Vincent Massey - Post-viceregal Life

Post-viceregal Life

Upon his final departure from Rideau Hall as governor general, Massey retired to Batterwood. For his service to the Crown, he was awarded from the Queen the Royal Victorian Chain, making him the first Canadian recipient of that honour and today only one of two to ever receive it. Massey continued his philanthropic work, dedicating his time to the stewardship of the Massey Foundation, and its endowment to the University of Toronto, in particular. While Hart House continued as one of the recipients of Massey's attention and funds, Massey also expanded the scope of his donations to U of T with the establishment in 1963 of Massey College, to which Massey's protégé, Robertson Davies, was appointed as the college's first master. In 1961, the Massey Lectures were also initiated, conceived as a focus on important contemporary issues by leading thinkers, and they remain considered as the most important public lecture series in Canada.

At the end of 1967, on December 30, Massey died while on holiday in the United Kingdom. His remains were returned to Canada and he was, as is customary for former governors general, given a state funeral, in early January 1968. He was buried alongside his wife at St. Mark's Anglican church in Port Hope; his was the last burial to take place there.