Alfred Musgrave Merriweather OBE,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(19 August 1918 – 8 October 1999) was a Scottish missionary in

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

, who was a member of the

National Assembly of Botswana The National Assembly is the legislative body of Botswana's national government. With the President, the National Assembly forms Botswana's unicameral Parliament. It is advised by the Ntlo ya Dikgosi: a council of chiefs which is not a house of Pa ...

and its first

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

. He helped improve

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

in Botswana.

Biography

Merriweather was born in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, and lived later in Glasgow. He moved to Molepolole in

Bechuanaland Protectorate The Bechuanaland Protectorate () was a British protectorate, protectorate established on 31 March 1885, by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (later the United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) in So ...

in 1944 to work in the

Scottish Livingstone Hospital Scottish Livingstone Hospital, also known as Molepolole Hospital, is a government-run district hospital located in Molepolole, Botswana, from Gaborone. History The hospital was built in 1933 by the United Free Church of Scotland. It opened the ...

. His medical reputation allowed him to become medical adviser to the

Seretse Khama Sir Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama, GCB, KBE (1 July 1921 – 13 July 1980) was a Motswana politician who served as the first President of Botswana, a post he held from 1966 to his death in 1980. Born into an influential royal fam ...

, first

President of Botswana The president of the Republic of Botswana is the head of state and the head of government of Botswana, as well as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, according to the Constitution of Botswana. The president is elected to a five-year t ...

. Merriweather was elected as the speaker of the Legislative Assembly, and as the first speaker of the National Assembly when Botswana became independent. He gained a PhD in Medicine from the University of Edinburgh in 1956. He died in Molepolole in 1999.

References

Medical doctors from Yorkshire Scottish Christian missionaries British emigrants to Botswana British Army personnel of World War II Speakers of the National Assembly (Botswana) Botswana physicians 1918 births 1999 deaths Christian missionaries in Botswana 20th-century British medical doctors White Botswana people {{Botswana-bio-stub