Government House of Manitoba () is the official residence of the lieutenant governor of Manitoba, and is located in the provincial capital of Winnipeg. It stands in the provincial capital, on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislative Building, at 10 Kennedy Street; unlike other provincial Government Houses in Canada, this gives Manitoba's vice-regal residence a prominent urban setting, though it is surrounded by gardens.

History

Prior to the foundation of Manitoba, the Lieutenant Governor of the Northwest Territories occupied a designated residence within the walls of Upper Fort Garry; a house that was, at one point, used by Louis Riel as president of the provisional government of Red River. After the new province joined Confederation on 15 July 1870, a structure five kilometres outside of Winnipeg was leased for use as the lieutenant governor's residence, known as Silver Heights, but it was found unsuitable, given its size and distance from the capital. Instead, the lieutenant governor remained at Upper Fort Garry until the present Government House was completed.

thumb|left|A garden party on the front lawn of Government House, 9 August 1889

The house there, however, was in constant need of repair; after $10,000 was spent on the structure in 1873, Alexander Morris wrote to the federal Minister of Public Works: "You can fancy the state of the house when I tell you there was five feet of water in the cellar till middle of July. Year before till middle of August..."

The current provincial vice-regal residence was constructed in 1883, at a cost to the federal Crown of $23,995. Their daughter, Queen Elizabeth II, her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and each of their children have also stayed at Government House over the years.

The architect Frank Worthington Simon included in his plans for the Manitoba Legislative Building a new Government House, to be constructed on the bank of the Assiniboine River, opposite the parliament. This plan never came to fruition, however, and the Victorian Government House was adapted over time to suit the lieutenant governor's changing needs. In 1978, the mansion was designated as a historical structure by the Manitoba Heritage Council and in 1999, at the initiative of Shirley Liba, wife of Lieutenant Governor Peter Liba, the house underwent a major renovation, in which many of the original features of the mansion were uncovered and restored.

Use

Government House is where visiting dignitaries are greeted and often stay while in Winnipeg. It is also where numerous vice-regal events take place, such as the bestowing of provincial awards or inductions into the Order of Manitoba, as well as luncheons, dinners, receptions, and speaking engagements. It is also at the vice-regal residence that the lieutenant governor drops the writs of election and swears-in new members of the Executive Council. The viceroy's office is located at the Legislative Building, behind Government House; it is there that legislation is given Royal Assent and the lieutenant governor meets with the premier.

Architecture and interiors

Manitoba's Government house is a structure of solid masonry walls and timber floor framing, the original block being square and four storeys in height, counting the basement level, covering a total of approximately , including the tower. The volume and its facade composition was at first symmetrical along an east-west axis through the centre of the building, though this arrangement was later altered by the addition of new wings; this is clad in brick, trimmed with cut stone and ornate wood cornices at the roof line, and iron cresting tops the tower. and the gold room accommodates royal support staff or other royals if the monarch is occupying the royal bedroom. Also on this floor is the viceregal suite, consisting of a master bedroom, the lieutenant governor's private office, and a library and living room.

The basement of Government House is divided into several sections; originally it held living quarters for the domestic staff—a kitchen and bedrooms—as well as the main kitchen for the state dining room on the ground floor. Currently, it contains storage and laundry facilities. The attic floor was divided into nine bedrooms, which has been reduced to four bedrooms with the addition of two bathrooms, a sitting room, and a three and one-half room suite for the resident housekeeper. From this floor one can also access the tower, from which the lieutenant governor's standard is flown when he or she is in residence.

Grounds

Manitoba's Government House is surrounded on three sides by manicured gardens; the fourth side—the rear of the building—faces directly onto the parking lot of the Legislative Building. In 2010, part of the grounds were set aside and dedicated as the Queen Elizabeth II Gardens by the Queen herself on 3 July that year, the event marked by the planting of an Amber Jubilee Ninebark shrub, the species having been created specifically for Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee in 2012. At the same time, a statue of the Queen that had been created in 1970 by Leo Mol and installed outside the Manitoba Centennial Centre was moved to the eponymous gardens and unveiled by her. The statue was toppled over on 1 July 2021 in a protest against Canada Day. It was later repaired and reinstalled in the gardens.

See also

  • Government Houses in Canada
  • Government Houses of the British Empire

References

  • Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba: Government House
  • Manitoba Historical Society: Manitoba's Government House