McGill Library
McLennan Library Building3459 rue McTavish
Montreal, Quebec
H3A 0C9
General order no. 574, Horse Guards
Item
3 folded sheets, 11 pages ; 33 x 21 cm
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, was a politician and soldier who was born in Dublin, Ireland, on 1 May 1769. Wellesley joined the British Army in 1787 and had a successful posting in India. He was an important figure in the Napoleonic Wars, leading the allied army in the battle of Waterloo. Wellesley was also a prominent politician, serving twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (22 January 1828 - 16 November 1830, 17 November 1834 - 9 December 1834), and three times as the Leader of the House of Lords (January 1828 - November 1830, November 1834 - April 1835, September 1841 - 27 June 1846). He was Commander-in-Chief of the British Army from 1827-1828 and 1842-1852. In 10 April 1806, Wellsley married Catherine Sarah Dorothea Pakenham. They had two sons together, Arthur and Charles.
General order of the British Army's Forces in North America no. 574, Horse Guards. The order is a collection of reports related to a fire that destroyed the Saint Roch suburb of Quebec City on 28 May 1845. In addition to the introductory report from the Duke of Wellington (Commander-in-Chief) and John Macdonald (Adjutant-General) the general order includes reports and messages from James A. Hope (Major General of the Troops in Canada), C.A. Wetherall (Colonel and Deputy Assistant General), R.E. Caron (Mayor of Quebec City), H. Garneau (clerk, Quebec City Registrar's Office), J.M. Higginson (Civil Secretary's Office), P.W. Walker (Lieutenant Colonel Royal Artillery), W.C. Ward (Lieutenant Colonel Royal Engineers), F.X. Garneau (Secretary for a public meeting of the citizens of Quebec), and Sister St. Antoine (Superior, Convent of the Hotel Dieu of Quebec).
Manuscript note at top of first page reads, "Received 19th Oct. 1845" and "125."