Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan
Encyclopedia
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
representative in Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province
Monarchy in Saskatchewan
By the arrangements of the Canadian federation, the Canadian monarchy operates in Saskatchewan as the core of the province's Westminster-style parliamentary democracy; As such, the Crown within Saskatchewan's jurisdiction is referred to as the Crown in Right of Saskatchewan, Her Majesty in Right...
but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada
Canadian federalism
Canada is a federation with two distinct jurisdictions of political authority: the country-wide federal government and the ten regionally-based provincial governments. It also has three territorial governments in the far north, though these are subject to the federal government...
and resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United Kingdom
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...
. The Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada
Lieutenant Governor (Canada)
In Canada, a lieutenant governor is the viceregal representative in a provincial jurisdiction of the Canadian monarch and head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, who resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United Kingdom...
and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the monarch's constitutional and ceremonial duties. The present, and 20th, Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan is Gordon Barnhart
Gordon Barnhart
-See also:*Monarchy in Saskatchewan*Government House - External Links :* -Sources:* by Sarah Macdonald, The Leader-Post, July 31, 2006, retrieved August 1, 2006,* retrieved December 18, 2006,***-References:...
, who has served in the role since 1 August 2006.
Role and presence
The Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan is vested with a number of governmental duties and is also expected to undertake various ceremonial roles. For instance, the lieutenant governor acts as patron, honorary president, or an honorary member of certain Saskatchewan institutions, such as the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association, the Saskatchewan Craft Council, and the provincial poet laureate programme. Further, Saskatchewan's lieutenant governor acts, by law, as the visitorVisitor
A Visitor, in United Kingdom law and history, is an overseer of an autonomous ecclesiastical or eleemosynary institution , who can intervene in the internal affairs of that institution...
to both the University of Saskatchewan
University of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
and the University of Regina
University of Regina
The University of Regina is a public research university located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Founded in 1911 as a private denominational high school of the Methodist Church of Canada, it began an association with the University of Saskatchewan as a junior college in 1925, and was disaffiliated...
, and under special circumstances may be called upon in this role, as happened in the University Crisis of 1919 at the University of Saskatchewan. The lieutenant governor, him or herself a member and Chancellor of the order, will induct deserving individuals into the Saskatchewan Order of Merit
Saskatchewan Order of Merit
The Saskatchewan Order of Merit is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Instituted in 1985 by Lieutenant Governor Frederick Johnson, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier Grant Devine, the order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to...
and, upon installation, automatically becomes a Knight or Dame of Justice and the Vice-Prior in Saskatchewan of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem
Venerable Order of Saint John
The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
. The viceroy further presents other provincial honours and decorations, as well as various awards that are named for and presented by the lieutenant governor; these are generally created in partnership with another government or charitable organization and linked specifically to their cause. These honours are presented at official ceremonies, which count amongst hundreds of other engagements the lieutenant governor partakes in each year, either as host or guest of honour; in 2006, the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta undertook 250 engagements and 450 in 2007.
Flags of the Lieutenant Governors of Canada
As the viceregal representative of the monarch of Canada, the lieutenant governors of the Canadian provinces have since Confederation been entitled to and have used a personal standard. Within a lieutenant governor's province, this standard has precedence over any other flag, including the national...
, consisting of a blue field bearing the shield of the Arms of Her Majesty in Right of Saskatchewan
Coat of arms of Saskatchewan
The first part of the Coat of Arms of the Province of Saskatchewan , was the shield, which was assigned by royal warrant of King Edward VII on 25 August 1906. It uses the provincial colours, green and gold.On the gold chief is a lion passant or leopard, a royal symbol of England...
surmounted by a crown and surrounded by ten gold maple leaves, symbolizing the ten provinces of Canada
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
. Within Saskatchewan, the lieutenant governor also follows only the sovereign in the province's order of precedence
Order of precedence in Saskatchewan
The Saskatchewan order of precedence is a nominal and symbolic hierarchy of important positions within the Canadian province of Saskatchewan...
, preceding even other members of the Canadian Royal Family and the Queen's federal representative
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
. The former Lieutenant Governors of Saskatchewan are also honoured in official portraits collected together in the dedicated Qu'Appelle Gallery in the Saskatchewan Legislative Building
Saskatchewan Legislative Building
The Saskatchewan Legislative Building is located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and houses the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan.-History:...
.
History
The office of Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan came into being in 1905, upon Saskatchewan's entry into Canadian ConfederationCanadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
, and evolved from the earlier position of Lieutenant Governor of the Northwest Territories. Since that date, 20 lieutenant governors have served the province, amongst whom were notable firsts, such as Sylvia O. Fedoruk the first female lieutenant governor of the province. The shortest mandate by a Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan was Thomas Miller
Thomas Miller (Saskatchewan)
Thomas Miller was the shortest serving and seventh Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan and was in office in 1945 for less than four months....
, from 27 February 1945 to 20 June 1945, while the longest was Henry William Newlands
Henry William Newlands
Henry William Newlands was a Canadian politician, lawyer, and served as Saskatchewan's fourth Lieutenant Governor.Born in March 1862 in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Newlands was called to the Nova Scotia Bar in 1883, after which he would go on to have an important role in the domain of law...
, from 18 February 1921 to 30 March 1931.
It was in 1929 that the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan's personal discretion was required in the exercise of the Royal Prerogative
Royal Prerogative
The royal prerogative is a body of customary authority, privilege, and immunity, recognized in common law and, sometimes, in civil law jurisdictions possessing a monarchy as belonging to the sovereign alone. It is the means by which some of the executive powers of government, possessed by and...
, when Henry Newlands had to select a new Premier
Premier of Saskatchewan
The Premier of Saskatchewan is the first minister for the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. They are the province's head of government and de facto chief executive....
after James Garfield Gardiner
James Garfield Gardiner
James Garfield "Jimmy" Gardiner, PC was a Canadian farmer, educator, and politician...
lost the confidence
Confidence and supply
In a parliamentary democracy confidence and supply are required for a government to hold power. A confidence and supply agreement is an agreement that a minor party or independent member of parliament will support the government in motions of confidence and appropriation votes by voting in favour...
of the Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
The 25th Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan was in power from 2003 until November 20, 2007. It was controlled by the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party under premier Lorne Calvert.-Members:-By-elections:...
and the opposing Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan
The Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan is a right-of-centre political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Prior to 1942, it was known as the Conservative Party of Saskatchewan. Members are commonly known as Tories....
had managed to form a coalition with the Progressive Party
Progressive Party of Canada
The Progressive Party of Canada was a political party in Canada in the 1920s and 1930s. It was linked with the provincial United Farmers parties in several provinces and, in Manitoba, ran candidates and formed governments as the Progressive Party of Manitoba...
and independent members of the assembly. With the election in 1944
Saskatchewan general election, 1944
The Saskatchewan general election of 1944 was the tenth provincial election in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 15, 1944 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan....
of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation Party
Saskatchewan New Democratic Party
The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It currently forms the official opposition, but has been a dominant force in Saskatchewan politics since the 1940s...
to a majority in the Legislative Assembly, the Office of the Lieutenant Governor in Saskatchewan was targeted for spending cutbacks. Government House
Government House (Saskatchewan)
Government House, Regina, Saskatchewan, was constructed as a residence for the Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West Territories, whose territorial headquarters were in Regina until the provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta were created out of the Territories in 1905 and Regina became the capital...
was closed and the viceroy given only a small office at the Hotel Saskatchewan
Hotel Saskatchewan
The Hotel Saskatchewan is a grand hotel located in downtown Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, overlooking Victoria Park.One of a chain of hotels constructed and owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway, the railway's earlier hotels, such as the Château Frontenac in Quebec City, the Chateau Lake Louise and...
as a replacement, and guards of honour
Guard of honour
A guard of honour is a ceremonial event practice in military and sports as a mark of respect.-Military:In the military a guard of honour is a ceremonial practice to honour visiting foreign dignitaries, or the fallen in war, or a ceremony for public figures who have died.The commander is three paces...
and playing of the Viceregal Salute
Honors music
The honours music for a person, office or rank is music played on formal or ceremonial occasions in the presence of the person, office-holder, or rank-holder, especially by a military band...
were dispensed with. This trend continued, due to lack of initiative rather than hostility towards the Crown, until the 1980s when the viceroy's honours were restored and Government House was saved from demolition.