Jack Pithey

Jack Pithey
Jack William Pithey
Acting President of Rhodesia
In office
1 November 1978 – 5 March 1979
Prime Minister Ian Smith
Preceded by Henry Everard
Succeeded by Henry Everard
President of the Senate of Rhodesia
In office
1970 – 1 November 1978
Preceded by Office established
Succeeded by John Richard Strong
Personal details
Born 30 December 1903
Potchefstroom, Colony of the Transvaal (now North West Province, South Africa)
Died 20 November 1984 (aged 80)
Political party Rhodesian Front
Spouse
Mary Wood
(m.  1931)
Children 3, including Tony and David
Awards Legion of Merit GLM Independence Commemorative Decoration ICD Order of the British Empire CBE

Jack William Pithey (30 December 1903 – 20 November 1984) was a Rhodesian politician who served as the unrecognised state's Acting President between 1 November 1978 and 5 March 1979. He was also the President of the Senate of Rhodesia from 1970 to 1978 having previously been Member of Parliament for the Avondale constituency in north-west Salisbury (now Harare) between 1964 and 1970.

Biography

Jack Pithey was born in Potchefstroom in the Transvaal on 30 December 1903; he moved to Rhodesia on 5 September 1923. He was Secretary for Justice and Internal Affairs between 1958 and 1961 during the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, and later the Secretary for Justice in Rhodesia between 1962 and 1963. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1963 New Year Honours.

Family

He married Mary Wood on 1 September 1931; they had two sons and a daughter. Both his sons, Tony and David Pithey, represented Rhodesia in cricket and played Test cricket for South Africa. He died on 20 November 1984, and his Rhodesian estate was subsequently liquidated.

Awards