Sir Philip Crampton Smyly (1866-1953) was born on 28 March 1866, the son of Dr (later Sir) Philip Crampton Smyly (1838-1904) and Selinda Maria, sixth daughter of the 3rd Baron Plunket. Dr Smyly was a distinguished surgeon whose many posts included the Presidency of the Royal College of Surgeons, 1878-1879. He was Surgeon to Queen Victoria and King Edward VII in Ireland, and also to the Viceroys of Ireland, 1869-1892. His son Philip attended Trinity College Dublin, and was called to the bar in 1888. He was appointed Crown Advocate in Sierra Leone in 1895, and sailed out to Africa on SS 'Angola'. He became Attorney-General in 1896, and was made Acting Chief Justice following the death of Bruce Hindle, although he was not appointed permanently to the post until 1901. He received a knighthood in 1905, and became Chief Justice of the Gold Coast in 1911. Smyly left the Colony on leave on 21 August 1929, and retired at its conclusion on 31 October. He had two sons and one daughter through his marriage to Aileen Grace Smyly (d. 1935). He died on 29 May 1953.