Cornelius James Pelly, CMG,

OBE 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 ...

(8 April 1908 – 1985), was an Irish-born colonial official and diplomat. Pelly was the eldest son of Hyacinth Albert Pelly and Charity Maria Matthews of Heronsbrook,

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

. Pelly was educated at

Clongowes Clongowes Wood College SJ is a Catholic voluntary boarding school for boys near Clane, County Kildare, Ireland, founded by the Jesuits in 1814. It features prominently in James Joyce's semi-autobiographical novel ''A Portrait of the Artist as ...

Wood College and

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

, from which he received a B.A. in 1928. He joined

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British Raj, British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 3 ...

in 1931, becoming a member of the Indian Political Service in 1927 and a member of

Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service His Majesty's Diplomatic Service (HMDS) is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, dealing with foreign affairs and representing British interests overseas, as opposed to the Civil Service, which deals ...

from 1947 to 1955. During this time he served twice as Political Officer in

Sharjah Sharjah (; ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi. It is the capital of the Emirate of Sharjah and forms part of the D ...

(April 1941-April 1942 and then June-July 1947) and also in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

(1947–1952) and

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

(1952–1955). From 1955 to 1956 he was in the service of

Abdullah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah (, 1895 – 24 November 1965) was the eleventh ruler of the Sheikhdom of Kuwait from 1950 to 1961 and the first Emir of the State of Kuwait after the country gained its independence from Great Britain on 19 J ...

. Pelly was made a Member of the

Order of the British Empire 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 ...

in 1944. In 1952 he became a Companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

. He married Una Patricia O'Shea of Lismore,

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

on 5 October 1949 they had 2 children, Laura (born 1952) and Peter (born 1957).

External links

Copy of confirmation of arms to Cornelius James Pelly, Political Officer at Sharjah Fort in Arabia, eldest son of Hyacinth Albert Pelly of City of Dublin and of a family out of Galway, 21 Dec. 1940.

Cornelius James Pelly interviewed by de Caro and Jordan on working in the Indian Civil Service and Indian Political Service on 15-02-78.

References

* ''The Landed Gentry of Ireland'', Sir Bernard Burke (4th edition), London, 1958, p. 566. * ''Portumna Priory Inscriptions'', Adrian James Martyn, in ''The Septs'' volume 29 no. 4,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, October 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pelly, Cornelius James Irish colonial officials People from County Galway British people in colonial India 1908 births 1985 deaths Alumni of Trinity College Dublin People educated at Clongowes Wood College Indian Political Service officers Members of HM Diplomatic Service 20th-century British diplomats