First Cabinet of Southern Rhodesia | |
|---|---|
| 1st Cabinet of Southern Rhodesia | |
 | |
| Date formed | 1923 |
| Date dissolved | 1924 |
| People and organisations | |
| Head of state | George V |
| Head of government | Sir Charles Coghlan |
| Member party | Rhodesia Party |
| History | |
| Predecessor | None |
On 1 October 1923, Sir Charles Coghlan took charge as the first Premier of the Southern Rhodesia after the referendum in 1922 which decided not to join the Union of South Africa but chose responsible government instead.
Following is a list of the 8 ministers of the First Cabinet [1]
| Department | Title of Minister | First Minister (Electoral District) | Senior Permanent Officials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Department of the Premier | Premier | Sir Charles Patrick John Coghlan (Bulawayo North) | Chief of Staff Secretary to the Premier & Chief Clerk to the Legislative Assembly |
| Department of Native Affairs | Minister of Native Affairs | Chief Native Commissioner | |
| Department of the Colonial Secretary | Colonial Secretary | Sir Francis James Newton (Mazoe) | Secretary to the Department of the Colonial Secretary Controller of Printing & Stationery |
| Audit Department | Auditor-General Assistant Auditor and Inspector Inspector Senior Examiner | ||
| Department of Health, Education and Internal Affairs | Medical Director Director of Education | ||
| Department of the Treasury | Treasurer | Percival Donald Leslie Fynn (Salisbury North) | Secretary to the Treasury Commissioner of Taxes Controller of Customs Postmaster-General |
| Department of the Attorney-General | Attorney-General | Major Robert James Hudson (Bulawayo North) | Solicitor-General Secretary to the Law Department & Legal Adviser Senior Judge Judge Master of the High Court Commissioner of Police Registrar of Deeds |
| Department of Defence | Minister of Defence | Secretary to the Department of Defence Commandant of Southern Rhodesian Forces | |
| Department of Mines and Public Works | Minister of Mines and Public Works | Howard Unwin Moffat (Victoria) | Secretary Accountant Inspectors of Mines (2) Mining Commissioners (4) Registrar of Claims Beacon Inspectors (3) |
| Public Works Department | Director of Public Works Assistant Architect Assistant Inspectors (2) | ||
| Roads Department | Engineer-in-Charge of Roads Assistant Road Engineers (2) Assistant Road Engineer and Surveyor | ||
| Geological Survey | Director of Geological Survey Geologists (2) | ||
| Department of Agriculture | Minister of Agriculture and Lands | William Muter Leggate (Northern) | Director of Agriculture Chief Veterinary Surgeon Director of Veterinary Research |
| Department of Lands | Director of Lands & Surveyor-General |
As well as financial matters, the Treasurer ran the postal, telegraph and telephone services, as well as customs and excise. The Attorney-General was responsible for the police and prisons as well as legal and judicial affairs.
Ministers were permitted to prefix their names with "The Honourable".
The High Commissioner retained his nominal authority over Southern Rhodesia, but his powers were mostly devolved upon the Governor in Council.
The Union of South Africa was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange River colonies. It included the territories that were formerly a part of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State.
Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as south Zambesia until annexed by Britain at the behest of Cecil Rhodes's British South Africa Company, for whom the colony was named. The bounding territories were Bechuanaland (Botswana), Northern Rhodesia (Zambia), Moçambique (Mozambique), and the Transvaal Republic.
Sir Charles Patrick John Coghlan,, was a lawyer and politician who served as Premier of Southern Rhodesia from 1 October 1923 to his death. Having led the responsible government movement in the territory during the latter days of Company rule, he was Southern Rhodesia's first head of government after it became a self-governing colony within the British Empire.
Howard Unwin Moffat served as second premier of Southern Rhodesia, from 1927 to 1933.
Legislative Council elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 30 April 1920, the seventh elections to the Legislative Council.
The British South Africa Company appointed a variety of officials to govern Southern Rhodesia between 1890 and 1923. The most prominent of these were the Administrator and the Chief Magistrate, the first of which was in effect the head of government during this time. As such, he held a seat on the Legislative Council of Southern Rhodesia ex officio.
A referendum on the status of Southern Rhodesia was held in the colony on 27 October 1922. Voters, almost all of them White, were given the options of establishing responsible government or joining the Union of South Africa. After 59% voted in favour of responsible government, it was officially granted on 1 October 1923 with the implementation of the First Cabinet of Southern Rhodesia.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 29 April 1924, the first elections to the new Legislative Assembly following the granting of responsible government to the colony. The result was a comprehensive victory for the Rhodesia Party, which had been formed by the supporters of responsible government, who won 26 out of the 30 seats.
The following lists events that happened during 1923 in Southern Rhodesia.
The following lists events that happened during 1924 in the Colony of Southern Rhodesia.
White people first came to the region in southern Africa today called Zimbabwe in the sixteenth century, when Portuguese colonials ventured inland from Mozambique and attacked the Kingdom of Mutapa, which then controlled an area roughly equivalent to eastern Zimbabwe and western Mozambique. Portuguese influence over Mutapa endured for about two centuries before fading away during the 1690s and early-1700s (decade). During the year of 1685, French Huguenots emigrated to present-day South Africa and whilst some settled there, others moved further north into the continent. Those who did, settled within modern-day Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Botswana, and co-existed with the indigenous people; most of whom, in Zimbabwe, were the Naletale people.
John Wallace Downie served as High Commissioner of Southern Rhodesia from 1930 to 1935.
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation (CAF), was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the self-governing British colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland. It existed between 1953 and 1963.
The Responsible Government Association (RGA), called the Rhodesia Party from 1923, was a political party in Southern Rhodesia. Founded in 1917, it initially advocated responsible government for Southern Rhodesia within the British Empire, as opposed to incorporation into the Union of South Africa. When responsible government was achieved in 1923, the party became the governing Rhodesia Party. It endured until 1934, when it merged with the right wing of the Reform Party to create the United Party, which remained in power for 28 years afterwards, and was itself defunct by 1965.
Sir Ernest Lucas Guest was a Rhodesian politician, lawyer and soldier. He held senior ministerial positions in the government, most notably as Minister for Air during the Second World War.
The modern political history of Zimbabwe starts with the arrival of white people to what was dubbed Southern Rhodesia in the 1890s. The country was initially run by an administrator appointed by the British South Africa Company. The prime ministerial role was first created in October 1923, when the country achieved responsible government, with Sir Charles Coghlan as its first Premier. The third Premier, George Mitchell, renamed the post Prime Minister in 1933.
Major Sir Robert James Hudson,, was twice acting Governor of Southern Rhodesia.
Sir Allan Ross Welsh was a Rhodesian lawyer and politician. He was Speaker of the Southern Rhodesian Legislative Assembly from 1935 to 1952.
Chaplin High School is situated in Gweru, Zimbabwe, and was started in October 1902. It was started in a building of the Trinity Church, Gwelo and first named as the Trinity Church School (1). The school caters for boys and girls from form 1–6 and has boarders and day scholars. There are two boarding houses for boys named Duthie House and Coghlan House while girls are housed in either Lenfesty House or Maitland House. Maitland House is the sister hostel for Duthie while Lenfesty is the sister house for Coghlan House.