Born in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, Rodwell attended Cheam School

Cheam School

Cheam School is a preparatory school in Headley in the civil parish of Ashford Hill with Headley in the English county of Hampshire. It was founded in 1645 by the Reverend George Aldrich in Cheam, Surrey and has been in operation ever since....

 and Eton College

Eton College

Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....

 and went up to Cambridge

University of Cambridge

The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...

 in 1892 to study at King's College

King's College, Cambridge

King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....

. Upon the outbreak of the South African War, Rodwell joined the Suffolk Yeomanry and was awarded the Queen's Medal

Queen's South Africa Medal

The Queen's South Africa Medal ‎was awarded to military personnel who served in the Boer War in South Africa between 11 October 1899 and 31 May 1902. Units from the British Army, Royal Navy, colonial forces who took part , civilians employed in official capacity and war correspondents...

 with two clasps for bravery.

Rodwell remained in South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

 after the war, working on the staff of Lord Milner

Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner

Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner KG, GCB, GCMG, PC was a British statesman and colonial administrator who played an influential leadership role in the formulation of foreign and domestic policy between the mid-1890s and early 1920s...

, the British High Commissioner in South Africa, from 1901 to 1903 and as Imperial Secretary for the High Commission from 1903 to 1918, during which time he was made a CMG.

In 1918 Rodwell was appointed Governor of Fiji

Fiji

Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

 and High Commissioner for the Western Pacific, positions he held until 1924 when he was appointed Governor of British Guiana

British Guiana

British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...

. During his term the Legislative Council of British Guiana was established and Rodwell did much to develop the economic resources of the colony.

In 1928 Rodwell was appointed Governor of Southern Rhodesia

Southern Rhodesia

Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...

, where he left a mixed legacy. Remembered fondly by the white settlers (in one case he was referred to as a "top-hole person"), Rodwell's response to a plea by a Jesuit missionary for funds to build a hospital for the black community around Kutama College

Kutama College

Kutama College , is an all-boys high school located near the town of Norton in the Zvimba area, 80 kilometres southwest of the Zimbabwean capital Harare...

; "Why do you worry about a hospital? After all, there are too many natives in the country already", would have been concerning enough had it not been said in the presence of a young Robert Mugabe

Robert Mugabe

Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...

. Mugabe later said that he never forgot nor forgave Rodwell's response.

Rodwell returned to South Africa to work in the mining industry at the end of his term as Governor of South Rhodesia in 1934, serving on the Board of Directors of the oil company Ultramar. After retiring and moving to England Rodwell was appointed Controller of Industrial Diamonds in the Ministry of Supply

Ministry of Supply

The Ministry of Supply was a department of the UK Government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. There was, however, a separate ministry responsible for aircraft production and the Admiralty retained...

 in 1942, serving until 1945.

Rodwell died at his home near Ipswich

Ipswich

Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...

, survived by his wife, three sons, and two daughters. He was appointed KCMG in 1919 and GCMG in 1934.