One of our longest living and dearest OBs turned 100 recently and we wanted to send our regards and well wishes, along with other notable correspondents, such as King Charles. Sir James celebrated his centenarian milestone by gathering with his family and loved ones in Cambridge.
Sir James Patrick Ivan Hennessy KBE CMG (37-41) was born on 26th September 1923. Educated at Bedford School and then King’s College, Durham (which later became part of Newcastle University), He joined the Royal Artillery in 1942, and was then seconded to the Indian Army from 1944 to 1946.
In 1947 Sir James married Patricia Unwin; they went on to have six children, the eldest of whom, John, died of polio. The five daughters are: Anne, Kate, Sue, Jane and Jill.
After World War II, Sir James joined what was then HM Overseas Service, serving initially in Basutoland from 1948 in several roles, then seconded in 1961 to the Office of the High Commissioner
in Pretoria and Cape Town. He retired from the Overseas Service in 1968 and joined the Foreign Office. He was appointed Charge d’Affaires to Montevideo, Uruguay, from 1971-1972 when the British Ambassador, Geoffrey Jackson, was kidnapped by the Tupamaros. He then returned to the Foreign Office in London before being appointed Acting High Commissioner to Kampala, Uganda and non-resident Ambassador to Kigali, Rwanda, 1973-1976. He served as Consul-General in Cape Town from 1977-1980 before ending his career as the last Governor and Commander-in-Chief of British Honduras (now Belize) from 1980-1981.
After this, in 1982, Sir James was appointed as HM Chief Inspector of Prisons. His first job was to inquire into the escape from the Maze Prison of 23 IRA prisoners. His report was well received. Sir James served a five-year term in this role until 1987.
After stepping down as Chief Inspector to be replaced by Judge Sir Stephen Tumim, Hennessy served on the Parole Board for England and Wales until 1991 and as a Trustee of the Butler Trust until 1998.
Awards
Sir Hennessy has been awarded many honours over the years, including being appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1959 New Year Honours, promoted to Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 1968 New Year Honours and to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in the 1982 New Year Honours. He was also made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the 1975 New Year Honours.
To hear about Sir James Hennessy’s time as a diplomat, you can read his interview for BDOHP here