Murray MacLehose, Baron MacLehose of Beoch
Crawford Murray MacLehose, Baron MacLehose of Beoch, KT, GBE, KCMG, KCVO, DL (Chinese: 麥理浩; 16 October 1917 – 27 May 2000), was a British politician, diplomat and colonial official who served as the 25th Governor of Hong Kong, from 1971 to 1982. He was the longest-serving governor of the colony, with four successive terms in office. He previously worked for the British Council in China and was the British Ambassador to South Vietnam and Denmark.
The Lord MacLehose of Beoch | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 25th Governor of Hong Kong | |||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 19 November 1971 – 8 May 1982 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Monarch | Elizabeth II | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Colonial Secretary | Hugh Norman-Walker Denys Roberts | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Chief Secretary | Denys Roberts Jack Cater Philip Haddon-Cave | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | David Trench | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Edward Youde | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 21 May 1982 – 27 May 2000 Life Peerage | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 16 October 1917 Glasgow, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 27 May 2000 (aged 82) Ayrshire, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Resting place | Alloway Parish Church, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Balliol College, Oxford | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Profession | Diplomat, colonial administrator | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 麥理浩 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 麦理浩 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Although MacLehose came from a diplomatic background and lacked colonial administrative experience, he was generally regarded as one of the most successful and popular governors of Hong Kong due to the number of social reforms enacted during his time and for Hong Kong's economic success during his time in office. Although his tenure as governor finished before formal British-Sino negotiations over Hong Kong commenced, he sought to improve diplomatic relations with China and held talks with Deng Xiaoping.