Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer

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Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer (May 24, 1775February 23, 1850 15 Eaton Square, Belgravia) was a British military officer and colonial administrator. After reaching the position of colonel in the British army he was, in 1830, appointed commander of British military forces in North America as well as Governor General of British North America and Lieutenant Governor of Lower Canada.

Lord Aylmer had no previous experience as a civil administrator and no political experience and was unable to pacify the growing demands in Lower Canada for responsible government and, in 1834, the radical Assembly of Lower Canada passed 92 resolutions of grievance including a demand that Aylmer be recalled. Lord Aylmer exacerbated ethnic tensions in Lower Canada by favouring the English. The deterioration of the situation led to his recall in 1835. His administration may have been a contributing factor to the Lower Canada Rebellion of 1837.

Returning to England, Aylmer was promoted to the rank of general but he never obtained a British peerage (his dignity was in the Irish peerage), or another administrative post.

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Lieutenant-Governors of Quebec
Post-Confederation (1867-present)

Belleau | Caron | Saint-Just | Robitaille | Masson | Angers | Chapleau | Jetté | Pelletier | Langelier | Leblanc | Fitzpatrick | Brodeur | Pérodeau | Gouin | Carroll | Patenaude | Fiset | Fauteux | Gagnon | Comtois | Lapointe | Côté | Lamontagne | Asselin | Roux | Thibault

Province of Canada (1841-1866)

Clitherow | Jackson | Bagot | Fernhill | Cathcart | Elgin | Head | Monck

Lower Canada (1791-1841)

Prescott | Milnes | Dunn | Craig | Prevost | Drummond | Wilson | Sherbrooke | Richmond | Dalhousie | Aylmer | Gosford | Colborne | Durham | Sydenham

Military Offices
Preceded by
The Earl of Donoughmore
Colonel of the
Royal Irish Regiment

23 July 1832
Succeeded by
Sir John Forster FitzGerald
Government offices
Preceded by
Sir James Kempt
Governor General of British North America
1830–1835
Succeeded by
The Earl of Gosford
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by
Henry Aylmer
Baron Aylmer
1785–1850
Succeeded by
Frederick Aylmer