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Arthur Richards, 1st Baron Milverton

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The Lord Milverton
Governor of North Borneo
In office
1930–1933
MonarchGeorge V
Preceded bySir John Humphreys
Succeeded bySir Douglas Jardine
Governor of Gambia
In office
12 April 1933 – 22 October 1936
MonarchsGeorge V
Edward VIII
Preceded bySir Herbert Palmer
Succeeded bySir Thomas Southorn
High Commissioner for the Western Pacific
In office
28 November 1936 – August 1938
MonarchsEdward VIII
George VI
Preceded bySir Cecil Barton (acting)
Succeeded bySir Cecil Barton (acting)
Governor of Fiji
In office
28 November 1936 – August 1938
MonarchGeorge VI
Preceded bySir Cecil Barton (acting)
Succeeded bySir Cecil Barton (acting)
Governor of Jamaica
In office
19 August 1938 – July 1943
MonarchGeorge VI
Preceded byCharles Campbell Woolley (acting)
Succeeded byWilliam Henry Flinn (acting)
Governor of Nigeria
In office
1943 – 5 February 1948
MonarchGeorge VI
Preceded bySir Bernard Bourdillon
Succeeded bySir John Macpherson
Personal details
Born21 February 1885
Bedminster, Bristol, England
Died27 October 1978(1978-10-27) (aged 93)
Cox Green, Berkshire, England
SpouseNoelle Bënda Whitehead (m. 1927–1978; his death)

Arthur Frederick Richards, 1st Baron Milverton GCMG (21 February 1885 – 27 October 1978), was a British colonial administrator who over his career served as Governor of North Borneo, Gambia, Fiji, Jamaica, and Nigeria.

Early life and education

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Richards was born in Bristol in 1885, the son of William Richards. He was educated at Clifton College in Bristol,[1] and graduated from Christ Church, Oxford, in 1907 with a BA.

Colonial service

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Richards entered the Malayan Civil Service in 1908. By 1921, he had become the Acting 1st Assistant Colonial Secretary for the Straits Settlements. He served as Acting Under-Secretary of the Federated Malay States in 1926, and became full Under-Secretary from 1927 to 1929. He was the Acting General Advisor in Johore between 1929 and 1920, and from 1930 to 1933 he served as the governor of Northern Borneo. Following this, he served as Governor of the Gambia from 1933 to 1936.

He served as Governor of Fiji from 1936 to 1938, holding this office concurrently with the position of High Commissioner of the Western Pacific. From 1938 to 1943, he served as Governor of Jamaica. From 1943 to 1948, he served as Governor of Nigeria.

He was known in the Colonial Service as 'Old Sinister'. He became the first Colonial Office official to be raised to the peerage while still in office. In 1986, his former private secretary in Nigeria, Richard Peel, published a memoir of Richards, titled Old Sinister: A Memoir of Sir Arthur Richards.[2]

Politics

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In the House of Lords Milverton sat for the Labour Party until 1949 when, objecting to Labour's nationalisation plans, he joined the Liberal Party. Soon after that he joined the Conservative Party.[3]

Honours

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He was made a CMG in 1933, elevated to KCMG in 1935, and again to GCMG in 1942. In 1947 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Milverton, of Lagos and of Clifton in the City of Bristol.[4] He was also appointed as K.St.J., and was awarded the US Medal of Freedom with Silver Palm.

Family

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In 1927, Richards married Noelle Bënda Whitehead (18 December 1904 – 11 September 2010),[5] daughter of Charles Basil Whitehead. He died in October 1978, aged 93, and was succeeded in the Barony by his eldest son, the Revd Fraser Arthur Richard Richards. The Second Baron Milverton died in August 2023 and was succeeded in the title by his brother, Michael Hugh Richards (born 1 August 1936), Third Baron Milverton.

Arms

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Coat of arms of Arthur Richards, 1st Baron Milverton
Crest
A Malay tiger’s head erased Proper gorged with a collar lozengy Argent and Gules.
Escutcheon
Argent three lozenges conjoined in fess Gules between two barrulets Sable all within two flaunches of the second both charged with a spear head of the field.
Supporters
On either side a Malay tiger Proper gorged with a collar lozengy Argent and Gules.
Motto
Mens Cujusque Id Est Quisque [6]

References

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  1. ^ "Clifton College Register" Muirhead, J.A.O. p224: Bristol; J.W Arrowsmith for Old Cliftonian Society; April 1948
  2. ^ "Old Sinister: A Memoir of Sir Arthur Richards". The British Empire. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  3. ^ Kirk-Greene, A. H. M. "Richards, Arthur Frederick, first Baron Milverton". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/31600. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ^ "No. 38093". The London Gazette. 10 October 1947. p. 4753.
  5. ^ "Lady Milverton". The Daily Telegraph. 24 September 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
  6. ^ Burke's Peerage. 1959.
Government offices
Preceded by Governor of North Borneo
1930–1933
Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of The Gambia
1934–1936
Succeeded by
Preceded by High Commissioner for the Western Pacific
1936–1938
Succeeded by
Governor of Fiji
1936–1938
Preceded by Governor of Jamaica
1938–1943
Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of Nigeria
1943–1948
Succeeded by
Peerage of the United Kingdom
New creation Baron Milverton
1947–1978
Succeeded by