Willoughby Harry "Tommy" Thompson CMG (3December 191925January 2018) was a British colonial administrator who served in various posts in a number of countries, including

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

, the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

, and

British Virgin Islands ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = Territorial song , song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands" , image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg , map_caption = , mapsize = 290px , image_map2 = Brit ...

. He was the first

Governor of Montserrat The Governor of Montserrat is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's overseas territory of Montserrat. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The main role of the Governor ...

from 1971 until 1974. Thompson was born in Astwood Bank,

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

to Willoughby and Dorothy Markham Thompson. He joined the army and became a

commissioned officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

in 1942. He served in East Africa and then worked in various posts Kenya after leaving the army. He went to the Falkland Islands to work as the colonial secretary in 1963 and then worked in a number of posts, including the acting governor, the magistrate with jurisdiction and later the acting judge of the Supreme Court in the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the British Antarctic Territory. During his time in the Falklands,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

began to express an aggressive intent towards the British colony. In 1968, he was appointed administrator to the British Virgin Islands, but was sent to

Anguilla Anguilla ( ) is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin. The territo ...

after a few months to deal with a rebellion against independence there, and help set it up as a separate colony. He became the governor of Montserrat in 1971, but retired to

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

in 1974. He was appointed CMG in the

1974 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1974 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were published on 7 June 1974 for ...

. He died on 25 January 2018.

References

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* Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Governors of Montserrat 1919 births 2018 deaths British Army personnel of World War II Royal Artillery soldiers Royal Artillery officers {{UK-bio-stub