Bede Clifford

Captain Sir Bede Edmund Hugh Clifford GCMG CB MVO (3 July 1890 – 6 October 1969)^[1] was a British diplomat and colonial administrator,^[2] born in New Zealand, where his parents had moved in an unsuccessful attempt at sheep-farming.^[3]

Captain The Honourable Sir Bede Clifford GCMG CB MVO
Governor of The Bahamas
In office 10 January 1932 – 1937
Monarch	George V
Prime Minister	Ramsay MacDonald
Preceded by	Sir Charles Orr
Succeeded by	Sir Charles Dundas
Governor of Mauritius
In office 23 October 1937 – 16 April 1942
Monarch	George VI
Prime Minister	Neville Chamberlain Winston Churchill
Preceded by	Sir Wilfrid Jackson
Succeeded by	Sir Donald Mackenzie-Kennedy
Governor of Trinidad and Tobago
In office 8 June 1942 – 6 March 1947
Monarch	George VI
Prime Minister	Winston Churchill Clement Attlee
Preceded by	Sir Hubert Young
Succeeded by	Sir John Shaw
Personal details
Born	(1890-07-03)3 July 1890 New Zealand
Died	6 October 1969(1969-10-06) (aged 79) Surrey, England
Spouse	Alice Devin Gundry ​ (m. 1925)​
Children	Anne Frances Mary Clifford Patricia David Pandora Clifford Alice Devin Atalanta Clifford
Parents	Lord Clifford of Chudleigh Catherine Mary Bassett
Alma mater	Xavier College University of Melbourne
Occupation	Statesman

His parents were William Hugh Clifford, 10th Baron Clifford of Chudleigh and Catherine Mary Bassett. After New Zealand they moved to Tasmania; he did not attend a regular school until he was 10. He attended Xavier College, Melbourne^[4] where he was a gifted student.^[5] This was followed by study at Melbourne University, becoming a surveyor, then a merchant navy officer.^[3]

Career

After serving as an army captain in the Royal Fusiliers during World War I, where he gained the rank of Captain, he worked in imperial administration and diplomacy. From 1917 he was aide-de-camp, then Private Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia, Sir Ronald Ferguson.^[6] From 1921 to 1931, he was Secretary to the Governor-General of South Africa, first to Prince Arthur of Connaught and then to the Earl of Athlone.^[7]

In 1931, it was announced that Clifford would be appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Bahamas. He was later appointed the 24th Governor of Mauritius from 23 October 1937 to 16 April 1942. He then became Governor of Trinidad and Tobago from 1942 to 1947.^[7] and was appointed a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Family

He married Alice Devin Gundry in 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio. They had three daughters:

• Anne Frances Mary Clifford, born on 5 January 1929, married John Julius Norwich, 2nd Viscount Norwich. They had two children: The Hon Alice Clifford, later Artemis Cooper, the historian, who married Sir Antony Beevor; and Jason Cooper, 3rd Viscount Norwich
• Patricia David Pandora Clifford, born on 29 January 1930, married Timothy Angus Jones, son of Sir Roderick Jones and Enid Bagnold, and was the mother of Annabel Astor, Viscountess Astor and the grandmother of Samantha Cameron, wife of the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron.^[8] She later married The Hon Michael Astor, son of Waldorf Astor, 2nd Viscount Astor.
• Alice Devin Atalanta Clifford, born on 10 May 1932. She married, Richard Fairey, son of Sir Charles Richard Fairey and Henrietta Queenie Nicholson Markey, on 10 September 1955. She married, secondly, W/Cdr. Timothy Ashmead Vigors, son of Captain Ludlow Ashmead Cliffe Vigors, on 31 October 1963. She and W/Cdr. Timothy Ashmead Vigors were divorced. She married, thirdly, Michael Henry Dennis Madden in 1972.

Honours

Clifford was appointed Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) on 18 August 1920 in recognition of his services in the Royal Fusiliers as Military Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia,^[9] which was presented to him by the then Prince of Wales during his visit to Australia. He was then made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) on 1 January 1924 in recognition of his services as Secretary to the Governor General of South Africa.^[10] He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) on 1 January 1931 in recognition of his services as Imperial Secretary to the South African High Commission and Representative in the Union of South Africa of the UK Government.^[11] As Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Bahama Islands, he was promoted to the rank of Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) on 3 June 1933.^[12] On 28th December 1944, he was appointed Knight of the Order of St John (KStJ).^[13] He was promoted to the rank of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG) on 1 January 1945.^[14] He was also awarded the Legion of Merit by the United States.^[1]

	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG)	1945[14]
	Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG)	1933[12]
	Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG)	1924[10]
	Knight of Grace of the Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem (KStJ)	1944[13]
	Legion of Merit	USA
	Commander of the Order of the Bath (CB)	1931[11]
	Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO)	1920[15]

References

1. "Past Governor of Trinidad and Tobago Sir Bede Clifford".
2. 'CLIFFORD, Captain Hon. Sir Bede Edmund Hugh', Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014
3. Fuller bio than here
4. "Xavier College Annual Speech Night". Advocate. 22 December 1932. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
5. "ST. XAVIER'S COLLEGE". Table Talk. 19 December 1907. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
6. "Commonwealth Government Gazette".
7. Clifford^{[permanent dead link‍]}
8. Burke's Peerage, vol. 1 (1999), p. 131; Melonie Clarke, Helena Gumley-Mason, "Samantha Cameron's Sari Diplomacy" in The Lady, 26 November 2013, archived here
9. , London Gazette, 15 October 1920
10. "No. 13985". The London Gazette. 4 January 1924.
11. "No. 14719". The London Gazette. 6 January 1931.
12. "No. 14971". The London Gazette. 6 June 1933.
13. "No. 36875". The London Gazette. 2 January 1945.
14. "No. 36866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1944. p. 6.
15. "No. 9987". The London Gazette. 15 October 1920.

Government offices
Preceded by Sir Charles William James Orr	Governor of the Bahamas 1932–1934	Succeeded by Sir Charles Dundas
Preceded by Sir Wilfrid Edward Francis Jackson	Governor of Mauritius 1937–1942	Succeeded by Sir Donald Mackenzie-Kennedy
Preceded by Sir Hubert Winthrop Young	Governor of Trinidad and Tobago 1942–1947	Succeeded by Sir John Valentine Wistar Shaw