In Canada, the secretary to the governor general () is the administrative head of the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General of Canada (OSGG), the Canadian federal government office that supports the work of the governor general. The position is based at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Ontario.

On November 20, 2023, Ken MacKillop was named to the position, effective November 27, 2023. He succeeded Ian McCowan, who was appointed in February 2021 and retired in November 2023.

Overview

The position is one of the oldest public service appointments, the position initially supporting the governor-general of the Province of Canada. It holds the courtesy rank of deputy minister within the Public Service of Canada. Since Confederation, every office-holder has been appointed by order-in-council. The first post-Confederation incumbent, Dennis Godley, initially assumed his post in 1861 and continued into the post-Confederation period, departing in November 1868.

The Secretary to the Governor General holds a number of ex officio positions, as follows. Since the establishment of the Order of Canada in 1967, the office-holder has served as Secretary General of the Order of Canada. The office-holder also serves as Secretary General of the Order of Military Merit and the Order of Merit of the Police Forces. Following the creation of the Canadian Heraldic Authority in 1988, the office-holder became Herald Chancellor of Canada.

Secretaries to the Governor General

Pre-Confederation Source:Cote, Joseph Olivier (1866). Political Appointments and Elections in the Province of Canada, from 1841 to 1865. G.E. Desbarats, p. 9. 1841–1842: Thomas William Clinton Murdoch 1842–1844: Rawson W. Rawson 1842–1843: Henry Bagot (private secretary) 1843–1846: James Macaulay Higginson (private secretary) 1847–1849: Thomas Edmund Campbell 1851–1854: Robert Bruce 1854–1854: Laurence Oliphant 1854–1856: William Keppel, Viscount Bury 1856–1861: Richard T. Pennefather 1861–1861: Francis Retallack (acting secretary) 1861–1867: Dennis Godley

Post-Confederation 1867–1868: Dennis Godley 1868–1872: Francis Turville 1872–1875: Lt.-Col. Henry Charles Fletcher 1875 (March–October): Harry Moody 1875–1878: Edward George Percy Littleton 1878–1883: Francis W. de Winton 1883–1885: Viscount Melgund (later 4th Earl of Minto) 1885–1888: Henry Streatfeild 1888 (June–July): Josceline FitzRoy Bagot 1888–1892: C. R. W. Colville 1892–1893: J. T. St. Aubyn 1893–1899: Arthur John Lewis Gordon 1899–1926: Arthur French Sladen 1926–1927: Richard Osborne 1927–1931: Sir Eric Miéville 1931–1935: Sir Alan Lascelles 1935–1946: Sir Arthur Shuldham Redfern 1946–1952: Harry Letson 1952–1959: Lionel Massey 1959–1985: Esmond Unwin Butler 1985–1990: Léopold Henri Amyot 1990–2000: Judith A. LaRocque 2000–2006: Barbara Uteck 2006–2011: Sheila-Marie Cook 2011–2018: Stephen Wallace 2018–2021: Assunta di Lorenzo 2021–2023: Ian McCowan 2023–present: Ken MacKillop

See also Canadian Secretary to the King Herald Chancellor of Canada

References

Further reading

External links