George Cunningham (civil servant) facts for kids

Sir George Cunningham (born March 23, 1888 – died December 8, 1963) was an important person who worked for the British government in British India. He is best known for being the Governor of the North-West Frontier Province. This area is now part of Pakistan.

After Pakistan became an independent country, Sir George was asked to be Governor again. He also had a great career as a rugby player. He even captained the Scottish national team.

Sir George Cunningham's Public Service Career

Sir George Cunningham joined the Indian Civil Service in 1911. This was a group of British officials who helped run India when it was under British rule. He received several special awards for his work. These included the OBE in 1921, the KCIE in 1935, and the GCIE in 1945. These awards showed how important his service was.

Serving as Governor of North-West Frontier Province

Cunningham served as the Governor of the North-West Frontier Province three times. He was Governor twice when the British ruled India. He served a third time after Pakistan became an independent country in 1947.

After his second term ended in 1946, Cunningham went back to Britain. However, in July 1947, he was asked to return. The new leader of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, wanted him to be Governor again. Sir George agreed, even though he was not sure at first. He started his new role on August 15, 1947.

At that time, the North-West Frontier Province had a government led by the Indian National Congress party. Jinnah wanted to change this government. He used a special law to remove the existing leaders. Cunningham was not sure if this was allowed by the rules, but he followed Jinnah's wishes. A new government, led by Abdul Qayyum Khan from the All-India Muslim League party, took over on August 23.

In the months that followed, a major event happened. People from the tribal areas of the province started to move into Kashmir. This was led by the provincial leader Abdul Qayyum Khan. Cunningham thought this would cause big problems and tried to stop it. But he eventually agreed to follow orders from Jinnah. Jinnah wanted his governors to fully support the "struggle." Cunningham was sad that the Pakistan government allowed this to happen. He wrote in his diary that he could have quit his job many times. But he felt he needed to stay and help bring things back under control.

Sir George Cunningham's Rugby Career

Before his career in public service, Sir George Cunningham was a talented rugby player.

Playing Rugby as a Student

Cunningham first became known as a rugby player while studying at Oxford University. He played for the Oxford University RFC team. In 1907, he played in the important Varsity Match against Cambridge University. This was the first of three times he would play in this famous game.

Cunningham played as a half-back. He and his partner, Rupert Williamson, were very quick and smart. This helped Oxford win the game easily. Oxford scored five tries and Cambridge scored none.

Even though he wasn't chosen for the Scottish team later, Cunningham played for Oxford again in the 1908 Varsity Match. He and Williamson played very well together. Cunningham even helped set up Oxford's only try in that game.

In 1909, Cunningham played his last Varsity Game for Oxford. Oxford was playing very well that season. It was noted that they only lost games when Cunningham was not playing. Oxford won the 1909 Varsity Game by a lot. This game is famous because another player, Ronald Poulton, scored five tries.

Playing for Regional Teams

Cunningham also played for regional rugby teams in Scotland. In 1906, he was chosen for the Anglo-Scots team. They won a big game against the South of Scotland District. This led to Cunningham being picked for the Cities District team in early 1907.

Playing for Scotland's National Team

The next year, Cunningham was chosen to play for the Scottish national team. He was still a student at Oxford. His first game for Scotland was against Wales in 1908. Scotland lost that game by a small score. He played in the next game against Ireland. However, he was not chosen for the final game of the tournament after another loss.

In 1909, Cunningham was back on the Scotland team. He played in the first game of the 1909 Home Nations Championship against Wales. He scored his first points for Scotland in this game with a penalty goal. Scotland lost this game too. Cunningham missed the next game against Ireland. But he returned for the final game of the Championship, which was against England.

Cunningham was made captain of the Scotland team for the England match. He led his team to a strong victory. During the game, he successfully converted three of Scotland's four tries.

Cunningham continued to be captain of Scotland for the 1910 Five Nations Championship. This tournament now included France. He led Scotland to a win against France. He then missed the game against Wales. When he returned for the Ireland game, he captained his country for the third time and won his third game as captain. His winning streak as captain ended in his final captaincy match, which was against England.

Cunningham played one more game for Scotland in 1911. By then, he was playing club rugby for London Scottish. Scotland lost this game to England. Cunningham was no longer captain and played in a different position. After this game, he never played for his country again.