Canning, CHARLES JOHN, EARL

Canning, CHARLES JOHN, EARL, third son of George Canning, was born 14th December 1812, and was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, where he obtained high honours. He entered parliament in 1836 as Conservative member for Warwick, but next year was raised to the Upper House as Viscount Canning by his mother's decease, both his elder brothers being already dead. In 1841 he became Under-secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in Sir Robert Peel's government, and afterwards Commissioner of Woods and Forests. When Lord Aberdeen came into office, he was made Postmaster-general; and in the beginning of 1856 he succeeded Lord Dalhousie as Governor-general of India. The first important event of his government was a war with Persia, which was brought to a successful close in 1857. In the same year (10th May 1857) the Indian Mutiny began with the outbreak at Meerut. Lord Canning's conduct during the awful crisis was decried at the time as weak and pusillanimous; he was nicknamed 'Clemency Canning;' but the general opinion now, when all the circumstances of the case are better known, is that he acted with singular courage, moderation, and judiciousness. In 1858 he became the first Viceroy; next year he was raised to an earldom; but having lost his wife in 1861, he retired from his high office in March 1862, and died in London on 17th June in the same year. See Sir H. S. Cunningham's Earl Canning (1892).