Sir James Patrick Ivan Hennessy KBE CMG (26 September 1923 – 25 February 2024) was a British diplomat and public servant who was Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons from 1982 to 1987.
[1] Educated at Bedford School and then King's College, Durham (now part of Newcastle University), Hennessy joined the Royal Artillery in 1942, and was then seconded to the Indian Army from 1944 to 1946.
After World War II, Hennessy joined what was then HM Overseas Service, serving initially in Basutoland from 1948 in a number of roles, seconded in 1961 to the Office of the High Commissioner in Pretoria and taking on a number of positions in the government of South Africa.
He retired from the Overseas Service in 1968 and was appointed to the Foreign Office, serving as Chargé d'Affaires to Montevideo, Uruguay for 1971–72,[2] and then High Commissioner to Kampala, Uganda and non-resident Ambassador to Kigali, Rwanda, 1973–76.
After stepping down as Chief Inspector to be replaced by Judge Sir Stephen Tumim, Hennessy served on the Parole Board for England and Wales until 1991 and as a Trustee of the Butler Trust until 1998.