Sir Walter Harragin CMG QC (1890 – 26 June 1966) was a British colonial barrister, judge and administrator.

Early life

Harragin was born in

British Guyana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was ...

.H.M. Stationery Office, 1960, The Commonwealth Relations Office Year Book, Volume 10, p.291 He was educated at

Berkhamsted School Berkhamsted School is an independent day school in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, England. The present school was formed in 1997 by the amalgamation of the original Berkhamsted School, founded in 1541 by John Incent, Dean of St Paul's Cathedral ...

and was called to the bar at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

in 1912.

Career

He began his career as a

clerk of the peace A clerk of the peace held an office in England and Wales whose responsibility was the records of the quarter sessions and the framing of presentments and indictments. They had legal training, so that they could advise justices of the peace. Histo ...

in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, in 1914. 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 was on active military service between 1916 and 1918, returning to Trinidad as a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...

in 1919 and later being elevated to the Crown Court in 1924. He was later promoted to Attorney General first of

Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate located in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasala ...

between 1927 and 1933, and then

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

until 1944. Whilst in Kenya he prosecuted for the Crown during the trial of

Jock Delves Broughton Sir Henry John Delves Broughton, 11th Baronet, DL (10 September 1883 – 5 December 1942), was a British baronet who is chiefly known for standing trial for the murder of Josslyn Hay, 22nd Earl of Erroll. The event was the basis of the film '' W ...

for the murder of Lord Erroll. He briefly served as Chief Secretary of Kenya between 1938 and 1939 and

Acting Governor An acting governor is a person who acts in the role of governor. In Commonwealth jurisdictions where the governor is a vice-regal position, the role of "acting governor" may be filled by a lieutenant governor (as in most Australian states) or an ...

between 1939 and 1940. In January 1941 he was appointed to the

Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint 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, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

. In 1943 he was appointed Chief Justice of the Gold Coast Colony and remained in the role until 1947.5496 The London Gazette, 17 December 1943 On retiring from his position in the Gold Coast he was made a Judge of the High Courts of Basutoland,

Bechuanaland Protectorate The Bechuanaland Protectorate () was a protectorate established on 31 March 1885, by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (later the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) in Southern Africa. It became the Republi ...

and Swaziland.Forster, Bankie. “Introduction to the History of the Administration of Justice of the Republic of Botswana.” Botswana Notes and Records, vol. 13, 1981, pp. 89–100 He served as President of the Court of Appeal from 1964 until his death in 1966.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harragin, Walter 1890 births 1966 deaths British colonial governors and administrators in Africa British Kenya people Colonial governors and administrators of Kenya Chief justices of Ghana Attorneys-General of Nyasaland Chief Secretaries of Kenya People educated at Berkhamsted School British people in British Guiana British expatriates in Gold Coast (British colony) British people in Nyasaland