Sir Guy Richardson Powles (5 April 1905 – 24 October 1994) was a New Zealand diplomat, the last Governor of

Western Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); a ...

and architect of Samoan independence, and New Zealand's first Ombudsman.

Early life

Powles was born in Otaki, north of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, in 1905. Powles was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel C. Guy Powles, a decorated military soldier who served with distinction during World War I as

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade The New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade was a brigade of the New Zealand Army during the First World War. Raised in 1914 as part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, it was one of the first New Zealand units to sail for service overseas. The ...

1914–1916 and AA & QMG ANZAC Mounted Division 1916–1918. In 1922 he wrote the third volume of the ''

Official History of New Zealand's Effort in the Great War The ''Official History of New Zealand's Effort in the Great War'' is a four-volume 'Popular History' series which covered the New Zealand involvement in the First World War. Aimed at presenting the efforts of the New Zealand Military Forces durin ...

'', ''The New Zealanders in Sinai and Palestine'', and in 1928 edited ''The history of the Canterbury Mounted Rifles 1914–1919'' by officers of the regiment, and later became Chief of General Staff of the New Zealand Army. Powles earned his LLB from

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

and practised as a barrister in Wellington from 1929 to 1940. During the war, Powles went on active military service, and achieved the rank of colonel, commanding the New Zealand artillery regiment in the South Pacific at

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...

and New Caledonia. Powles was a founding member of the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs in 1934, along with

Alister McIntosh Sir Alister Donald Miles McIntosh (29 November 1906 – 30 November 1978) was a New Zealand diplomat. McIntosh was New Zealand's first secretary of foreign affairs serving as the principal foreign policy adviser to Prime Ministers Peter Fraser, ...

John Cawte Beaglehole John Cawte Beaglehole (13 June 1901 – 10 October 1971) was a New Zealand historian whose greatest scholastic achievement was the editing of James Cook's three journals of exploration, together with the writing of an acclaimed biography of Co ...

, and William Sutch.

Diplomatic career

Powles joined the fledgling Department of External Affairs in 1945, working alongside such notable figures as

George Laking Sir George Robert Laking (15 October 1912 – 10 January 2008) was a New Zealand diplomat who served as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador to the United States, Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Chief Ombudsman. Early life Lak ...

, and later

Frank Corner Frank Henry Corner (17 May 1920 – 27 August 2014) was a New Zealand diplomat. Corner served as New Zealand's Ambassador to the United Nations and the United States, before becoming New Zealand's third Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs (197 ...

and

Merwyn Norrish Merwyn "Merv" Norrish (28 October 1926 – 21 May 2021) was a New Zealand diplomat who served as New Zealand's ambassador to the European Community, acting high commissioner to London, ambassador to the United States, and secretary of Foreign ...

. His first assignment was in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, where he served as counsellor working on the

Far Eastern Commission The Far Eastern Commission (FEC) was an Allied commission which succeeded the Far Eastern Advisory Commission (FEAC), and oversaw the Allied Council for Japan following the end of World War II. Based in Washington, D.C., it was first agreed on at ...

, established to work through the issues relating to Japan's surrender during World War II. In 1949, Powles became New Zealand High Commissioner to Samoa: in this role, he was set to become the last New Zealand governor of that territory. Over the next ten years, Powles worked through the issues relating to Samoa's independence from New Zealand. In 1960, Powles became New Zealand High Commissioner to India, which he served until 1962. Powles was involved in a large number of international conferences, including the UN

United Nations Trusteeship Council The United Nations Trusteeship Council (french: links=no, Conseil de tutelle des Nations unies) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, established to help ensure that trust territories were administered in the best interests ...

, the

South Pacific Commission The Pacific Community (PC), formerly the South Pacific Commission (SPC), is an international development organisation governed by 27 members, including 22 Pacific island countries and territories. The organisation's headquarters are in Nouméa, ...

, the Conference on Japanese Peace Treaty, the International Whaling Conference, the Economic Commission Conference, and the Colombo Plan Conference.

Ombudsman

Powles was appointed a

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

in the 1961 New Year Honours, and was made New Zealand's first

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

in 1962. He served in this role until 1977, by which time he had been joined by another Ombudsman, and acted as Chief Ombudsman. Powles also acted as New Zealand's first

Race Relations Conciliator The Human Rights Commission (Māori: ''Te Kāhui Tika Tangata'') is the national human rights institution (NHRI) for New Zealand. It operates as an independent Crown entity, and is independent from direction by the Cabinet. Legislation and func ...

. On the international stage, Powles did a substantial amount of work in promoting the office of the ombudsman. Powles died in Wellington on 24 October 1994, and his ashes were buried at

Karori Cemetery Karori Cemetery is New Zealand's second largest cemetery, located in the Wellington suburb of Karori. History Karori Cemetery opened in 1891 to address overcrowding at Bolton Street Cemetery. In 1909, it received New Zealand's first cremato ...

Other information

Powles' son is diplomat Michael Powles, a former New Zealand High Commissioner to Fiji, and former Ambassador to Indonesia, China, and the United Nations. His grandson is Timothy Powles, producer, engineer and drummer for Australian band The Church.

Awards

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

* In the New Year Honours 1961 Powles was appointed as

Knight Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire 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 ...

* On 6 February 1990, Powles was the eighteenth appointee to The Order of New Zealand,"Honours and Awards" (15 February 1990) 23 ''

New Zealand Gazette The ''New Zealand Gazette'' ( mi, Te Kāhiti o Aotearoa), commonly referred to as ''Gazette'', is the official newspaper of record (Government gazette) of the New Zealand Government. Published since 1840, it is the longest-running publication i ...

'' 445 at 446. New Zealand's highest civil honour. * Honorary

LL.D Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the earl ...

from

* Received the Order of Tiafau, the highest award by the Samoan Government

References

* http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/default.asp?Find_Quick.asp?PersonEssay=5P37 {{DEFAULTSORT:Powles, Guy 1905 births 1994 deaths New Zealand public servants Victoria University of Wellington alumni Administrators of Tokelau New Zealand military personnel of World War II High Commissioners of New Zealand to India High Commissioners of New Zealand to Samoa Members of the Order of New Zealand New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Burials at Karori Cemetery 20th-century New Zealand politicians Administrators of the Western Samoa Trust Territory