Rex Hunt

Who is Rex Hunt?

Sir Rex Hunt was a British colonial diplomat who served as Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Falkland Islands from 1980 until the aftermath of the 1982 Falklands War. Educated at Oxford, he built a career in Britain's colonial and diplomatic service across Africa and Asia before his appointment to Stanley in 1980. On 2 April 1982, when Argentine forces landed to seize the islands, Hunt, dressed in his full ceremonial uniform, confronted the invading commander and formally protested the unlawful occupation before being taken into custody and flown into exile in Uruguay. He remained a vocal advocate for the Falkland Islanders' right to self-determination throughout the conflict and returned to Stanley after the British task force recaptured the islands in June 1982, serving briefly as Civil Commissioner during the transition back to civilian government. Hunt later wrote a memoir of his time on the islands, My Falkland Days, and remained closely associated with the territory and its people for the rest of his life, returning for numerous anniversary commemorations.

Sources: Rex Hunt (diplomat), Wikipedia · MercoPress, "Sir Rex Hunt, Governor of the Falklands during the Argentine invasion has died" (2012) · British Empire, "Rex Hunt - The Falklands War"