Sir Henry Charles Kerruish OBE

LLD 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 early ...

CP MLC (23 July 1917 – 2 August 2003)
/ref> was a Manx politician who was the first

President of Tynwald The President of Tynwald (''Eaghtyrane Tinvaal'') is the presiding officer at the sittings of Tynwald Court in Douglas and is elected by the members of Tynwald from amongst their number. The first elected President, Charles Kerruish, was elect ...

and, as

Speaker of the House of Keys The Speaker of the House of Keys () is the principal officer of the House of Keys, the lower house of the Isle of Man legislature. The Speaker is elected from the membership of the House at its first sitting after an election. He is responsibl ...

from 1962 to 1990, was the longest-serving Speaker in any Parliament in the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

. He was also the first

Chairman of the Executive Council The Chairman of the Executive Council of the Isle of Man was the executive head of the Isle of Man Government from 1961 to 1986. The title of the office was changed in 1986 to Chief Minister. Chairmen See also * Chief Minister * Executive ...

, the forerunner of the present

Chief Minister of the Isle of Man The Chief Minister (Manx: ''Ard-shirveishagh'') is the executive head of the Isle of Man Government. The office derives from that of Chairman of the Executive Council. Before 1980 the Executive Council was chaired by the Lieutenant Governor, ...

, from 1961 to 1967. This made him the first Manx person to fulfil an executive role on the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

. Previously the Lieutenant Governor had exercised all executive power. He was a keen supporter of Scouting on the Isle of Man, often offering his own lands for camping. During the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, a westerly wind brought much contaminated fallout across Europe, including the Isle of Man. Charles Kerruish disdained from culling his mouton based around

Snaefell Snaefell ( on, snjœ-fjall/snjó-fall – snow mountain) – ( gv, Sniaull) is the highest mountain and the only summit higher than on the Isle of Man, at above sea level. The summit is crowned by a railway station, cafe and several communica ...

. He subsequently sold his slaughtered animals to the Manx population for consumption. Unlike some of his contemporaries at the time, he devotedly supported the un-elected Legislative Council.

References

Manx politicians 1917 births 2003 deaths Chairmen of the Executive Council of the Isle of Man Knights Bachelor Officers of the Order of the British Empire Politicians awarded knighthoods People educated at St Ninian's High School, Douglas {{IsleofMan-politician-stub