Mark Herdman

J. Mark A. Herdman
Governor of the British Virgin Islands
In office 1986–1991
Preceded by	David Robert Barwick
Succeeded by	Peter Penfold
Deputy Governor of Bermuda
In office 1983–1986
Governor	John Morrison
Governor of Bermuda (acting)
In office 14 February 1983 – July 1983
Preceded by	Richard Posnett
Succeeded by	John Morrison
Personal details
Born	(1932-04-26)26 April 1932 Rhu, Scotland, United Kingdom
Died
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Dillon (m. 1963–2015)
Children	Patrick Deirdre Bridget
Alma mater	Trinity College, Dublin The Queen's College, Oxford

John Mark Ambrose Herdman CBE LVO (26 April 1932 – 5 August 2015) was a British diplomat and overseas civil servant. Herdman served as the Deputy Governor of Bermuda from 1983 to 1986 (including a stint as Bermuda's acting Governor in 1983) and the Governor of the British Virgin Islands from 1986 until 1991.

Biography

Early life and education

Mark Herdman was born in Rhu, Scotland, on 26 April 1932, to Joan (née Tennant) and Claud Herdman, a Commander of the British Navy. His mother, Joan, died in 1936 when he was four years old. Herdman was raised by his paternal aunt in Northern Ireland until his father remarried in 1939. Mark Herdman was a member of the Herdman family, who owned and operated a respected linen factory in Sion Mills in County Tyrone. The Herdman family had established the village of Sion Mills in 1835.

He attended St Edward's School, a boarding school in Oxford. He graduated from Trinity College, Dublin. Herdman then enrolled at The Queen's College, Oxford, for one year to prepare for a posting in the British Overseas Civil Service.

Diplomatic career

Herdman first served as district officer and district commissioner in British Kenya until the country gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1964.

After leaving Kenya, Herdman transferred from the British Overseas Civil Service to Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service. He studied Arabic at the Middle East Centre for Arab Studies (MECAS) in Shemlan, Lebanon, to prepare for his positing in neighboring Jordan. He then served at diplomatic embassies and missions in Zambia, Saudi Arabia and Malawi. Queen Elizabeth II named Herdman as a Lieutenant in the Royal Victorian Order during her trip to Malawi in 1979.

Deputy Governor of Bermuda

Mark Herdman was appointed Deputy Governor of Bermuda from 1983 to 1986, including a brief tenure as acting Governor from 14 February 1983 until July 1983, following the resignation of Governor Richard Posnett.

Governor of British Virgin Islands

Herdman was appointed Governor of the British Virgin Islands from 1986 to 1991.

In 1989, Hurricane Hugo struck the British Virgin Islands in 1989 during Herdman's tenure, devastating the islands. Hurricane Hugo was the first major hurricane to strike the territory since 1960. Governor Herdman oversaw the British Virgin Islands' emergency management programs and recovery efforts in the aftermath of Hurrican Hugo. Herdman appointed the BVI's first full-time disaster preparedness coordinator, which led to founding of the Department of Disaster Management of the British Virgin Islands in 1993, after he left office.

In a 2015 statement, Premier Orlando Smith praised Herdman's role in the territory's recovery from Hurricane Hugo, noting that "helped to lay the foundation for the development of the modern Virgin Islands’ disaster management systems and operations."

In 1990, Governor Herdman was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Later life

He left his position in the British Virgin Islands in 1991. Herdman served as a member of the European Union's Peace Monitoring Mission during the breakup of Yugoslavia before retiring from diplomacy in 1992.

Mark Herdman died on 5 August 2015 at the age of 83. He was survived by his wife, Elizabeth (Betsy) Dillon, whom he married in 1963, with whom he had three children, Patrick, Deirdre, and Bridget, and four grandchildren. He was buried at St. Mary's Church in Worplesdon, Guildford, Surrey, on 25 August 2015.