Matthew Nathan was a British civil servant and colonial governor. Following an early career with the Royal Engineers, which included service in the Sudan and India, ending with the rank of Major, Nathan was appointed acting governor of Sierra Leone in 1898. He later served as Governor of Gold Coast (1900-1903), Governor of Hong Kong (1903-1907), and Governor of Natal (1907-1909). On his return to England, he was Secretary to the General Post Office and Chair of the Board of Inland Revenue. During the First World War, he was appointed Under-Secretary for Ireland, and resigned in the aftermath of the Easter Rising. His final appointment in the Colonial Service was as Governor of Queensland between 1920 and 1925. Source: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.