Sir Hubert Winthrop Young (1885–1950) was a British colonial administrator and diplomat who served as Governor of Northern Rhodesia from 1938 to 1941. Educated at Eton and New College, Oxford, Young entered the Colonial Service after a distinguished career in the Foreign Office and military service during the First World War. His governorship in Northern Rhodesia was marked by economic development, political debate over settler influence, and the early stirrings of regional integration in Central Africa.
In the colonial service—though like other colonial officials of the period, his policy-making was much constrained by the Colonial Office—he was noted for energy and foresight in helping to develop air communications, and for his sympathy with indigenous interests, which did not, however, cause him to neglect those of the European community. At a time when the settlers were being attacked by London critics, and were pressing for amalgamation of the Rhodesias, in Northern Rhodesia Young considered the settlers beneficial, tried to encourage secondary industries, and favoured closer co‑operation among the Rhodesias and Nyasaland, and the creation of a new association, British Central Africa. He negotiated with the other governors and with settler leaders, but the Colonial Office forbade any step likely to lead to amalgamation or federation of the Rhodesias.
Young’s governorship coincided with the expansion of the Copperbelt economy and the growing importance of Lusaka as an administrative centre. He sought to balance settler demands for greater autonomy with African aspirations for political representation, though constitutional reform remained limited during his tenure. His emphasis on infrastructure, particularly air communications, reflected his belief in modernising the colony’s links with the wider region.
After leaving Northern Rhodesia, Young continued his career in diplomacy and colonial administration, serving in various capacities until his retirement. He died in 1950, remembered as an energetic and forward-looking governor who sought to reconcile settler and African interests within the constraints imposed by London.
Picture: Sir Hubert Winthrop Young, Governor of Northern Rhodesia, 1938–1941. Portrait courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery.
