Sir Gilbert McCall Rennie, (24 September 1895 – 12 November 1981) was a British colonial administrator. He was

Governor of Northern Rhodesia The Governor of Northern Rhodesia was the representative of the British Monarch The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign rei ...

from 1948 to 1954 and High Commissioner of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in London from 1954 and 1961. His obituary in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' described him as "one of the outstanding administrative officers of his generation".

Life and career

The younger son of John Rennie, Gilbert Rennie was educated at

Stirling High School Stirling High School is a state high school for 11- to 18-year-olds run by Stirling Council in Stirling, Scotland. It is one of seven high schools in the Stirling district, and has approximately 972 pupils. It is located on Torbrex Farm Road, ...

and

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he saw action with the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's O ...

, reaching the rank of captain and receiving the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

. In 1920 he joined the Ceylon Civil Service, where he gained a reputation for his ability in financial work. In 1937 he was appointed Financial Secretary in the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

. In 1939 he was appointed Chief Secretary in

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, serving until 1947, when he was appointed

. During his governorship took place the negotiations leading to the creation of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. In 1954, Rennie become the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland's first High Commissioner in London, holding the post until 1961. He also served as chairman of the Commonwealth Economic Committee in 1957 and 1958. From 1965 to 1978 he was the chairman of the UK Committee of the Freedom from Hunger Campaign, and from 1965 to 1970 he was joint treasurer of the Royal Society of Arts. Rennie was appointed a CMG in 1941, made a

knight bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are th ...

in 1946, advanced as a KCMG in 1949, and appointed a GBE in 1954. He also received an honorary LLD of Glasgow University.

Family

Rennier married Jean Marcella Huggins in 1929; they had two sons and a daughter.

References

External links

* } {{DEFAULTSORT:Rennie, Gilbert British colonial governors and administrators in Africa People educated at Stirling High School Alumni of the University of Glasgow King's Own Scottish Borderers officers Recipients of the Military Cross Knights Bachelor Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Governors of Northern Rhodesia High Commissioners of Rhodesia to the United Kingdom 1895 births 1981 deaths