Most Governors-General in the Caribbean spend their terms opening conferences, swearing in ministers and signing bills into law. Sir Paul Scoon spent his in extraordinary circumstances. Appointed in 1978 under Eric Gairy, he remained in office through the revolution that overthrew Gairy, through the killing of Maurice Bishop and through the American-led intervention of October 1983, after which he briefly became the most important constitutional figure in the country.
His role in 1983 remains debated, particularly the question of when and how he asked for outside help. This profile sets out the documented facts of his life and career, explains the constitutional position he occupied and lays out the main points of controversy without pretending to settle them.
A career in education and the civil service
Paul Godwin Scoon was born on 4 July 1935 in Gouyave, the fishing town on Grenada's west coast in the parish of St John. He attended St John's Anglican School and then the Grenada Boys' Secondary School, the island's leading government secondary school.
He trained and worked as a teacher, studied for an external degree of the University of London and later pursued further study at Leeds and at the University of Toronto, where he earned a master's degree in education. His career rose through the education system to the post of Chief Education Officer, and then to Secretary to the Cabinet, the head of Grenada's civil service.
In the 1970s he moved to London to serve as deputy director of the Commonwealth Foundation, an intergovernmental body supporting civil society across the Commonwealth. That international experience, and his reputation as a career public servant rather than a politician, made him a natural choice for Governor-General when Sir Leo de Gale's term ended.
Governor-General under two very different governments
Appointment, 1978. Scoon became Governor-General in late 1978, on the advice of Prime Minister Eric Gairy, representing Queen Elizabeth as Grenada's head of state.
Kept on by the revolution. When the New Jewel Movement seized power in March 1979, it suspended the constitution but did not abolish the monarchy or remove the Governor-General. Scoon remained in office, a symbol of continuity with the Commonwealth.
A limited role. Under the PRG, government was by decree through People's Laws. The Governor-General's formal functions were largely ceremonial, and Scoon had little practical influence on policy.
A careful neutrality. Accounts describe him maintaining a discreet relationship with the revolutionary government, carrying out formal duties while avoiding public political statements.
Why the PRG kept him. Retaining a Governor-General helped the new government keep Grenada inside the Commonwealth and reassure neighbouring states and trading partners that the country had not broken entirely with its constitutional past. Historians generally read the decision as pragmatic rather than a sign of agreement with him.
October 1983 and the disputed request
After Bishop's execution on 19 October 1983, a Revolutionary Military Council took control and imposed a strict curfew. Scoon remained at Government House, effectively isolated. On 25 October, forces from the United States and several Caribbean states landed on the island.
The intervening governments cited, among other justifications, a request from the Governor-General for outside assistance to restore order. Scoon supported the intervention and later described having made such a request. The controversy concerns its timing and form: historians and critics have pointed out that the formal written request appears to have been signed after the landings had begun, and have questioned whether an oral request preceded the decision to intervene, as supporters maintained.
Some legal scholars also questioned whether a Governor-General, acting without ministerial advice, had the constitutional authority to invite foreign forces at all. Others argued that with the government destroyed and no lawful ministers available, the Governor-General was the only remaining legitimate authority, and so the reserve powers of his office applied.
Restoring constitutional government
In the days after the landings, Scoon was evacuated briefly for his safety and then returned to exercise executive authority. He appointed an Interim Advisory Council of Grenadian technocrats and professionals, chaired by Nicholas Brathwaite, to administer the country until elections could be held.
Under his authority, the 1974 constitution was progressively restored, People's Laws were reviewed, and preparations were made for elections, which took place in December 1984. Herbert Blaize's New National Party won and formed a government, and Scoon returned to the conventional, largely ceremonial role of a Governor-General acting on ministerial advice.
He continued in office under the governments of Blaize and his successors until 1992, giving him one of the longest and most eventful tenures of any Governor-General in the region. Afterwards he wrote a memoir, Survival for Service, setting out his account of his years in office, including the events of 1983.
Understanding the constitutional position
Scoon's role makes more sense with some background on how a Governor-General works in Grenada's system.
- Head of state's representative. Grenada is a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth. The Governor-General represents the monarch and is appointed on the Prime Minister's advice.
- Acting on advice. In normal times the Governor-General acts on the advice of ministers, so most decisions are effectively the government's.
- Reserve powers. In rare situations, such as the absence of a functioning government, the Governor-General may have to act on personal judgement. The scope of these powers is debated by constitutional lawyers.
- Suspended constitution. Between 1979 and 1983 the constitution was suspended by the PRG, which complicated arguments about what powers the Governor-General held in October 1983.
- Restoration. After 1983 the constitution was brought back into force, and the office returned to its conventional role.
Legacy and common misreadings
Scoon died on 2 September 2013, at the age of 78, at his home in St Paul's. Tributes emphasised his decades of public service, his work in education and his role in steering the country back to constitutional government after 1983.
His legacy remains contested mainly because the intervention itself remains contested. Grenadians who welcomed the landings, and polls at the time suggested many did, tend to see Scoon as the man who gave legal cover to a rescue. Critics, at home and abroad, see him as having lent legitimacy to an action decided elsewhere. Both views can be found in Grenadian commentary today.
His Gouyave origins are remembered locally with pride. A boy from a west coast fishing town who rose through the government school system to the highest office in the state embodied the role that education played in Grenadian social mobility in the mid-twentieth century, a path his own career in the education service did much to widen for others.
A common misreading is to treat him as a political actor in the usual sense. He was a career civil servant who found himself, by circumstance, holding the only legitimate office left standing. Whatever one concludes about his decisions in October 1983, that unusual position is essential to understanding them.
Key dates in Scoon's life
The main documented milestones of his career place the events of 1983 in context.
- 4 July 1935. Born in Gouyave, St John.
- 1950s and 1960s. Teacher, then a rising figure in the education service, eventually Chief Education Officer.
- Before 1972. Secretary to the Cabinet and head of the civil service.
- 1970s. Deputy director of the Commonwealth Foundation in London.
- 1978. Sworn in as Governor-General, on the advice of Eric Gairy.
- 13 March 1979. The New Jewel Movement takes power; Scoon remains in office.
- October 1983. Bishop is killed on the 19th; the intervention begins on the 25th; Scoon appoints an interim administration.
- December 1984. General elections restore parliamentary government.
- 1992. Leaves office after some fourteen years.
- 2 September 2013. Dies at home in St Paul's, aged 78.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Grenada's Governor-General in 1983?
Sir Paul Scoon was Governor-General of Grenada from 1978 to 1992, which meant he held the office during the People's Revolutionary Government, the killing of Maurice Bishop and the October 1983 intervention by United States and Caribbean forces.
Did Paul Scoon invite the 1983 intervention?
Scoon supported the intervention and said he had requested outside assistance. However, historians have noted that the formal written request appears to have been signed after the landings began, and the timing and form of any earlier oral request remain debated.
Where was Sir Paul Scoon born?
He was born in Gouyave, St John, on 4 July 1935. He attended St John's Anglican School and the Grenada Boys' Secondary School before a career as a teacher, Chief Education Officer and Secretary to the Cabinet.
What was the Interim Advisory Council?
After the 1983 intervention, Scoon appointed an Interim Advisory Council of Grenadian professionals, chaired by Nicholas Brathwaite, to run the country until elections. It governed from late 1983 until the December 1984 general election.
Did Paul Scoon write about his experiences?
Yes. His memoir, Survival for Service, gives his account of his time as Governor-General, including the revolution and the events of October 1983. Like any memoir, it is best read alongside other sources on the period.
