Jump to content

Allen Montgomery Lewis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sir
Allen Montgomery Lewis
1st Governor-General of Saint Lucia
In office
22 February 1979 – 19 June 1980
MonarchElizabeth II
Preceded byPosition established
Himself (as governor)
Succeeded byBoswell Williams
In office
13 December 1982 – 30 April 1987
MonarchElizabeth II
Preceded byBoswell Williams
Succeeded byStanislaus A. James
Governor of Saint Lucia
In office
1974–1979
MonarchElizabeth II
Preceded byIra Marcus Simmons
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Himself (as governor-general)
Personal details
Born(1909-10-26)26 October 1909
Died18 February 1993(1993-02-18) (aged 83)
RelationsVaughan Lewis (son)
W. Arthur Lewis (brother)
Alma materSaint Mary's College; London University; Middle Temple

Sir Allen Montgomery Lewis GCMG GCVO KStJ (26 October 1909 – 18 February 1993) was a Saint Lucian barrister and public servant who twice served as the country's Governor-General.[1]

Early life

[edit]

Lewis was born in Castries, St Lucia, where he was educated at the Castries Anglican Infant and Primary Schools and Saint Mary's College. He then studied law at London University and the Middle Temple.

He became a member of Castries City Council in 1941, acting as Chairman six times. He was one of the founders and the first president of the Saint Lucia Labour Party in 1950. Before his appointments to the viceregal post, Sir Allen sat on the legislative council (1943–1951) and was a senator in the Federal Parliament of the West Indies Federation (1958–1959).[2]

Lewis had a distinguished legal career alongside his political accomplishments; he was a judge on the Jamaican Court of Appeal (1962–1967) and the first Chief Justice of the West Indies Associated States Supreme Court (1967–1972). In 1975 he became Chancellor of the University of the West Indies.

In 1972, he returned to Saint Lucia and spent two years establishing a National Development Corporation to develop the economy of the island, after which he was appointed Governor of Saint Lucia, the Queen's representative. When St Lucia gained independence in 1979, Lewis served twice in the equivalent role as Governor-General of Saint Lucia (1979–1980 and 1982–1987).

His brother, W. Arthur Lewis, won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics for his work on developing countries and the "Lewis turning point".[3]

Honours and awards

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Sir Allen Montgomery Lewis". Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. 21 September 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  2. ^ Lentz, Harris M. (4 February 2014). Heads of States and Governments Since 1945. Routledge. ISBN 9781134264902 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Ravo, Nick (17 June 1991). "Sir W. Arthur Lewis, 76, Is Dead; Winner of Nobel Economics Prize". The New York Times.
[edit]
Government offices
Preceded by Governor of Saint Lucia
1974–1979
Created Governor-General
New title Governor-General of Saint Lucia
1979–1980
Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor-General of Saint Lucia
1982–1987
Succeeded by