John Gutch (colonial administrator) explained

Sir John Gutch
Honorific-Suffix:KCMG, OBE
Order:18th
Office:High Commissioner for the Western Pacific
Term Start:1955
Term End:4 March 1961
Predecessor:Sir Robert Stanley
Successor:Sir David Trench
Order1:2nd
Office1:Governor of the Solomon Islands
Monarch1:Elizabeth II
Term Start1:1955
Term End1:4 March 1961
Predecessor1:Sir Robert Stanley
Successor1:Sir David Trench
Birth Date:12 July 1905

Sir John Gutch, KCMG, OBE (12 July 1905[1] – 11 February 1988) was a British colonial administrator.

His career in the Colonial Service began in 1928, with his appointment as an Assistant District Commissioner in the Gold Coast (now Ghana). In 1934, he was promoted to Assistant Colonial Secretary. He was posted to the Mandate of Palestine in 1936, eventually becoming Principal Commissioner. He was one of the survivors of the King David Hotel bombing in Jerusalem on 22 July 1946. He was posted by the Foreign Office to Cyrenaica in 1948. He became Chief Secretary of British Guiana in 1950.[2] From September 1955 to January 1961, he was Governor of the Solomon Islands and High Commissioner for the Western Pacific. In this role he oversaw not only the Solomon Islands but also the New Hebrides and the Gilbert and Ellice Islands.[3] During his term, the Solomon Islands took their first steps towards self-government, with the establishment of the first Legislative Council.[4]

Gutch was awarded the OBE and a knighthood in 1957.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Near and Middle East Who's who. 1947.
  2. Web site: John Gutch. Palestine: Information with Provenance (PIWP database). 31 August 2015.
  3. Web site: Gutch, John. Solomon Islands Historical Encyclopaedia 1893-1978 . 31 August 2015.
  4. Web site: Self rule starting in Solomon Islands. Virgin Islands Daily News. 31 August 2015. 29 November 1960.