He was Governor of Hong Kong from 23 January 1958 to 1 April 1964, having been Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong from 1952 – 1955.During his governorship Hong Kong became increasingly prosperous. Hong Kong experienced a prolonged drought of unanticipated severity during the last two years of his tenure, which led to a serious water shortage. Water rationing was imposed in May 1962 and continued through August 1964. From June 1963 until late May 1964 ,water supply was restricted to a single 4-hour period every 4 days. Black helped establish the Chinese University of Hong Kong by uniting several smaller institutions. He served as Chancellor of both the Chinese University of Hong Kong and the University of Hong Kong during his tenure as Governor of Hong Kong. He was knighted in 1955 and promoted to GCMG in 1962.