The Lord Rowallan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 19th Governor of Tasmania | |
| In office 21 October 1959 – 25 March 1963 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Premier | Eric Reece (1959–63) |
| Preceded by | Sir Ronald Cross |
| Succeeded by | Sir Charles Gairdner |
| Member of the House of Lords | |
| In office 19 March 1933 – 30 November 1977 Hereditary Peerage | |
| Preceded by | Archibald Corbett |
| Succeeded by | Arthur Corbett |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1895-12-19)19 December 1895 |
| Died | 30 November 1977(1977-11-30) (aged 81) |
| Spouse | Gwyn Mervyn Grimond |
| Children | Arthur Corbett, 3rd Baron Rowallan |
| Parent(s) | Archibald Corbett, 1st Baron Rowallan Alice Mary Polson |
| Civilian awards | Knight of the Order of the Thistle Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Branch/service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1914–1918 1939–1944 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Battles/wars | First World War |
| Military awards | Military Cross Territorial Decoration |
Thomas Godfrey Polson Corbett, 2nd Baron Rowallan,KT, KBE, MC, TD (19 December 1895 – 30 November 1977), had a distinguished military career in theBritish Army and wasGovernor of Tasmania from 1959 to 1963. TheBoy Scouts Association appointed him as itsChief Scout of theBritish Commonwealth and Empire from 1945 to 1959.
The first son ofArchibald Corbett, theLiberal politician and property developer, and Alice Mary, the daughter of John Polson, a corn merchant, Thomas Corbett was born inChelsea, London, on 19 December 1895 and was brought up in London and on the family's Scottish estates. Known as "Billy" to the family, he was educated at Gibbs School in Sloane Street, London, Wellington House Preparatory School inWestgate-on-Sea andEton College.[1] His mother died of sepsis, in 1902.[2] His elder sister,Elsie Cameron Corbett, became a volunteer ambulance driver inSerbia during theFirst World War and was awarded British and Serbian medals. His younger brother, Arthur Cameron Corbett, died in military service.[2]
Corbett married Gwyn Mervyn Grimond on 14 August 1918. She was the daughter of Joseph Bowman Grimond ofSt Andrews,Fife, and sister ofJo Grimond, later Baron Grimond, leader of theLiberal Party 1956–67. He had met her while on leave from war service; they had five sons and a daughter. On leaving theBritish Army, he became a successful breeder of pedigree dairy cattle on the family estate inAyrshire and campaigned for the eradication ofbovine tuberculosis. He succeeded as The 2ndBaron Rowallan on 19 March 1933.
In 1961, Lord Rowallan was diagnosed as suffering from cancer of the palate, for which he took leave asGovernor of Tasmania and was treated in London. He retired in 1963 to his family estate in Scotland. He completed his autobiography,"Rowallan", in his eightieth year. Lord Rowallan died atRowallan Castle, nearKilmarnock, on 30 November 1977. He was survived by his daughter and four of his five sons; his other son, John, had been killed in action in 1944.[3]
Corbett was 18 when theFirst World War broke out; he secured a Commission in theAyrshire Yeomanry and went with them toGallipoli in October 1915. The Ayrshires were amongst the last troops to be evacuated and went from there to Egypt, forming part of the cavalry reserve in theSecond Battle of Gaza. He then transferred to theGrenadier Guards; after re-training he was sent to theWestern Front in March 1918, joining the 1st Battalion atMercatel as a lieutenant. This coincided with the German Spring Offensive (Operation Michael), and the battalion was soon in action. AtBoyelles on 30 March 1918, Corbett attempted to dig out some wounded soldiers who had been buried by artillery, while "under heavy fire and in full view of the enemy" and was awarded theMilitary Cross but received a leg wound which left him with a permanent disability.[4]
Between the wars, Corbett served asAdjutant of theAyrshire Yeomanry. In 1939, Corbett raised a newTerritorial Army battalion of theRoyal Scots Fusiliers whom he accompanied to France as part of theBritish Expeditionary Force in 1939. Evacuated fromCherbourg duringOperation Aerial, he was then given command of a Young Soldiers’ Battalion in the Scottish Highlands; the adventurous training he initiated was based in part on his long association with theScout Movement.[5] His success earned him the position of Commandant at the new Highland Fieldcraft Training Centre inGlenfeshie andPoolewe, which had been established to provide leadership experience to junior officers. A measure of his influence is that a "Rowallan Company" was formed atRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1977 using his methods to improve the performance of Officer Cadets.[6]
Rowallan was a Governor of theNational Bank of Scotland from 1947 until 1953.[3]
Lord Rowallan becameGovernor of Tasmania on 21 October 1959, despite theLabor Party having resolved that the next Governor ofTasmania should be an Australian. He did much to promoteTasmania and to protect its interests and sovereignty.[3]Rowallan Power Station and its associated dam and lake are named after him.[7] In his spare time, he built up a herd ofJersey cattle atGovernment House and sailed a yacht which he later gave to the localSea Scouts. Following his illness and leave in 1961, his term of office ended on 25 March 1963.[3]
Rowallan had become theBoy Scouts Association district commissioner for north-westAyrshire in 1922. In 1944, the Boy Scouts Association appointed him Scottish headquarters commissioner for leader training. In 1945, the Boy Scouts Association appointed him as itsChief Scout of the United Kingdom andDependant Territories in February and Chief Scout of theBritish Commonwealth and Empire in April, appointments he retained until 1959.[8] Rowallan also served on theInternational Conference of the Boy Scout Movement'scommittee from 1947 until 1953.
As the Boy Scouts Association's Chief Scout, Rowallan travelled widely, encouraging thepost-war growth of Scouting; his tours included:
In 1957, theInternational Conference of the Boy Scout Movement's committee awarded Rowallan its only distinction, theBronze Wolf, for exceptional services to worldScouting. TheBoy Scouts of America awarded Rowallan its highest award, theSilver Buffalo Award in 1948.[10] Scout camp sites inRiddells Creek[11] inVictoria, andWrexham[12] inWales are named after him, as is theKenya Scouts Association Headquarters Campsite inNairobi.[13]
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| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Governor of Tasmania 1959–1963 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Baron Rowallan 1933–1977 | Succeeded by |
| The Boy Scouts Association | ||
| Preceded by | The Boy Scouts Association'sChief Scout of the British Commonwealth and Empire 1945–1959 | Succeeded by |
| Lieutenant-Governors ofVan Diemen's Land |  | |
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| BeforeFederation | ||
| AfterFederation | ||
