Sir Francis Henry May (; 14 March 1860 – 6 February 1922) was a British colonial administrator who served as

Governor of Fiji Fiji was a British Crown colony from 1874 to 1970, and an independent dominion in the Commonwealth from 1970 to 1987. During this period, the head of state was the British monarch, but in practice his or her functions were normally exercised loca ...

from 1911 to 1912 and

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...

from 1912 to 1918.

Early life and education

May was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Ireland on 14 March 1860. He was the 4th son of Rt. Hon.

George Augustus Chichester May Right Hon. George Augustus Chichester May PC, QC (1815 – 16 August 1892) was an Irish judge. Early life May was born in Belfast, the son of the Reverend Edward May and Elizabeth Sinclair. He was educated at Shrewsbury School and Magdalene Col ...

Lord Chief Justice of Ireland The Court of King's Bench (or Court of Queen's Bench during the reign of a Queen) was one of the senior courts of common law in Ireland. It was a mirror of the Court of King's Bench in England. The Lord Chief Justice was the most senior judge ...

, and his wife Olivia Barrington. May was educated at

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

and

Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

, where a few of his predecessors to the Governorship of Hong Kong attended school. May received the 1st Honourman and Prizeman Classics and Modern Languages and B.A. in 1881.

Career

In 1881, May was appointed to a Hong Kong Cadetship after a competitive examination. In 1886, he became the Assistant Protector of Chinese and private secretary to Governor Sir

William Des Vœux Sir George William Des Vœux (22 September 1834 – 15 December 1909) was a British colonial administrator who served as governor of Fiji (1880–1885), Newfoundland (1886–1887), and Hong Kong (1887–1891). Early life Des Vœux was born ...

. He was also the private secretary to Acting Administrator Digby Barker from 1889 to 1891. May would hold the office of Assistant Colonial Secretary in 1891 and Acting Colonial Treasurer in 1892. He was made a member of the Legislative Council in 1895. From 1893 to 1901, May was the Captain Superintendent of the

Hong Kong Police Force The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest Hong Kong Disciplined Services, disciplined service under the Security Bureau (Hong Kong), Security Bureau of Hong Kong. The Royal Hong Kong Po ...

, and Superintendent of Victoria Gaol and Fire Brigade between 1896 and 1902.Grandsons of siege victim visit Force
HK Police 'Offbeat', Issue 795, 23 March 2005 He was appointed to the position of Colonial Secretary for Hong Kong in April 1902, serving until 21 January 1911, and as such was appointed acting administrator of Hong Kong during transitions totalling almost a year between governors in 1903-1904 and 1907. In 1911, May was appointed

and High Commissioner Western Pacific, a position he would hold until 1912.

Governor of Hong Kong

In 1912, May was appointed

, a position he occupied in his own right until 1918. It was also his last post in the Colonial Service. May was the only Governor of Hong Kong to be the target of an assassination attempt. He was fired upon near the General Post Office as he rode in a

sedan chair The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the e ...

after arriving from Fiji in July 1912. May was not injured; the bullet lodged in the sedan of his wife. The gunman, Li Hung-hung, had a grudge against May. Several years before, this former Police Superintendent had imprisoned Li's father, an undesirable mainland immigrant.Eric Cavaliero
Pedder Street was where it all happened
'' The Standard'', 13 August 1998 May used a car for daily transport from then onwards. On 22 January 1918, May personally negotiated with the remaining member of a gang holed up in the "Siege of Gresson Street", following a running gun battle through the streets of

Wanchai Wan Chai is situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area no ...

in which five police officers were killed. In 1919, due to deteriorating health condition, May was relieved of his duty as the Governor.

Personal

In 1891 May married Helena Barker, the daughter and heiress of Acting Administrator Major-General Digby Barker of

Clare Priory Clare Priory is a religious house in England, originally established in 1248 as the first house of the Augustinian Friars in England. It is situated on the banks of the River Stour, a short distance away from the medieval village of Clare, Suffo ...

in Suffolk. They had four daughters, Stella, Phoebe, Iris and Dionne. Stella married General Philip de Fonblanque. Iris (Olivia Helena) married Edward Hamilton Johnston the Sanskritist in the early 1920s. He died at

, Suffolk, England. He is buried at Clare, Suffolk.

Honours

* K.St.J. * J.P. for Suffolk * C.M.G., 1895 * G.C.M.G., 1919

Publications

*''Guide to Cantonese Colloquial'' *''Yachting in Hong-Kong''

Places named after him

The church of SS Peter and Paul in Clare - memorial - geograph

May Road May Road () is a road in Mid-Levels, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It is named after Sir Francis Henry May, the 15th Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1 ...

, a roadway in the Upper Mid-Levels area in

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...

, and May Hall of the

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...

The First Students' Hostels of The University of Hong Kong
/ref> were named after him. Also, the Helena May Foundation was named after his wife.

References

External links

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:May, Francis Henry High Commissioners for the Western Pacific Governors of Fiji Governors of Hong Kong 1860 births 1922 deaths Chief Secretaries of Hong Kong Alumni of Trinity College Dublin People educated at Harrow School Knights of the Order of St John Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Politicians from Dublin (city) 20th-century Hong Kong people 20th-century British politicians Hong Kong people of Irish descent