Sir Cuthbert Montraville Sebastian (22 October 1921 – 25 March 2017) was the second

governor-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

from 1996 to 2013. He was appointed Governor-General in 1995 and was sworn in on 1 January 1996. While in office, he was the world's oldest serving ''de facto''

head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "

he head of state He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...

. His retirement was announced on 25 December 2012 and became effective on 1 January 2013.

Life and career

Sebastian was born on October 22, 1921, in Basseterre, St Kitts. Sebastian was the son of Joseph Matthew Sebastian, who was a Member of the Legislative and Executive Councils of

Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla (or Saint Christopher, Nevis, and Anguilla) was a British colony in the West Indies from 1882 to 1983, consisting of the islands of Anguilla (until 1980), Nevis, and Saint Kitts, Saint Christopher (or Saint Kitt ...

until his death in 1944, and Inez Veronica Sebastian (née Hodge). He studied at

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Mount Allison was the first university in the British Empire to award a baccal ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, where he obtained a BSc degree. He entered

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia, Canada, with three campuses in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, a fourth in Bible Hill, Nova Scotia, Bible Hill, and a second medical school campus ...

in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he studied medicine and graduated, in 1958, with a

MDCM A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

degree to become a

surgeon In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...

. He served in St. Kitts, Nevis and Anguilla as pupil teacher, learner/dispenser, chemist and druggist, laboratory technician, senior dispenser, medical superintendent and obstetrician–gynaecologist. He was Chief Medical Officer of St. Kitts and Nevis from 1980 to 1983. From 1962 to 1966, he pursued training at the

Dundee Royal Infirmary Dundee Royal Infirmary, often shortened to DRI, was a major teaching hospital in Dundee, Scotland. Until the opening of Ninewells Hospital in 1974, Dundee Royal Infirmary was Dundee's main hospital. It was closed in 1998, after 200 years of opera ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

in obstetrics and gynaecology. Sebastian was a rear gunner during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

, Captain (Surgeon) in the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force, local physician to His Royal Highness the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

(

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

), when His Highness visited St. Kitts in 1973 (the Prince of Wales visited the island to open the newly restored Prince of Wales Bastion, 1 June). In addition, he was ADC to the

Premier, Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw, when Bradshaw went to Buckingham Palace on the occasion of Her Majesty's 25th year on the Throne. Sebastian received the Auxiliary Forces (Officer's) Efficiency Decoration (ED), and was made an Officer of

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 ...

(OBE) (civil division) from

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

in 1969. He was knighted as a

Knight Grand Cross A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

of the Most Distinguished

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 ...

in 1996, and was made a Knight of Grace of the Most Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem (KStJ). Dalhousie University honoured him with an Honorary Doctorate of Laws, in 1998, and in 2005 he received an Honorary Doctorate from

. On 5 July 2002, he received an Honorary

Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an intercollegiate basis by the four Royal Colleges of Surgeons (the Roya ...

(FRCS) of

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

in Scotland, for his outstanding career and service to humanity in the field of medicine. Prior to

, he received an FRCS in London. In 2005 the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...

granted him his personal

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

. On 3 March 2012 Sebastian welcomed the

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

and Countess of Wessex to St Kitts and Nevis during their visit to the Caribbean as part of

Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II The year 2012 marked the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II being the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. The only diamond jubilee celebration for any of Elizabeth's predecessors was in 1897, for Queen Victo ...

. On 1 January 2013 Sebastian retired as Governor-general of St Kitts and Nevis. There was a retirement ceremony, during which he made a speech. Sebastian died at his home, in St Kitts, on 25 March 2017 at the age of 95.

References

*Meet My Father: A Short Walk Through the Life of Joseph Matthew Sebastian. Elise Sebastian Marthol. Published July 7, 1993. *Profiles in People in Power: The World's Government Leaders. Roger East. Richard Thomas. *St. Kitts Inaugural Programme. January 1, 1996. *The Rotarian. April 1996. *https://nevisblog.com/governor-general-sir-cuthbert-to-attend-royal-wedding.html

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sebastian, Cuthbert 1921 births 2017 deaths Governors-general of Saint Kitts and Nevis Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Officers of the Order of the British Empire Dalhousie University alumni Mount Allison University alumni Alumni of the University of Dundee Gynaecologists Obstetricians Saint Kitts and Nevis physicians Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II Knights of the Order of St John People from Basseterre Deaths from pneumonia in Saint Kitts and Nevis

Life and career

See also

References

Further reading

External links