Henry Garrioch
William Henry Garrioch | |
|---|---|
| Governor General of Mauritius Acting | |
| In office 31 October 1977 – 23 March 1978 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Prime Minister | Seewoosagur Ramgoolam |
| Preceded by | Raman Osman |
| Succeeded by | Dayendranath Burrenchobay |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 May 1916 |
| Died | 18 February 2008 (aged 91) |
Sir William Henry Garrioch (4 May 1916 - 18 February 2008) was the Acting Governor General of Mauritius from 31 October 1977 until 23 March 1978.
Legal Career
Henry Garrioch joined the colonial service in 1936 and was subsequently appointed to First Grade Clerk in 1946 where he was noticed for being quite talented and picked to be a judge’s Secretary. He became the Secretary of Justice Georges Espitalier-Noël who was able to persuade Chief Justice, Sir Francis Herchenroder, that Henry should be encouraged to embrace a legal career.
Henry took the advice and won the Colonial Scholarship enabling him to complete his studies in law in the United Kingdom. He was called to the Bar at Grays’ Inn and to the Mauritian Bar in 1952.
On his return to Mauritius, Henry was immediately appointed to the post of Crown Counsel. This occurred at a time in the 1950’s when it was the Chief Justice who advised the Governor on the appointment of Law Officers and District Magistrates, and the established practice at the time was that members of the Bar who were to join the public service had to first be appointed as a District Magistrate and from there, only those thought to be of the highest caliber, were transferred to the Attorney-General’s Office.
He moved up in the office to become Director of Public Prosecutions, which at the time was higher in the legal hierarchy than Solicitor-General. Henry was made a Judge of the Supreme Court in 1967.
Mauritian Constitution and Role in Independence
In 1963, when the Colonial Secretary dispatched his Chief Legal Adviser, Anthony Rushford Q.Cin order to finalize the draft of what was to become the Mauritian Constitution of 1964 (which was to be the basis for their Independence Constitution of 1967), Mr. Rushford asked Mauritius to provide the services of its best legislative draftsman to be his counterpart. The Mauritian authorities had no hesitation in selecting Henry who spent several weeks at Le Réduit to finalize the draft before it went to Her Majesty in Council.
When Sir Raman Osman decided to retire as Governor General of Mauritius, Henry, was appointed acting Governor General. Despite the prestige attached to this post, his love and passion for the law drew him back to the Supreme Court where he served as Chief Justice.
Sir Henry Garrioch’s legal career has shaped Mauritian law in ways that will long be felt after his death. He will continue to be remembered as a “foundational builder” – one of the key architects of how the courts interpreted the 1968 Constitution.
Honours
Sir Henry was knighted on 31 December 1977.
References
- Minerve, Corinne (2008-03-12). "Ile Maurice: Sir William Henry Garrioch, l'infatigable". L'Express.mu. Retrieved 2009-04-29.
- Valayden, Rama. "Tribute to the memory of late Sir William Henry Garrioch" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-04-29.
- Archontology.org. "Mauritius: Governors-General: 1968-1992". Retrieved 2009-04-29.
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