Sir Richard Edmonds Luyt (8 November 1915 – 12 February 1994) was the colonial
Governor of British Guiana in 1964–66. He installed
Forbes Burnham
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Prime Minister of Guyana, Prime Minister from 1964 ...
of the
People's National Congress (PNC) as premier of a coalition government with a small business-oriented conservative party in 1964; however, the
People's Progressive Party (PPP) came first in the election. Deadly riots ensued when the PPP was not allowed to form the government. Upon independence in May 1966, Sir Richard was sworn in as
Governor-General of
Guyana, a position which he held until December the same year.
Having been born and educated in Cape Town, he returned there in 1967 as principal and vice-chancellor of the
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...
, a post which he held until 1980. Because of his actions in British Guiana, his appointment was initially opposed by the student body but he soon won them over. During this period, at the height of the
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
years in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
, academic freedom was under threat and Sir Richard was in the forefront of South African vice-chancellors who fought to protect these freedoms. He also vigorously objected against banning orders and detention without trial of students and staff who protested against apartheid.
Sir Richard was an excellent cricketer and rugby player. He obtained a Rugby Blue at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
where he was a
Rhodes Scholar and played in three
first-class cricket
First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officia ...
matches for
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club (OUCC), which represents the University of Oxford, has always held first-class status since 1827 when it made its debut in the inaugural University Match between OUCC and Cambridge University Cricket Club (CUCC). ...
.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
Sir Richard fought against the
Italians in Ethiopia and was awarded the
Distinguished Conduct Medal
The Distinguished Conduct Medal was a decoration established in 1854 by Queen Victoria for gallantry in the field by other ranks of the British Army. It is the oldest British award for gallantry and was a second level military decoration, ranki ...
.
, -
References
LUYT, Sir Richard (Edmonds) ''Who Was Who'', A & C Black, 1920–2016 (online edition, Oxford University Press, 2014)
*
External links
1915 births
1994 deaths
People from Cape Town
History of Guyana
Governors of British Guiana
Governors-General of Guyana
South African knights
South African Rhodes Scholars
University of Cape Town academics
South African Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
Recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal
Oxford University cricketers
Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford
Chief Secretaries of Northern Rhodesia
Members of the Legislative Council of Northern Rhodesia
Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cape Town
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