George Gipps

Major Sir George Gipps
9th Governor of New South Wales
In office 5 October 1837 – 2 August 1846
Preceded by	Richard Bourke
Succeeded by	Charles Augustus FitzRoy
Personal details
Born	1791 Ringwould, Kent, England,
Died	28 February 1847 Canterbury
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Ramsay
Children	Reginald Ramsay Gipps
Alma mater	The King's School, Canterbury and the Royal Military Academy

Major Sir George Gipps (1791 – 28 February 1847) was Governor of the colony of New South Wales, Australia, for eight years, between 1838 and 1846. His governorship was during a period of great change for New South Wales and Australia, as well as for New Zealand, which was administered as part of New South Wales for much of this period. Settlers at the time were not happy with his move towards responsible government, although contemporaries at the Colonial Office found him to be an able administrator.

Gipps was born in 1791 at Ringwould, Kent, England, and was the son of the Rev. George Gipps. He was educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.

In 1809 he joined the Royal Engineers and served in the Peninsular War as well as elsewhere in Europe (although he missed the Battle of Waterloo due to his posting in Ostend, Belgium where he was preparing fortifications).

In 1824 he joined the Colonial Service and served in the West Indies. He married Elizabeth Ramsay, the daughter of Major-General George Ramsay, in 1830. He and his wife had a son, Reginald Ramsay Gipps, who later became a general in the British Army.

In 1834, Gipps became Private Secretary to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord Auckland; and, a year later, he was sent to Canada as a Commissioner, together with the Earl of Gosford and Sir Charles Edward Grey, to examine grievances there. He was knighted, promoted to the rank of major, and returned to England in April 1837. He was appointed Governor of New South Wales on 5 October 1837, and arrived at Sydney on 23 February 1838.

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