Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

John Dennis Boles (25 June 1925 – 1 July 2013), was a British Colonial Service officer in North Borneo, and later in England worked for the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

, serving as its Director-General from 1975 to 1983.

Early life

A son of Geoffrey Boles, an officer in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, Boles was born at

Waterlooville Waterlooville is a market town in the Borough of Havant in Hampshire, England, approximately north northeast of Portsmouth. It is the largest town in the borough. The town has a population of about 64,350 and is surrounded by Purbrook, Blendwort ...

, near Portsmouth, while his father was attached to HMS ''Vernon'', the navy's on-shore School of Gunnery. His father later became a land agent in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

and the family settled at

Talaton Talaton is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Devon. It lies approximately 6 miles to the west of Honiton, 3 miles to the north of Ottery St Mary, 2 miles to the west of Feniton and 2 miles to the east of Whimple. The parish ...

, near

Ottery St Mary Ottery St Mary, known as "Ottery", is a town and civil parish in the East Devon district of Devon, England, on the River Otter, about east of Exeter on the B3174. At the 2001 census, the parish, which includes the villages of Metcombe, Fair ...

. The young Boles was educated at

West Downs School West Downs School, Romsey Road, Winchester, Hampshire, was an English independent preparatory school, which was established in 1897 and closed in 1988. History Founding The school was founded by Lionel Helbert (1870–1919), with help from h ...

and

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

, and in 1943 on leaving school he joined the British Army.Sir Jack Boles (obituary)
in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' dated 1 July 2013, accessed 2 April 2019

Career

In November 1944 Boles was commissioned into the Rifle Brigade, but a motorcycle accident kept him out of the fighting in Europe. From 1945 to 1946 he was stationed in Egypt. After leaving the army Boles joined the

Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

, learning Arabic and Hebrew for working in

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...

, but instead was posted as a district officer to

North Borneo North Borneo (usually known as British North Borneo, also known as the State of North Borneo) was a British Protectorate, British protectorate in the northern part of the island of Borneo, which is present day Sabah. The territory of North Borneo ...

, a British protectorate which had suffered from Japanese occupation. He learned to speak Malay and stayed there for seventeen years, becoming a district commissioner. North Borneo was moving towards becoming part of an independent Malaysia, and Boles became Secretary to the last British Governor, Sir William Goode. After independence, which took place on 16 September 1963, he stayed on for a further year as Secretary to the new

federal Government of Malaysia The Government of Malaysia, officially the Federal Government of Malaysia ( ms, Kerajaan Persekutuan Malaysia), is based in the Federal Territory of Putrajaya with the exception of the legislative branch, which is located in Kuala Lumpur. Malays ...

's Minister for Land and Natural Resources. Boles returned home to England late in 1964. In 1965, he joined the

as Assistant Secretary. There he rose through different roles and served as its Director-General from 1975 to 1983, when he retired. With his second wife, he then settled at his childhood home, Rydon House, Talaton, Devon, spending his time restoring the garden, shooting, fishing, and keeping bees. He became a

churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' members of the parish b ...

and joined the National Trust's committee for Devon and Cornwall, was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant for the county, and was

High Sheriff of Devon The High Sheriff of Devon is the Queen's representative for the County of Devon, a territory known as his/her bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, they hold the office for one year. They have judicial, ceremonial and administrative ...

for 1993.

Private life

In 1953 Boles married Benita Wormald, and they had five children, four born in North Borneo and a fifth,

Nick Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealing * Short for nickname Place ...

, born in England in 1965. In 1969, his wife died of cancer. In 1971 he married secondly Lady Anne Waldegrave, a National Trust colleague and a daughter of

Earl Waldegrave Earl Waldegrave is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1729 for James Waldegrave, 2nd Baron Waldegrave. History The Waldegrave family descends from Sir Richard Waldegrave, Speaker of the House of Commons from 1381 to ...

.Charles Kidd, Christine Shaw, eds., ''Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage 2008'' (Debrett's, 2008), p. 1446

Honours

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE), 1960 *

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

(Kt), 1983 * Deputy lieutenant of

(DL) *

1993-94

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boles, Jack Dennis 2013 deaths 1925 births British colonial officials National Trust people People educated at Winchester College People educated at West Downs School Knights Bachelor Members of the Order of the British Empire Rifle Brigade officers Deputy Lieutenants of Devon High Sheriffs of Devon British Army personnel of World War II