Leslie Orme Wilson

The Right Honourable Sir Leslie Wilson GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, DSO, PC
Governor of Bombay
In office 10 December 1923 – 20 March 1926
Monarch	King George V
Preceded by	Sir George Lloyd
Succeeded by	Sir Frederick Sykes
15th Governor of Queensland
In office 13 June 1932 – 23 April 1946
Monarch	King George V King Edward VIII King George VI
Preceded by	Sir John Goodwin
Succeeded by	Sir John Lavarack
Personal details
Born	1 August 1876 London, England
Died	29 September 1955 (aged 79) Chertsey, Surrey, England
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Winifred May Smith
Military service
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Marines
Years of service	1895–1918
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Commands	Hawke Battalion, Royal Naval Division
Battles/wars	Second Boer War First World War
Awards	Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches

Sir Leslie Orme Wilson, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, DSO, PC (1 August 1876 – 29 September 1955) was a British soldier, Conservative politician and Governor of Queensland.

Personal life

Wilson was the son of Henry Wilson, a stockbroker, and his wife Ada Alexandrina (née Orme), and was educated at St Michael's School, Westgate, and St Paul's School, London.

Wilson married Winifred May, daughter of Charles Smith, of Sydney, Australia, in 1909.^[1] They lived at the Manor House at Waltham St Lawrence in Berkshire. They had 3 children:

• son Peter Leslie Orme, born 4 June 1910 in London,^[2][3] farmer and grazier,^[4][5] died 6 July 1980 aged 70 years in Queensland and buried in Caloundra cemetery^[6]
• son David Orme, who was killed on 30 November 1941 in North Africa during the Second World War^[7]
• daughter Majorie.

On his retirement as Governor of Queensland, Leslie Wilson and his wife Winifred returned to live in Surrey, England.^[8] However, they visited Queensland on a number of occasions, including the marriage of their son Peter.^[9][10]

He died after being hit by a truck while walking in September 1955, aged 79.^[8]

Military service

He was commissioned into the Royal Marine Light Infantry and served in the Second Boer War, where he was wounded, mentioned in despatches and awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal with five clasps and the Distinguished Service Order. In 1901 he achieved the rank of captain.

From 1903 to 1909, he served as aide-de-camp to the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Harry Rawson.^[1]

During the First World War he commanded the Hawke Battalion of the Royal Naval Division with the rank of temporary lieutenant colonel in the Royal Marines and fought at Gallipoli, where he was again mentioned in despatches, and in France, where he was severely wounded.

On 2 December 1915, he was carrying dispatches on the Greek ship "Spetzia" when officers from a German submarine boarded the ship and captured him and another officer, Colonel Napier.^[11]

Political life

In January 1910, at the General Election, he unsuccessfully stood as the Conservative candidate for Poplar. In December 1910, he was Unionist candidate for Reading, but was defeated by the sitting Liberal candidate, Sir Rufus Isaacs, the Attorney-General.^[12][13]

In 1913 Wilson was returned to Parliament for Reading, a seat he held until 1922. In 1919 Wilson was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Shipping in the coalition government headed by David Lloyd George, a position he held until the Ministry of Shipping was abolished in 1921, and then served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1921 to 1922. He was also the Conservative Chief Whip.

At the general election he abandoned his Reading constituency to contest the Westminster St. George's division, but was defeated by an Independent Conservative. However within a few weeks he was re-elected at a by-election at Portsmouth South. He was again Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1922 to 1923 under Andrew Bonar Law and later Stanley Baldwin, and was admitted to the Privy Council in 1922.

Vice-regal service

Sir Leslie and Lady Wilson, Queensland c.1933; he is wearing the full dress uniform of a member of HM Privy Council.

Governor of Bombay

In July 1923 he resigned from this position and his seat in the House of Commons on his appointment as Governor of Bombay. Wilson remained in Bombay until 1928.

Governor of Queensland

In 1932 Leslie Wilson was made Governor of Queensland, a post he held until 1946, one of the longest gubernatorial tenures in British history.

On 13 May 1937, he planted a small bunya tree on North Quay, Brisbane to mark the name change of the River Road to Coronation Drive to commemorate the coronation of King George VI.^[14]

From 1932 to 1942, Leslie Wilson was the Chief Scout of The Boy Scouts Association's Queensland Branch, resigning in 1942 when he disagreed with the decision to make the Chief Commissioner of the Scouts a paid position.^[8]

Leslie Wilson retired at the end of his service as Governor of Queensland.^[8]

Freemasonry

He was a freemason. He was initiated into the craft in the Lodge Ionic No. 65, in Sydney, while serving as an aide-de-camp to Harry Rawson. When he returned to England, in 1909, he became a member of Navy Lodge No. 2612. He became Senior Warden of the Lodge in 1913 and Worshipful Master in 1917. In 1922 he was appointed Junior Grand Warden of the United Grand Lodge of England and District Grand Master of Bombay in the following year. When he was appointed Governor of Queensland, he became Grand Master of Queensland's Grand Lodge serving for 12 years.^[15]

Honours

He was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in 1916, a Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (GCIE) in 1923, a Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (GCSI) in 1929 and a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG) in 1937.

See also

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
• Australian Dictionary of Biography Online
• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Leslie Orme Wilson
• Portraits of Sir Leslie Orme Wilson at the National Portrait Gallery, London

References

1. "MISCELLANEOUS.". The Examiner. Launceston, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 10 December 1910. p. 7 Edition: DAILY. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
2. "Family Notices.". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 9 June 1910. p. 8. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
3. FreeBMD, retrieved 5 March 2011.
4. Queensland Electoral Roll, 1949.
5. Queensland Electoral Roll, 1959.
6. Caloundra Cemetery, Surnames S-Z, retrieved 5 March 2011.
7. Commonwealth War Graves Commission, retrieved 5 March 2011.
8. BIOGRAPHICAL DETAIL: Colonel Sir Leslie Orme WILSON, G.C.S.I., G.C.M.G., G.C.I.E., D.S.O., (research by Owen Richmond for his Woodbadge Project, 24 Jan 2006), retrieved 5 March 2011.
9. "MARRIED IN BRISBANE Social News And Events.". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 3 March 1950. p. 10. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
10. "The bride wore emeralds.". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane: National Library of Australia. 3 March 1950. p. 3. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
11. "SUBMARINES.". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 9 December 1915. p. 9. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
12. "ELECTION NOTES.". The Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 10 December 1910. p. 13. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
13. "PERSONAL.". The Mercury. Hobart, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 10 December 1910. p. 5. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
14. "IN OTHER CITIES.". The Advertiser. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 14 May 1937. p. 31. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
15. http://kenthenderson.com.au/m_papers03.html