Sir Charles Coghlan | |
|---|---|
&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Sir_Charles_Coghlan,_circa_1925.jpg) Coghlan, photographed as Premier c. 1925 | |
| 1st Premier of Southern Rhodesia | |
| In office 1 October 1923 – 28 August 1927 | |
| Monarch | George V |
| Preceded by | Sir Francis Chaplin (Administrator) |
| Succeeded by | Howard Unwin Moffat |
| Member of Southern Rhodesian Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 29 April 1924 – 28 August 1927 | |
| Succeeded by | Allan Ross Welsh |
| Constituency | Bulawayo North |
| Member of Southern Rhodesian Legislative Council | |
| In office 24 April 1908 – 29 April 1924 Serving with
| |
| Preceded by |
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| Constituency | Western |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Charles Patrick John Coghlan 24 June 1863 King William's Town, British Kaffraria (today South Africa) |
| Died | 28 August 1927 (aged 64) Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia |
| Resting place | Matopos Hills, Rhodesia |
| Political party | Rhodesia Party |
| Spouse |
Gertrude Mary Schermbrucker
(m. 1899–1927) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | South African College, Cape Town |
| Profession | Lawyer, politician |
Sir Charles Patrick John Coghlan, KCMG (24 June 1863 – 28 August 1927), 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.
Born, raised and educated in South Africa, of Irish descent, Coghlan moved to Bulawayo in 1900 to practise as a lawyer. He was elected to the Southern Rhodesian Legislative Council in 1908, representing the Western electoral district. Over the next decade he supported the renewal of the British South Africa Company's royal charter to administer the Rhodesias, and opposed Southern Rhodesia's amalgamation with either Northern Rhodesia or the Union of South Africa. He led a delegation to London to discuss responsible government in 1921, and two years later Southern Rhodesia became a self-governing colony. Coghlan sat in the Legislative Assembly as Member for Bulawayo from 1924 to his death.
Coghlan was buried near Cecil Rhodes's grave, at "World's View" in the Matopos Hills near Bulawayo.