Wellington Street

Erected by the Royal Engineers and the city of Ottawa, Wellington Street was unveiled in approximately 1826. Wellington Street was one of the first two streets (the other being Rideau Street) established by the Royal Engineers at the start of the construction of the Rideau Canal. It is named in honour of Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG,KP,GCB,GCH,PC,FRS (1769-1852) who was an important supporter of the Rideau Canal as a military necessity in the event of another American invasion. Wellesley was one of the leading military figures of the 19th century. He was commissioned in the British Army in 1787, a Colonel by 1796, and saw action in the Netherlands and later India.

Wellesley rose to prominence as a General during the Peninsular campaign of the Napoleonic Wars, and was promoted to the rank of Field Marshal after leading the Allied Forces to victory against the French in 1813. He served as the ambassador to France and was granted a Dukedom. Wellesley commanded the Allied Army which defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815. He fought in some 60 battles throughout his military career and remained Commander-in-Chief of the British Army until his death in 1852.