Hour Ratven, Alexander, 1st Earl of Goury

Alexander Hour-Ratwain was born on July 6, 1872 in Windsor , in Berkshire in the UK . He is the second son of Walter Hour-Ratwain ( 1838 - 1921 ), 9th Lord Ratwen of Freeland, and Lady Caroline Annsley Gore ( 1848 - 1914 ), daughter of Philip Gore, 4th Earl of Arran. After attending the Winton House School in Winchester from 1884 to 1885 , Hour-Ratwain spent most of his early education at Eton College and then at Haleybury Imperial Service College, where he remained until 1888 , when he was removed due to vision problems and sent by parents to the business.

First, he worked in the office of a tea merchant in Glasgow , and then went to India to work on a tea plantation in Assam . However, he soon became ill with malaria, and returned to England in 1892 . Then he joined the army, and in 1892 to the police. After training at United Services College, he was sent as an officer to the 3rd Battalion of the Highland Light Infantry.

Military career

In 1898, Hour Rathen joined the British Army . During the Sudanese campaign, he was captain of the 3rd battalion of the Highland Light Infantry. He participated in the battles and was mentioned in the order.

During the rally at Gedaref , Hour-Ratwen saw a wounded Egyptian officer lying within 50 yards of the advancing shooting and loading dervishes. He took the wounded officer and carried him towards the 16th Egyptian battalion, he had to leave him several times in order to open fire on the dervishes and check their progress, but his actions undoubtedly saved the officer’s life - on February 28, 1899, Hour- Ratwen was awarded the Victoria Cross for his courage. ^[1]

From 1903 to 1904 he participated in the Somaliland campaign.

In 1905, Hour Ratwain became assistant adjutant to William Ward, 2nd Earl of Dudley , then Lord Viceroy of Ireland. In 1908, William Ward was appointed Governor-General of Australia , and Hour-Ratwen went with him as Secretary of War. In the same year he married Sarah Pollock, who bore him two sons, one died in infancy. He left Australia in 1910 and returned to military service in India . During World War I , he served in France and in Gallipoli, where he was seriously injured and awarded the Order of Outstanding Merit ( 1916 ) ^[1] and the Bar Medal ( 1919 ) ^[1] , mentioned in orders five times. March 8, 1918 he became the Knight of the Order of St. Michael and St. George ^[2] . He ended the war with the rank of brigadier general, in 1919 he became a Companion of the Order of the Bath ^[1] and from 1919 to 1920 he withdrawn British troops from Germany . After that, he held various positions in the army headquarters until 1928 , when he was ordained Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George ( January 24, 1928 ) and was appointed Governor of South Australia (sworn in on May 14, 1928 ).

Governor of South Australia

Hour Ratven arrived in Adelaide in May 1928 . He took up his duties enthusiastically, visiting many areas of the state on a De Havilland DH.60 Moth , owned by Captain Hugh Grosvenor. ^[3] Together with Lady Hour-Ratwen, he was an avid supporter of the Boy Scout movement and girl travelers. She was also the president of the Red Cross of South Australia. ^[4]

In 1930, Veteran’s Day, Hour-Ratwen criticized the union movement in his speech, organizing strikes that he said were causing hardship for returned military personnel. In response, he was condemned by the United Trade Union and the Work Council of South Australia ^[4] .

He was on vacation in London when, in 1933, the third cricket match in Adelaide provoked Anglo-Australian political tensions and played a significant role in smoothing relations through his meetings with British Secretary of State for Colonial Affairs James Thomas.

During the second term of Hour Ratwen as governor, the Great Depression caused serious difficulties in South Australia . The government of Lionel Hill, elected on the promise of a “golden future”, was harshly criticized when economic realities forced him to take austerity measures. Hour-Ratven supported Hill in the face of internal criticism of the Labor Party. He was convinced that the prime minister should "rise above the parties." Hill's strong determination during the crisis is seen as mainly as a result of the influence of Hour Ratven. His performance during the crisis became a critical factor during the subsequent selection for the post of governor of New South Wales ^[4] .

Governor of New South Wales

His term as governor of South Australia ended in April 1934 , and returning to the UK, he was almost immediately appointed governor of New South Wales, and on the proposal of Prime Minister Joseph Lyons , was promoted to peer, like Baron Gourry from Canberra in The Commonwealth of Australia and Dirleton in East Lothian County. He arrived in Sydney on February 21, 1935 . However, King George V has already received requests for his appointment as governor-general. On December 20, 1935, Hour Ratven became the Knight of the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Michael and St. George ^[4] .

Governor-General of Australia

With military and political experience, Hour Ratwen had no particular difficulty achieving this post after Isaac Isaacs resigned in 1936 . In accordance with established practice, Prime Minister Joseph Lyons proposed several candidates, but had no intention of recommending someone else. In accordance with the Australian Constitution, Hour Rathen was officially appointed Governor-General of Australia by King George V , but he died on January 20, 1936, three days before being sworn in, and thus Hour Ratven came to power already under Edward VIII .

Hour Ratwen was popular, but the days when the governors general had significant influence, or even participated in negotiations between the Australian and British governments , were over. In 1938, Hour Ratven toured the Dutch East Indies at the invitation of the colonial administration. This was the first time the Governor General represented Australia overseas.

In April 1939, Lyons suddenly died and Earl Page from the National Party became Prime Minister.

In the 1940 parliamentary elections, the United Australian Party was nearly defeated, and only thanks to the support of two independent members of parliament, the government of Robert Menzies remained in power. In August, Menzies was first forced to resign as prime minister and then leader of the party. The new Prime Minister of Australia was the leader of the Agrarian Party Arthur Fadden . Menzies took all these events as a betrayal of his colleagues. Hour Ratven did not want to call new parliamentary elections, especially given the international situation. However, he did not see another alternative, as the new Prime Minister and leader of the Labor Party, John Curtin, did not have enough support to rule the country. Therefore, he called on two independent members of parliament to vote for Curtin. They agreed, and Hour Ratven duly appointed Curtin.

During World War II, Hour Ratwen considered it his duty to support the government and the British Empire. In 1943, he embarked on a four-week tour inspecting the Allied Defense Forces in northern Australia and New Guinea. Shortly before, Hour Ratwen and his wife found out that their son, Patrick, was killed in Libya last year.

On November 11, 1941, he officially opened the Australian War Memorial .

Retired

Hour-Ratwen's term ended in September 1944 , after which he returned to the UK, where he became Viscount Ratwen from Canberra, from Dirleton in East Lothian County, and was appointed Deputy Constable and Vice Governor of Windsor Castle . In 1948, he was elected president of the Marylebone Cricket Club .

Alexander Gore Arkwright Hour-Ratwen, 1st Earl of Goury, died on May 2, 1955 at his home in Gloucestershire .

Hour Ratven was a freemason. Initiation took place on March 15, 1893 in the box of St. Andrew No. 668 at the age of 21 years. While in Sudan, he became a member of Sir Reginald Wingate Lodge No. 2954 and was appointed his secretary. When he was appointed Governor of South Australia, Mellis Napier invited him to become Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the State. He became a member of the Unified Service Lodge No. 27. On April 25, 1929 he was appointed Senior Warden and April 25, 1930 the Grand Master. April 15, 1930 became the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the state of South Australia. He was appointed Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the State of New South Wales almost immediately after he was appointed Governor of the State and continued to be Grand Master when he was appointed Governor General of Australia. In his honor was named consecrated by himself the box No. 651 ^[5] .

• Alexander Hour-Ratven
• Papers of Alexander Hour-Ratven