Major-General the Right Honourable Georges-Phileas Vanier

1888-1967

Biography by: GV Student          

Early Life

Georges-Phileas Vanier was born in Montreal on April 23, 1888. He studied at Loyola College in Montreal and graduated with honours in 1911.  In 1914 he was co-founder of the Royal 22^nd Battalion of the CEF.  In 1916, when he was leading an assault on Cherisy, France, a German soldier blasted his right leg off.  By 1918, he had received numerous military awards. In 1920, he married and had 5 children.                                                                           

 Early career

In 1921, Officer Vanier was made Aide-de-camp to Lord Byng.  He was then appointed Commander of the Royal 22^nd Battalion, now the Royal 22me Regiment.  Then he was appointed Aide-de-camp to Lord Willingdon and Canadian Minister for Disarmament to the League of Nations.  In the 1930's, he achieved the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and the title of Canadian Minister to France.  In 1939, World War II started. Lieutenant-Colonel Vanier was living in Paris at the time.  In 1940, when Hitler invaded France and took it over, Lieutenant-Colonel Vanier went to Britain with General Charles de Gaulle, leaving his post vacant.  After the war, he was Canada’s delegate to the United Nations, Canadian Ambassador to France, and Major-General of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Governor General

In 1959, General Vanier was declared the 19^th Governor General of Canada by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker.  Diefenbaker was Progressive-Conservative, whereas Vanier was Liberal, but Diefenbaker thought Vanier was THE man for the man for the job. During his career, Governor General Vanier, Mme Pauline Vanier, and their son, Dr Jean Vanier, travelled across Canada. Their family doctor thought all that travelling was bad for the old couple, but he always found the Vaniers invigorated on their return. Once when Governor General Vanier visited a Blackfoot Tribe Reserve in Calgary, the Blackfoot made him Chief Big Eagle.  During their term, the Vaniers hosted at Rideau Hall: U.S. President John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy; Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia; David-Ben Gurion, Prime Minister of Israel; Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran; and General Charles de Gaulle, President of France.

The man 

Georges Vanier was a VERY religious man who believed in uniting the Dominion of Canada under Jesus Christ and God the Father.  He was so devoted to prayer that he re-established the chapel at Rideau Hall.  He loved sports and invented both the Vanier Cup in Canadian university football and the Governor General’s Fencing Award in 1965. He was also a die-hard fan of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. Governor General Vanier believed in helping the disadvantaged, youth and the family.   He was Canada’s Chief Scout and actively supported the scouting movement. During his term, lots of Quebeckers wanted Quebec to be an independent nation, but Governor General Vanier’s speeches refuted this.

Death-in-Office

By 1966, Governor General Vanier was weakening. On Saturday, March 4^th , 1967, he watched his last hockey game. The next morning, he attended his last mass, at Rideau Hall chapel.  Later that day, he became the second Governor General to die in office.  His state funeral was held at Notre Dame Cathedral in Ottawa and his body was buried later that year at La Cittadelle in Quebec City, headquarters of the Royal 22me Regiment.  Recently he and his wife were nominated for sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church in recognition of their love for humanity and spreading religious values.  

Canadian Prime Ministers, Governors General and Fathers of Confederation

by Irma Councill

The spiritual resources of General Georges-P Vanier

by Dr Jean Vanier

Last Updated: 2008-09-19
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