Sir David Watherston (26 February 1907 – 16 January 1977) was a British colonial administrator who served as Chief Secretary, Federation of Malaya from 1952 to 1957, and played a major role in the creation of

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

Early life and education

Watherston was born on 26 February 1907, the son of Charles Watherston. He was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

Career

Watherston joined the

Malayan civil service The civil service in Malaysia is pivotal around Article 132 of the Constitution of Malaysia which stipulates that the public services shall consist of the Federal and State General Public Service, the Joint Public Services, the Education Servic ...

as a cadet in 1930, and then served in various posts. From 1940 to 1944, he was seconded to the

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created in 1768 from the Southern Department to deal with colonial affairs in North America (particularly the Thirteen Colo ...

, and then worked in the British Military Administration, Malaya. From 1946 to 1948, he served as Secretary of the Constitutional Working Committee which created the new

Federation of Malaya Malaya, officially the Federation of Malaya, was a country in Southeast Asia from 1948 to 1963. It succeeded the Malayan Union and, before that, British Malaya. It comprised eleven states – nine Malay states and two of the Straits Settleme ...

to replace the Malayan Union. In 1948, he was Secretary for Defence and Internal Security of the Federation of Malaya when the Federation was faced with the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War, was a guerrilla warfare, guerrilla war fought in Federation of Malaya, Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Arm ...

, and was at the centre of the armed conflict against the

Malayan Communist Party The Malayan Communist Party (MCP), officially the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), was a Marxist–Leninist and anti-imperialist communist party which was active in British Malaya and later, the modern states of Malaysia and Singapore f ...

. In 1952, he was promoted to Chief Secretary, Federation of Malaya and administered the government on several occasions. He served in office until 1957 when Malaya was handed over to the independent elected government under its first prime minister,

Tunku Abdul Rahman Tunku Abdul Rahman (8 February 19036 December 1990), commonly referred to as Tunku, was a Malaysian statesman who served as prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He previously served as the only chief minister of Federation of Malaya ...

Signing-of-the-Cobbold-Report-of-the-Commission-of-Enquiry-North-Borneo-and-Sarawak

Watherston served as Special Counsellor of the Malayan High Commission in London from 1957 to 1959. He was responsible for the recruitment of staff in Britain for service in the Federation of Malaya, and his duties also included those formerly performed by the Trade Commissioner for Malaya in the United Kingdom. In 1962, he returned briefly to the Far East as a member of the

Cobbold Commission The Cobbold Commission, was a Commission of Enquiry set up to determine whether the people of North Borneo (now Sabah) and Sarawak supported the proposal to create the Federation of Malaysia consisting of Malaya, Brunei, Singapore, North Borne ...

which created the foundations for an enlarged

Federation of Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

to include the

Borneo States East Malaysia (), or the Borneo States, also known as Malaysian Borneo, is the part of Malaysia on and near the island of Borneo, the world's third-largest island. East Malaysia comprises the states of Sabah, Sarawak, and the Federal Territory ...

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

and

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

. After retiring from colonial service, Watherston served on the board at

Tube Investments TI Group plc (formerly "Tube Investments") was a holding company for specialised engineering companies. It was based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire and was listed on the London Stock Exchange, at one point being a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. ...

as Director of Personnel and Group Adviser Personnel, remaining in the post from 1959 to 1974 at a time of rapid change in training and recruitment practices. He served as vice-chairman of the Council of the Foundation for Management Education, and was also a member of the governing body of the

London Business School London Business School (LBS) is a business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London. LBS was founded in 1964 and awards post-graduate degrees (Master's degree, Master's degrees in management and finance, Master of B ...

. From 1969 to 1973, he was Chairman of the Electricity Supply Industry's training board.

Personal life and death

Watherston married Maude Noble in 1933 and they had 2 sons and 2 daughters. Watherston died in Britain on 16 January 1977.

Honours

Watherston was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George ( CMG) in the

1953 Coronation Honours The 1953 Coronation Honours were appointments by Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours on the occasion of her coronation on 2 June 1953. The honours were published in '' The London Gazette'' on 1 June 1953.New Zealand list: The rec ...

. He was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (

KBE KBE may refer to: * Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, post-nominal letters * Knowledge-based engineering Knowledge-based engineering (KBE) is the application of knowledge-based systems technology to the domain o ...

) in the

1956 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1956 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 2 January 1956 to celebra ...

. In 1958, he was made Hon

Panglima Mangku Negara The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm () is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace of God-Defender of the Realm). The or ...

by Malaysia. * : ** UK Order St-Michael St-George ribbon

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 ...

(CMG) (1953) ** Knight Commander 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 ...

(KBE) – Sir (1956) * : ** Honorary Commander of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm () is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace of God-Defender of the Realm). The o ...

(PMN (K)) – Tan Sri (1958)

References

{{Authority control 1907 births 1977 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford People educated at Westminster School, London Administrators in British Malaya Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George British people in British Malaya Colonial Administrative Service officers