Sir John Chancellor was educated at Blair Lodge, Polmont and the Royal Military Academy. He joined the Royal Engineers in 1890 and seved in the Dongola and Tirah expeditions. His career quickly changed from a military focus to an administrative one. In 1904, he became the assistant military secretary to the Committee of Imperial Defence. He was the governor of Mauritius from 1911 to 1916 when he was transferred to Trinidad and Tobago until 1921. From 1923 to 1928 he was the governor of Southern Rhodesia. In 1928, he was made High Commissioner of Palestine and TransJordan until 1931.