Editing John Graves Simcoe (section)

==Early life==
Simcoe was the only surviving son of [[Cornish people|Cornishman]] John (1710–1759) and Katherine Simcoe (died 1767). His parents had four children, but he was the only one to live past childhood; Percy drowned in 1764, while Paulet William and John William died as infants. His father was a captain in the [[Royal Navy]] who commanded the 60-gun [[HMS Pembroke (1757)|HMS ''Pembroke'']] during the [[Siege of Louisbourg (1758)|siege of Louisbourg]], with [[James Cook]] as his [[sailing master]]. He died of [[pneumonia]] on 15 May 1759 on board his ship in the mouth of the [[Saint Lawrence River]] a few months prior to the [[Battle of the Plains of Abraham|siege of Quebec]], and was buried at sea.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.uppercanadahistory.ca/simcoe/simcoe9.html|title = Early Canada Historical Narratives -- MYSTERY MEMORIAL}}</ref> The family then moved to his mother's parental home in [[Exeter]]. His paternal grandparents were William and Mary (née Hutchinson) Simcoe.

He was educated at [[Exeter School|Exeter Grammar School]] and [[Eton College]]. He spent a year at [[Merton College, Oxford]];<ref>{{cite book |last1=Slater |first1=John G. |title= Minerva's Aviary: Philosophy at Toronto, 1843–2003 |date= 2005 |publisher= University of Toronto Press |isbn= 0802038700 |page=3}}</ref> he was then admitted to [[Lincoln's Inn]], but decided to follow the military career for which his father had intended him. He was initiated into [[Freemasonry]] in Union Lodge, Exeter, on 2 November 1773.<ref>Union Lodge. Minute Book (1766–1789). p. 113.</ref>