Aubrey Denzil Forsyth-Thompson, CMG, CVO,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(3 October 1897 – 13 June 1982) was a Colony of Natal-born British colonial administrator who served as British

Resident Commissioner Resident commissioner was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners, who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such a ...

in Bechuanaland and

Basutoland Basutoland was a British Crown colony that existed from 1884 to 1966 in present-day Lesotho, bordered with the Cape Colony, Natal Colony and Orange River Colony until 1910 and completely surrounded by South Africa from 1910. Though the Basot ...

Life and career

The son of Ernest Alfred Thompson, Aubrey Denzil Forsyth-Thompson was born in

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

and grew up on a farm in the Mooi Riverarea. He was educated at Weenan County College in Mooi River, which his parents founded and where they taught. In 1917, he went to England to join the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...

, seeing combat in France. In 1919, he left the Army and went to

New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...

, to study for a shortened degree in Modern History, graduating BA in 1920. Forsyth-Thompson joined the

British 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 ...

in 1921, and was posted to Uganda. In 1937, he was transferred to the

Bechuanaland Protectorate The Bechuanaland Protectorate () was a British protectorate, protectorate established on 31 March 1885 in Southern Africa by the United Kingdom. It became the Botswana, Republic of Botswana on 30 September 1966. History Scottish missionary ...

as Assistant Resident Commissioner and Government Secretary, and in 1942 he was promoted to Resident Commissioner for Bechuanaland. In 1946, he was transferred to Basutoland as Resident Commissioner. He retired in 1951. He was appointed CBE in 1941, CMG in 1944, and CVO in 1947.

Family

Forsyth-Thompson married Kathleen Esther Murray in 1942; they had three children, all born in Uganda.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forsyth-Thompson, Aubrey Denzil 1897 births 1982 deaths Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Commissioners of the Bechuanaland Protectorate Alumni of New College, Oxford Royal Field Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War I People from Natal South African Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George South African Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order South African Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Bechuanaland Protectorate people Resident commissioners in Basutoland Colonial Administrative Service officers