Gawain Westray Bell

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Sir
Gawain Bell
CBE
Sir Gawain Bell
Governor of Northern Nigeria
In office
2 December 1957 – 1962
Preceded bySir Bryan Sharwood-Smith
Succeeded byAlhaji Sir Kashim Ibrahim
Personal details
Born(1909-01-21)21 January 1909
Cape Town, South Africa
Died26 July 1995(1995-07-26) (aged 86)

Sir Gawain Westray Bell

CBE (21 January 1909 – 26 July 1995) was a British colonial administrator who became the Governor of Northern Nigeria
.

Early life

Bell was born in Cape Town, South Africa to an executive of the New Zealand Shipping Company. At 10, his family moved back to Cumberland, England where he attended the Dragon School, Oxford, Winchester College and Hertford College, Oxford.[1]

Sudan, Palestine, and World War II

In 1931, Bell entered the

Kurdofan.[2]

In 1938, Bell was seconded to the Government of Palestine where he worked with the police in Gaza. He eventually became commander of the Beersheba Camel Gendarmerie.[2]

Bell volunteered for service in the

Vichy French. He became a regiment leader of the Arab Legion and was appointed MBE (military) in the 1942 New Year Honours.[3] In 1945, he married Silvia Cornwell-Clyne.[2]

Following the war, Bell returned to

Nigeria

Gawain Westray Bell in the gardens of Hidcote Bartrim Manor

In 1957 the Colonial Office recruited Bell to become the Governor of Northern Nigeria,[4] where he worked closely with Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto. Bello was regarded by the British as difficult to work with; Bell came to his new job with an open mind and won over Bello to the point that he was asked to remain in his post as governor after Nigeria gained its independence from the United Kingdom. He stepped down as governor in 1962.[2]

Later life

Bell worked on several political projects in the Middle East following his time in Nigeria. He worked with Sir

Secretariat of the Pacific Community.[2]

After retiring in 1970, he concentrated on voluntary and charity work. He served as vice president and later chairman of

He published two volumes of memoirs. The first, "Shadows on the Sand", was published in 1984 and covers his life through his time in the Sudan. The second, "An Imperial Twilight", details his five years in Nigeria, as well as his time in Arabia.[2]

Awards and decorations

References

  1. Daily Times of Nigeria
    . 1962. pp. 112–113.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Sir Gawain Westray Bell KCMG, CBE". Archived from the original on 8 July 2007. Retrieved 10 April 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ "No. 35396". The London Gazette. 26 December 1941. p. 7328.
  4. ^ "No. 41213". The London Gazette. 29 October 1957. p. 6271.
  5. ^ Woodward, Peter (2011). "SSSUK at 25" (PDF). Sudan Studies. 44. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  6. ^ Kenrick, John (10 August 1995). "OBITUARY : Sir Gawain Bell". The Independent. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  7. ^ "No. 40366". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1954. p. 22.
  8. ^ "No. 41136". The London Gazette. 26 July 1957. p. 4427.
  9. ^ "No. 41604". The London Gazette. 13 January 1959. p. 308.