess of Gowrie. He died in 1955, and she died on 19 July 1965, aged 86, survived by two grandsons, one of whom had succeeded his grandfather as the 2nd Earl of Gowrie in 1955.Dame Joan Hammond
Joan Hammond
Dame Joan Hilda Hood Hammond, DBE, CMG was an Australian operatic soprano, singing coach and champion golfer.- Early life :...
's career had come to an end through illness, and she sang in public for the last time at the funeral of her devoted champion Lady Gowrie, on 30 July 1965, at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle
St George's Chapel is the place of worship at Windsor Castle in England, United Kingdom. It is both a royal peculiar and the chapel of the Order of the Garter...
. This occasion was also memorable for the fact that Hammond was the first woman ever granted Royal permission to sing in that Chapel.
Children
The Gowries had two sons. The younger, Alistair Malise Hore-Ruthven, was born on 2 August 1917 but died in infancy the following year. The elder, Patrick Hore-RuthvenPatrick Hore-Ruthven
Major The Honourable Alexander Hardinge Patrick Hore-Ruthven was a British soldier and poet.Hore-Ruthven was born in Quetta in India. He was the only surviving child of Alexander Hore-Ruthven and his wife, Zara Eileen née Pollok.He studied at Cambridge University from 1931...
, a poet and soldier, was born on 30 August 1913 and was killed on active service in Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
on 24 December 1942, after leading a commando raid on Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
. A collection of his poetry, The Happy Warrior, was published in 1943, with a preface by his mother. Patrick's elder son, Grey Ruthven, succeeded his grandfather as 2nd Earl of Gowrie.
Legacies
The Lady Gowrie Lookout overlooks the Sydney HarbourPort Jackson
Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...
east of the CBD. It is situated adjacent to Kirribilli House
Kirribilli House
Kirribilli House is the official Sydney residence of the Australian Prime Minister. The house is located at the far eastern end of Kirribilli Avenue in the harbourside suburb of Kirribilli...
, the Sydney residence of the Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
.
Lady Gowrie was also a keen horticulturist, and the "Zara Hore-Ruthven" rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
was named after her.
There is a Lady Gowrie Drive that runs through various suburbs of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
.
Titles from birth
- 20 January 1879: Miss Zara Pollok
- 1 June 1908: Mrs Alexander Hore-Ruthven
- 24 January 1928: Lady Hore-Ruthven
- 1935: The Rt Hon The Lady Gowrie
- 8 May 1945: The Rt Hon The Countess of Gowrie
- 2 May 1955: The Rt Hon The Dowager Countess of Gowrie