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Papers of Sir Arthur Edwin Young

 Collection

  • How to
    request

Police papers, reports and correspondence, Gold Coast, 1951, Malaya, 1952-1953, Kenya, 1954

Dates

  • Creation: 1951-1954

Extent

6 boxes

Language of Materials

  • English

Preferred Citation

Oxford, Bodleian Libraries [followed by shelfmark and folio or page reference, e.g. MSS. Brit. Emp. s. 486].

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Full range of shelfmarks:

MSS. Brit. Emp. s. 486

Collection ID (for staff)

CMD ID 5073

Biographical / Historical

Sir Arthur Edwin Young (1907-1979) joined the Portsmouth City Police as a cadet clerk at the age of seventeen, rising through the ranks to become the youngest chief constable in the country at Leamington, 1938. He later held the rank of Assistant Chief Constable, Birmingham. During the Second World War, he served as Director of Public Safety to the Allied Control Commission in Italy. By 1946 he was Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. Three years later, he was appointed Chief Constable of the City of London. In 1951 he was sent to the Gold Coast to advise on the reorganisation of the police force. In 1952 he was asked to reorganise the Malay Police. While in Malaya he improved police efficiency through training, overhauled police administration and emphasised the force's role towards all members of the Malay community. In 1953, he returned to the City of London police. In 1954 he was appointed Commissioner of the Kenya Police. However, his belief in an independent police force and his opposition to the use of firearms did not prove popular with the Kenyan colonial administration and he resigned after nine months. In 1955 he returned to his duties as Commissioner of the City of London police. His views on police disarmament also proved controversial when he was sent by the Labour government to Ulster to implement the Hunt Report in 1969-1970. he retired in 1971.

Other Finding Aids

Listed as no. 632 in Manuscript Collections in Rhodes House Library Oxford, Accessions 1978-1994 (Oxford, Bodleian Library, 1996).

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The papers were deposited at the library on 17th November 1971

Related Materials

Personal papers concerning the Royal Ulster Constabulary, copies of Malayan and Kenya papers, and press cuttings, Malaya, Kenya and Ulster are held at the New Scotland Yard Reference Library and are accessible at the discretion of the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police.

Title
Papers of Sir Arthur Edwin Young
Status
Published
Author
Paul Davidson
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Bodleian Libraries Repository

Contact:
Weston Library
Broad Street
Oxford OX1 3BG United Kingdom