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Sir Harry Charles Luke (born Harry Charles Lukach; 4 December 1884 – 11 May 1969) was an official in the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of c ...
. He served in
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...
,
Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...
,
Transcaucasia The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
,
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...
, Mandatory Palestine, Palestine,
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, the British Western Pacific Territories and Fiji. He is the author of some books on several of these countries.


Biography

Luke was born in London in 1884. His father, J.H. Luke (né Lukács) was an Austro-Hungarian, but later acquired American citizenship; his mother was a Polish
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
of the minor nobility. Luke was educated at
Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
and at
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
, Oxford, of which he became an
Honorary Fellow Honorary titles (professor, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as well as in m ...
in 1952, and converted to Anglicanism. Luke's first official appointment was as
private secretary A private secretary (PS) is a civil servant in a governmental department or ministry, responsible to a secretary of state or minister; or a public servant in a royal household, responsible to a member of the royal family. The role exists in ...
in Sierra Leone in 1908. He became aide-de-camp the following year, and briefly acted as Colonial Secretary for a few months. In 1911 he moved to
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate) ...
to become private secretary to the Governor. He subsequently served as private secretary to the High Commissioner of Cyprus (1911–1912) and as commissioner of Famagusta (1918–1920). From 1909 to 1911 he was also a second lieutenant in the London
Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...
. During
World War I 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 ...
, Luke served as Commander of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve on the Syrian Coast, and as a Political Officer on the staff of Admiral Sir
Rosslyn Wemyss Admiral of the Fleet Rosslyn Erskine Wemyss, 1st Baron Wester Wemyss, (12 April 1864 – 24 May 1933), known as Sir Rosslyn Wemyss between 1916 and 1919, was a Royal Navy officer. During the First World War he served as commander of the 12th C ...
; for his services he was awarded the Italian medal for military valour. In 1919 Luke was appointed Political Officer to the Admiral of the Fleet, Sir
John de Robeck Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Michael de Robeck, 1st Baronet, (10 June 1862 – 20 January 1928) was an officer in the Royal Navy. In the early years of the 20th century he served as Admiral of Patrols, commanding four flotillas of destroyers. ...
. In 1920 he spent six months (from April to September) as British
Chief Commissioner A chief commissioner is a commissioner of a high rank, usually in chief of several commissioners or similarly styled officers. Colonial In British India the gubernatorial style was chief commissioner in various (not all) provinces (often after be ...
in Transcaucasia (
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
,
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...
, and
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
). In 1921, he was assistant Governor of
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
and was appointed a member of the Haycraft Commission, which was established by
Sir Herbert Samuel Herbert Louis Samuel, 1st Viscount Samuel, (6 November 1870 – 5 February 1963) was a British Liberal politician who was the party leader from 1931 to 1935. He was the first nominally-practising Jew to serve as a Cabinet minister and to beco ...
to investigate the cause of the riot which started in Jaffa on 1 May that year, and into the affairs of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. From 1924 to 1928 Luke held the post of Colonial Secretary of
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...
. He was subsequently appointed to be the acting High Commissioner to the Mandate for Palestine, Government of Palestine. He assumed this position on 19 July 1928 and held it until 6 December 1928. In August 1929, acting as deputy to Sir John Robert Chancellor, Luke attempted to mediate an agreement between
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
leaders, without success. Later he was Lieutenant Governor of Malta (1930–1938) and
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 ...
and High Commissioner of the British Western Pacific Territories from 1938 to 1942. He left Fiji on 20 July 1942. On his retirement from the Colonial Service in 1943, Luke served for three years as chief representative of the
British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...
in the Caribbean. He died in Cyprus, where he often spent the winter, on 11 May 1969. A Freemason of the
United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...
, in 1919–1920 he served as the 28th First Principal of the St. Paul's Royal Arch Chapter N. 2277 E. C. in Cyprus.


Family

In 1918 Luke married Joyce Evelyn Fremlin, the daughter of Henry James Leigh Fremlin and his wife, Maud Evelyn Deane (divorced 1949). They had two sons, Peter Ambrose Cyprian Luke, born in 1919, and Michael Charles Deane Luke, born in 1925.


Honours

* CMG (1926), Knight (1933), Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (1939) * GCStJ (1960), Bailiff Grand Cross of the Order of St John


Luke's published works

* ''The Fringe of the East. Journey through Past and Present Provinces of
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
'', (
Macmillan & Co Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publi ...
), 1913 (First published under the name Harry Charles Lukach) * ''The City of the Dancing Dervishes'', 1914 * ''Cypriote Shrines'', (Faith Press), 1920 * ''The Handbook of Cyprus'' (London), 1920 (together with D.J. Jardine) * '' Cyprus under the Turks 1571–1878'', (
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
), 1921 * ''Report of the commission appointed by the government of Palestine to inquire into the affairs of the orthodox patriarchate of Jerusalem'', 1921 (together with Anton Bertram) * ''The handbook of Palestine'', 1922 (together with Edward Keith Roach) * ''Anatolica'', (London), 1924 * ''Mosul and its minorities'', 1925 * ''Prophets, Priests and Patriarchs: sketches of the sects of Palestine and Syria'', 1927 * ''In the Margin of History'', 1933 * ''An Eastern Checkerboard'', 1934 * ''More Moves on an Eastern Checkerboard'', 1935 * ''The Making of Modern Turkey'', (
Macmillan & Co Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publi ...
), 1936 * ''The British Pacific islands'', 1944 * ''From a South Seas Diary, 1938–1942'', 1945 * "Aden", in: ''The British Empire'', by Hector Bolitho, 1948. * ''Malta, an account and an appreciation'', 1949 * ''Caribbean Circuit'', 1950 * ''Aegean, Cyprus, Turkey, Transcaucasia and Palestine (1914–1924)'', 1953 * ''Cities and Men: an autobiography'' – Vols. 1 & 2, 1953 * ''Queen Salote and her Kingdom'', 1954 * ''The Tenth Muse: A Gourmet's Compendium'', 1954 (a cookery book) * ''The Old Turkey and the New: from Byzantium to Ankara'', 1955 (First published in 1936 under the title ''The Making of Modern Turkey'') * ''Cities and Men: an autobiography'', Vol. 3, 1956 * ''Cyprus: a Portrait and an Appreciation'', ( Harrap), 1957 , -


See also

* List of Governors of Fiji * British Mandate of Palestine#British High Commissioners for Palestine


Notes


References


Sources

*


External links

*
Papers of Sir Harry Charles Luke at the Bodleian Library, Oxford

Picture of Harry Luke in Palestine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luke, Harry Charles 1884 births 1969 deaths Governors of Fiji British High Commissioners of Palestine Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Bailiffs Grand Cross of the Order of St John British people of Hungarian descent British people of Polish descent Alumni of the University of Oxford High Commissioners for the Western Pacific British expatriates in Malta Civil servants from London Writers from London Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II British people of American descent British expatriates in Cyprus Colonial Secretaries of Sierra Leone Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England