James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin and 12th Earl of Kincardine, (20 July 181120 November 1863) was a British colonial administrator and diplomat. He served as Governor of Jamaica (1842–1846), Governor General of the Province of Canada (1847–1854), and Viceroy of India (1862–1863). He is also noted for his role during the Second Opium War.

Subsequently, he compelled the Qing dynasty to sign the Convention of Peking, adding Kowloon Peninsula to the British crown colony of Hong Kong.

Early life and education

thumb|left|200px|Coats of arms of James Bruce

Lord Elgin was born in London on 20 July 1811, the son of the 7th Earl of Elgin and 11th Earl of Kincardine and his second wife, Elizabeth Oswald. He shared his birthday, 20 July, with his father. He had six brothers and sisters, and three half-sisters and one half-brother from his father's first marriage. Lord Elgin's father was reportedly impoverished by his acquisition of the Elgin Marbles; it had cost him a large amount of money to transport them, and he sold them to the British government at a significant loss. In November 1841, on the death of his father, he succeeded as 8th Earl of Elgin.

Jamaica

James Bruce became Governor of Jamaica in 1842, During an administration of four years he succeeded in winning the respect of all. He improved the condition of the Afro-Caribbean workers, and conciliated the white planters by working through them.

Canada

thumb|left|upright|Statue of Elgin in front of the [[Parliament Building (Quebec)|Parliament Building in Quebec]]

In 1847 he was appointed Governor General of the Province of Canada by the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, Henry Grey, 3rd Earl Grey, in the administration of Lord John Russell. Under Lord Elgin, the first real attempts began at establishing responsible government in Canada. Lord Elgin became the first Governor General to distance himself from the affairs of the legislature. Since then, the Governor-General has had a largely symbolic role with regards to the political affairs of the country. As Governor-General, he wrestled with the costs of receiving high levels of immigration in the Canadas, a major issue in the constant debate about immigration during the 19th century.

In 1849 the Baldwin-Lafontaine government passed the Rebellion Losses Bill, compensating French Canadians for losses suffered during the Rebellions of 1837. Lord Elgin granted royal assent to the bill despite heated Tory opposition and his own misgivings over how his action would be received in England. The decision sparked the Burning of the Parliament Buildings in Montreal by an English-speaking mob. Elgin was assaulted. Instead of calling in the military, he withdrew his family to their country residence and allowed civil authorities to restore order. Due to his relations with the United States, his support of the self-government and defence of the colony, and his settlement of the free-trade and fishery questions, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Elgin in 1849. Elgin had been impressed by industrial schools he had seen while in the West Indies.

Soon after his return to England in 1854, Lord Palmerston offered him a seat in the cabinet as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, which he declined.

Lord Elgin oversaw the end of the Second Opium War by signing the Treaty of Tientsin (Tianjin) on 26 June 1858.

thumb|Lord Elgin's procession in Peking.

In 1859 Chinese troops continued to attack, and Lord Russell sent out Lord Elgin as ambassador extraordinary to demand an apology for the attack, the execution of the treaty, and an indemnity for the military and naval expenditure.

thumb|Presentation of HMY Emperor

The Old Summer Palace was set ablaze by a force of Anglo-French troops. The troops hurriedly looted the imperial collections in the palace before it finished burning. Attacks on the nearby Summer Palace (Qingyi Yuan) were also made, but the extent of destruction was not as great as to the Old Summer Palace. On 24 October 1860, Lord Elgin signed the Convention of Peking, which stipulated that China was to cede part of Kowloon Peninsula and Hong Kong in perpetuity to Britain. According to historian Olive Checkland, Lord Elgin "was ambivalent about the British imperial policy of forcing trade on the peoples in China and Japan. He deplored what he called the 'commercial ruffianism' which effectively determined British policy responses." In a letter to his wife, in regard to the bombing of Canton, he wrote, "I never felt so ashamed of myself in my life."

India

Within a month of Elgin's return to England, Lord Palmerston selected him to be viceroy and governor-general of India. He became viceroy in 1862, the first viceroy directly appointed by the Crown, and as subject to the Secretary of State for India. Elgin tried to hold the Dutch in Sumatra in check, and marched a force to the Peshawar border to enforce earlier treaties. He was buried in the churchyard of St. John in the Wilderness in Dharamshala.

Marriage and issue

Elgin married Elizabeth Mary Cumming-Bruce, the only child of MP Charles Lennox Cumming-Bruce, on 22 April 1841. The marriage was short lived, his wife dying shortly after the birth of their second daughter on 7 June 1843 in Jamaica. They had, along with another daughter:

  • Lady Elma Bruce (1842–1923), married in 1864 the 5th Baron Thurlow.

On 7 November 1846, Elgin married Lady Mary Louisa Lambton, daughter of the 1st Earl of Durham, a prominent author of the Report on the Affairs of British North America (1839) (as well as Governor General of the Canadas), and niece of the Colonial Secretary the 3rd Earl Grey (who was uncle to Albert Grey, 4th Earl Grey, later Governor General of Canada). They had four sons and a daughter:

Elgin's legacy in Canada was the subject of a National Film Board of Canada short docudrama, Lord Elgin: Voice of the People (1959), directed by Julian Biggs.

While China has opened up to French relations, the sale of Chinese art and artifacts in British auctions remains a point of tension between London and Beijing. However, all zodiac animal heads from the Summer Palace that have been found have been returned to the Beijing Poly Museum.

See also

  • Anglo-Chinese relations
  • Anglo-Japanese relations

References

Sources

  • Narrative of the Earl of Elgin's Mission to China and Japan, 1857-8-9 (2 volumes), Laurence Oliphant, 1859 (reprinted by Oxford University Press, 1970) {No ISBN}
  • "Moving Here, Staying Here:" The Canadian Immigrant Experience, Library and Archives Canada, A letter from Lord Elgin, Governor General of the Canadas, to the Colonial Office
  • Also digitized by Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions, 2003.
  • Painting: James Bruce, Earl of Elgin, circa 1855. McCord Museum
  • Archives of James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin (James Bruce, Earl of Elgi and Kingardine, and family fonds, R977) are held ar Library and Archives Canada