Anthony Abell
Sir Anthony Foster Abell KCMG (11 December 1906 – 8 October 1994) was a British colonial official who was the Governor of Sarawak and British High Commissioner to Brunei.[1]
Anthony Abell | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Abell in the late 1950s | |
| Governor of Sarawak | |
| In office 11 December 1949 – 16 November 1959 | |
| Monarchs | George VI Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Duncan Stewart |
| Succeeded by | Alexander Waddell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anthony Foster Abell 11 December 1906 Bridgnorth, Shropshire |
| Died | 8 October 1994 (aged 87) Winchester, Hampshire |
| Parent(s) | George Abell (father) Jessie Abell (mother) |
| Occupation | Politician Diplomat |
Career
[edit]Abell was born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, on 11 December 1906, the son of George and Jessie Abell, his father was a Bank Manager. Abell (brother of George Abell, who became a civil servant) was educated at Repton School and Magdalen College, Oxford, though he failed to get a degree.[2] He joined the then Colonial Administrative Service in 1929 and was posted to Nigeria. In 1942 he took part in Operation Postmaster, a successful raid on German and Italian ships in the port of Santa Isabella on Fernando Po, then a Spanish colony, although Spain was neutral in World War II.[3][4] He was appointed Resident of Oyo Province in western Nigeria in 1949, but the following year he was offered the governorship of Sarawak,[5] where he was concurrently High Commissioner to Brunei.[6]
During the opening ceremony of the Brunei Airport by Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III on 8 May 1957, he was there to attend and witness the ceremony together with other officials.[7] On 17 December 1958, Abell flew from Kuching to Brunei after being invited by Dennis White to officiate the opening of his namesake school in Seria, Anthony Abell College on the next day. He would return to Kuching on the following day.[8]
Later life and death
[edit]Abell retired in 1959 but was a member of selection boards for both the Colonial Service and the police,[2] and was also invited to sit on the Cobbold Commission on the future of North Borneo and Sarawak. He was Gentleman Usher of the Blue Rod 1972–79.[9]
Abell died on 8 October 1994 in Winchester district of Hampshire aged 87.
Legacy
[edit]Namesakes
[edit]- Anthony Abell College, a college in Seria, Belait District of Brunei.[10]
Honours
[edit]Abell was appointed CMG in 1950[11] and knighted KCMG in the 1952 New Year Honours.[12] In 1954 the Sultan of Brunei awarded him the Family Order of Brunei, First Class, "in recognition of valuable services rendered".[13]
National
[edit]
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG; 1950)- Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG; 1952) – Sir[12]
Foreign
[edit]
Brunei:
Second Class of the Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei (DPMB; 1954) – Dato Paduka[13]
References
[edit]- ^ ABELL, Sir Anthony (Foster), Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2016 (online edition, Oxford University Press, 2014)
- ^ a b "Sir Anthony Abell" (obituary), The Times, London, 14 October 1994, page 23
- ^ Fernando Po Cutting out Expedition
- ^ Anthony Kirk-Greene, Symbol of Authority: The British District Officer in Africa (I.B. Tauris, 2006), p.116
- ^ "No. 38853". The London Gazette. 3 March 1950. p. 1098.
- ^ "The Sarawak, North Borneo and Brunei Conference" (PDF). Institute of Asian Studies. 2014. p. 14.
- ^ "Upachara Pembukaan Rasmi Padang Kapal Terbang Brunei" (PDF). Pelita Brunei. 15 May 1957. p. 1.
- ^ "Pembukaan Rasmi Anthony Abell College" (PDF). Pelita Brunei. 15 December 1958. p. 6.
- ^ "No. 45565". The London Gazette. 4 January 1972. p. 99.
- ^ "Anthony Abell College Feted 75 High Achieving Students | Brunei's No.1 News Website". www.brudirect.com. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "No. 38843". The London Gazette. 17 February 1950. p. 856.
- ^ a b "No. 39421". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1951. p. 4.
- ^ a b "No. 40205". The London Gazette. 15 June 1954. p. 3542.
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