Milnes: King's impact on Ottawa inescapable, even 75 years after his death
Through the next half-century, King set out to improve his adopted city. 'We may not come to have the largest, the wealthiest or the most cosmopolitan capital in the world, but I believe that with Ottawa's natural and picturesque setting, given stately proportions, and a little careful planning, we can have the most beautiful capital in the world,' he told the Commons in the 1920s.
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He added that his aim was 'the development and beautification of Ottawa as the capital of this great Dominion, something that will give some expression of all that is highest in the idealism of the nation and something which those from beyond our gates and those who may follow in future years will come to recognize as an expression in some degree of the soul of Canada today.'
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He was particularly proud of his work creating Confederation Square and its centrepiece, the National War Memorial, the latter unveiled by King George VI in 1939. 'The moment I saw the monument at the head of Elgin St. — on an elevation, which could be seen from the new Knox Church, and facing down the grand avenue, I at once saw that I had my Champs Élysées, Arc de Triomphe and Place de la Concorde all at a single stroke. As I pointed out to (architect Jacques) Gréber, it made a magnificent approach to the Parliament buildings.'
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King established the Federal District Commission, the precursor to today's National Capital Commission, and his work beautifying Ottawa continued to the very end of his life.
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It is fitting then, that King passed into history at Kingsmere. The late prime minister's refuge, with its beauty and mystery preserved forever, is maintained by the NCC, and enjoyed by thousands of visitors annually. It stands in perpetuity as one of the great monuments to both King and the capital region that he cared so deeply about.
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