Neha Patil (Editor)

Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man

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Style
  
His Excellency

Formation
  
1773

Appointer
  
British monarch

First holder
  
Henry Hope

Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man

Residence
  
Government House, Isle of Man

Term length
  
At His/Her Majesty's pleasure

The Lieutenant Governor (Manx: Fo-chiannoort) is the representative on the Isle of Man of the Lord of Mann (currently Queen Elizabeth II). He/she has the power to grant royal assent and is styled His Excellency. In recent times the Governor has been either a retired diplomat or a senior military officer. No Manx-born person has ever been appointed Lieutenant Governor, although Manx-born First Deemsters (ex officio Deputy Governors) have taken on the role temporarily during the interregnum between Governors, and during periods when the Lieutenant Governor is off-Island.

Contents

The official residence of the Governor is Government House, Governor's Road, Onchan.

In the past, the Lieutenant Governor wielded judicial, fiscal and executive power on the Island, and around 1900 had more power than any other Governor in the British Empire. However, he lost his role as Head of the Judiciary in 1921, as Head of Government in 1961, as President of the Legislative Council in 1980 and finally as President of Tynwald in 1990. Today the role of Lieutenant Governor is essentially ceremonial, although certain powers under Isle of Man legislation do still fall to the Governor or Governor-in-Council (a decision on the advice, and with the approval of, the Council of Ministers).

Proposed change to title

In October 2005 Tynwald sought to change the title of the Lieutenant Governor to Crown Commissioner. This proposal was sent to the British Department of Constitutional Affairs for submission to the Lord of Mann Elizabeth II for approval. However, in April 2006, after much public disapproval, Tynwald rejected their own proposal and withdrew their request for Royal Assent. Thus the Lieutenant Governor has remained as previously titled.

Appointment

Before 2010 the Lieutenant Governor was appointed by the Crown on the advice of a panel led by the Government of the United Kingdom. In July 2010 the Government of the Isle of Man announced that the next Lieutenant Governor would be appointed on advice of an entirely local panel, comprising the Chief Minister, President of Tynwald and the First Deemster. The new procedure was used for the first time a few months later to choose Sir Paul Haddacks' successor.

On 16 November 2010 the Isle of Man Government announced the appointment by the Crown of former UK diplomat Adam Wood as the next Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man. His term was scheduled to start on 4 April 2011; he was officially sworn into office on 7 April 2011 at Castle Rushen in Castletown.

List of Lieutenant Governors

Lieutenant Governors have been as follows:

  • Henry Hope (1773–1775)
  • Richard Dawson (1775–1790)
  • Alexander Shaw (1790–1804)
  • Lord Henry Murray (1804–1805)
  • Cornelius Smelt (1805–1832)
  • Major General John Ready (1832–1845)
  • Charles Hope (1845–1860)
  • Mark Hildesley Quayle (1860) acting
  • Francis Pigott Stainsby Conant (1860–1863)
  • Mark Hildesley Quayle (1863) acting
  • Sir Henry Brougham Loch, Baron Loch GCB, GCMG (1863–1882)
  • Sir Spencer Walpole KCB (1882–1893)
  • Sir Joseph West Ridgeway GCB, GCMG, KCSI (1893–1895)
  • John Henniker-Major, 5th Baron Henniker (1895–1902)
  • Sir John James Gell, Clerk of the Rolls (July–October 1902) acting
  • George Fitzroy Henry Somerset, 3rd Baron Raglan, GBE, CB (1902–1918)
  • Major-General Sir William Fry, KCVO, CB (1918–1925)
  • Sir Claude Hill, KCSI, CIE (1925–1932)
  • Sir Montagu Sherard Dawes Butler, KCSI, CB, CIE, CVO, CBE (1932–1937)
  • Vice Admiral William Spencer Leveson-Gower, 4th Earl Granville, KG, GCVO, CB, DSO (1937–1945)
  • Air Vice Marshal Sir Geoffrey Rhodes Bromet, KBE, CB, DSO (1945–1952)
  • Sir Ambrose Dundas Flux Dundas, KCIE, CSI (1952–1959)
  • Sir Ronald Herbert Garvey, KCMG, KCVO, MBE (1959–1966)
  • Sir Peter Hyla Gawne Stallard, KCMG, CVO, MBE (1966–1974)
  • Sir John Warburton Paul, GCMG, OBE, MC (1974–1980)
  • Rear Admiral Sir Nigel Cecil, KBE, CB (1980–1985)
  • Major General Sir Laurence New, CB, CBE (1985–1990)
  • Air Marshal Sir Laurence Jones, KCB, AFC (1990–1995)
  • Sir Timothy Daunt, KCMG (1995–2000)
  • Air Marshal Ian David Macfadyen, CB, OBE (2000–2005)
  • Deemster Michael Kerruish QC (September–October 2005) acting
  • Vice Admiral Sir Paul Kenneth Haddacks, KCB (2005–2011)
  • Adam Wood (2011–2016)
  • Sir Richard Gozney, KCMG, CVO, KStJ (2016–present)

    • References

    Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA