Learie Constantine

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Learie Constantine bigraphy, stories - West Indian cricketer, lawyer, politician and diplomat

Learie Constantine : biography

21 September 1901 – 1 July 1971

Learie Nicholas Constantine, Baron Constantine (21 September 1901 – 1 July 1971) was a West Indian cricketer, lawyer and politician who served as Trinidad’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and became the UK’s first black peer. He played 18 Test matches before the Second World War and took the West Indies’ first wicket in Test cricket. An advocate against racial discrimination, in later life he was influential in the passing of the Race Relations Act in Britain. He was knighted in 1962 and made a life peer in 1969.

Born in Trinidad, Constantine established an early reputation as a promising cricketer, and was a member of the West Indies teams that toured England in 1923 and 1928. Unhappy at the lack of opportunities for black people in Trinidad, he decided to pursue a career as a professional cricketer in England, and after the 1928 tour was awarded a professional contract with the Lancashire League club Nelson. He played for the club with great distinction between 1929 and 1938, while continuing as a member of the West Indies Test team in tours of England and Australia. Although his record as a Test cricketer was less impressive than in other cricket he helped to establish a uniquely West Indian style of play. He was chosen as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1939.

After working during the Second World War for the Ministry of Labour and National Service as a Welfare Officer responsible for West Indians employed in English factories, Constantine qualified as a barrister in 1954, while also establishing himself as a journalist and broadcaster. He returned to Trinidad in 1954, entered politics and became a founding member of the People’s National Movement, subsequently entering the Trinidad government as minister of communications. In 1961 he returned to England as Trinidad’s High Commissioner, serving until 1964. In his final years, he served on the Race Relations Board, the Sports Council and Board of Governors of the BBC. Failing health reduced his effectiveness in some of these roles, and he faced criticism for becoming a part of the British Establishment. He died of a heart attack on 1 July 1971.

Personality

John Arlott describes Constantine as a man of "easy humour and essential patience … His outlook was that of a compassionate radical and he maintained his high moral standards unswervingly." E. W. Swanton writes: "None could call Lord Constantine a modest man, but gifts of warmth and friendliness as well as a shrewd brain and a ready tongue helped to make him one of the personalities of his time." He did not get along with everyone; he and England cricketer Wally Hammond feuded for nearly ten years over what Constantine perceived as a slight in 1925–26. Subsequently, Constantine continually bowled short when he encountered Hammond on the field, until the pair made peace in the Old Trafford Test match of 1933. After this, they pursued a more good-natured rivalry and became quite friendly; Hammond publicly expressed sympathy towards Constantine and other black West Indians for the discrimination that they faced.

In his earlier years, acquaintances believed Constantine was too conscious of colour. James wrote: "Many doors in England were open to him. That doors were closed to other West Indians seemed more important to him."James, p. 111. Michael Manley describes him as an extrovert who displayed great self-belief in everything he did.Manley, p. 49. He also notes that "Constantine was too long in England and perhaps too slight in Test-match performance to make the impact on the Caribbean that he did on England. But he enchanted England." Howat writes: "Cricket apart … Constantine’s reputation must rest on his contribution to racial tolerance, his benevolent view of empire and Commonwealth, and his personal acceptance within the British ‘establishment’. In the end he was more English than Trinidadian and he needed that wider platform."

Early life

Constantine was born in Petit Valley, a village close to Diego Martin in north-west Trinidad, on 21 September 1901, the second child of the family and the eldest of three brothers. His father, Lebrun Constantine, was the grandchild of slaves; Lebrun rose to the position of overseer on a cocoa estate in Cascade, near Maraval, where the family moved in 1906.Howat (1976), p. 26. Lebrun was famous on the island as a cricketer who represented Trinidad in first-class cricket and toured England twice with a West Indian team.Mason, pp. 2–3.Howat (1976), p. 23. Constantine’s mother, Anaise Pascall, was the daughter of slaves and her brother Victor was also a Trinidad and West Indian first-class cricketer;Mason, p. 3. in addition, a third family member, Constantine’s brother Elias later represented Trinidad.Mason, p. 4. Constantine wrote that although the family was not wealthy, his childhood was happy. He spent a lot of time playing in the hills near his home or on the estates where his father and grandfather worked.Howat (1976), pp. 26–27.Mason, p. 2. He enjoyed cricket from an early age; the family regularly practised together under the supervision of Lebrun and Victor Pascall.Howat (1976), p. 28.