Sir Kennedy Alphonse Simmonds, KCMG (born 12 April 1936), is a Saint Kittitian and Nevisian politician who served as the first prime minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis from 1983 to 1995.

Life and career

Simmonds was born in

Basseterre Basseterre (; Saint Kitts Creole: ''Basterre'') is the capital and largest city of Saint Kitts and Nevis with an estimated population of 14,000 in 2018. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitt ...

on 12 April 1936. He graduated as a

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

from the University of the West Indies in 1962. He married Mary Matthew, and they had five children. Simmonds was a founding member of the

People's Action Movement The People's Action Movement (PAM) is a political party in Saint Kitts and Nevis. The party currently holds four (largest share) of the 11 seats in the National Assembly. PAM operates only in Saint Kitts and for the 2022 general election is i ...

(PAM) party. He was the Premier of Saint Kitts and Nevis from 21 February 1980, until the twin-island state gained independence from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 19 September 1983. Upon independence, he became the 1st Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis and as such has been hailed as "The Father of the Nation." Simmonds and his party ruled with the support of Nevis Reformation Party. He had three deputy prime ministers:

Michael Oliver Powell Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

1980-1992,

Sydney Earl Morris Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

1992-1994 and

Hugh Heyliger Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

1994-1995.

Honours

In 2004, Simmonds was made a Knight Commander 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 IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in hono ...

. In 2015, Simmonds became the fifth person to be named as a National Hero by the National Assembly. He is the first living person to receive this honour. In 2021, Simmonds received an honorary DSc from the University of the West Indies. Simmonds published an

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English p ...

in 2019 entitled ''The Making of a National Hero.''

References

External links

An interview with Dr Kennedy Simmonds, Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis (1993)
1936 births Living people Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Prime Ministers of Saint Kitts and Nevis Recipients of the Order of the National Hero (Saint Kitts and Nevis) People's Action Movement politicians People from Saint Kitts Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom National Heroes of Saint Kitts and Nevis Foreign Ministers of Saint Kitts and Nevis University of the West Indies alumni {{SaintKittsNevis-politician-stub