Sir Ralph John Morton,

CMG CMG may refer to: Companies * Capitol Music Group, a music label * China Media Group, the predominant state radio and television broadcaster in the PRC * China Media Group Co., Ltd., publicly listed Chinese holding company in the media sector * ...

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, MC (2 August 1896 – 7 March 1985) was a Southern Rhodesian lawyer and judge. Born in the United Kingdom, Morton was educated at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

, he fought with the

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

and received the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

in 1918. Moving to Southern Rhodesia, Morton became Salisbury's first civil prosecutor in 1927, and became a government legal adviser the following year. He became Solicitor-General of Southern Rhodesia in 1934 and Attorney-General of Southern Rhodesia from 1944 until his elevation to the

High Court of Southern Rhodesia High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift to ...

in 1949. He retired in 1959. At the time of his retirement, he was the senior puisne on the High Court, having allegedly been passed over for Chief Justice due to his perceived leniency in sentencing. After retiring, Morton chaired a commission of inquiry into Rhodesia's medical and health services. From 1963 to 1965, he was chairman of the Constitutional Council. After

Rhodesia's unilateral declaration of independence Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) was a statement adopted by the Cabinet of Rhodesia on 11 November 1965, announcing that Southern Rhodesia or simply Rhodesia, a British Overseas Territories, British territory in souther ...

, Morton moved to

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...

, where he died. Morton was appointed OBE in 1947, CMG in 1954, and was knighted in 1960.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, Ralph Knights Bachelor 1896 births Officers of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George British emigrants to Southern Rhodesia Alumni of the University of Cambridge Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Field Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War I Rhodesian judges Rhodesian lawyers 1985 deaths