Humphrey Gibbs

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Sir Humphrey Vicary Gibbs (born November 22, 1902 in London , † November 5, 1990 in Harare ) was the penultimate governor of the British colony of Southern Rhodesia and the last before Rhodesia's unilateral declaration of independence .

Life

Gibbs was born on November 22, 1902 in London, the third son of Baron Hunsdon Herbert Gibbs. After completing his schooling at Eton College and studying at Trinity College (Cambridge) , he moved to Southern Rhodesia in 1928, where he bought a farm near Bulawayo .

After serving in the agricultural administration and helping found the National Farmers Union , he was elected a member of the legislative assembly in which he represented the constituency of Wankie in the 1948 general election, in which he ran for the United Party .

In 1959 Gibbs was appointed Governor of Southern Rhodesia by Queen Elizabeth II .

The unilateral declaration of independence by the government of Rhodesia under Prime Minister Ian Smith (UDI) in November 1965 put Gibbs in a difficult position. On the one hand he was very loyal to Rhodesia and a close friend of Ian Smith, on the other hand he was just as loyal to his office as representative of the Queen. Although Gibbs understood why the government had declared itself independent, he decided to side with the British government. When Gibbs ordered that Smith and his cabinet be removed from office, he did so without hesitation. He stated that the Rhodesian government had committed treason with the declaration of independence. However, Smith and his ministers simply ignored the dismissal and advised Gibbs that, given the new constitution, he no longer had executive powers in Rhodesia and, therefore, his power to dismiss them no longer existed.

On the same day, several high-ranking officers from the Rhodesian Army went to Gibbs, issued a letter of loyalty, and asked him to issue an arrest warrant so they could arrest Smith and Clifford Dupont . Gibbs knew, however, that most of the army was firmly behind Smith's administration and that such a move would lead to a coup.

Gibbs announced that despite the Declaration of Independence, he had no intention of resigning or leaving Rhodesia and that he would therefore remain as the sole legal representative of Queen Elizabeth II in the government house in Salisbury. With few exceptions, the international community continued to recognize him as the Queen's sole legitimate representative - and therefore the colony of Southern Rhodesia was the only legitimate authority in what London maintained. In response, Smith stated that the government house was "temporarily" occupied by Gibbs "in a personal capacity" and would be occupied by Dupont as soon as it became available. This action resulted in four years of harassment and distress from the government of Rhodesia, which resulted in Gibbs and his wife being practically imprisoned in the government building with their phones, electricity and water being turned off.

In 1967, on the second anniversary of independence, Gibbs announced that his guest book would be open to anyone wishing to show their loyalty to the Queen, while the new Officer Administering the Government, Clifford Dupont, announced that the guest book in his office would be open to all who showed their support for UDI.

After a referendum in June 1969, in which Rhodesia became a republic, he resigned. From 1970 he lived on his farm, in 1983 he moved to Harare (Salisbury), where he died in 1993.