Bits and Pieces of Civil Service History
My tweet and blog about civil service briefcases attracted rather more attention than I expected, so here are some other historical items that you might find interesting.
Old Westminster
This is a small part of Philips’ 1922 Handy-Volume Atlas of London showing the location of many of the principal government departments of the day.
If you follow the link in the previous paragraph you can download the whole map to be studied at your leisure at home. It costs only £9.99. Links from that page will take you to a contents page and to this site map which you can examine before you buy.
And, whilst on the subject of old Westminster, here is a nice 1742 painting of the building of Westminster Bridge. Westminster Hall is in the centre with Westminster Abbey behind and other Palace of Westminster buildings to the right.
Civil Service Script
Civil Service Script (aka Civil Service Hand) was a form of handwriting which was once taught in many schools, particularly in Scotland. But it was not, as far as I can tell, ever formally recognised (or required) by the civil service itself. This link leads to further information. And the introduction to this Scottish document is interesting.
Clark’s College
Continuing the education theme, I am grateful to Mandy Mayer for drawing my attention to Clark’s College which originally focussed on helping candidates pass the civil service exams, including through correspondence courses, an early (and superior?) form of distance learning. This link leads to a 1980 potted history of the main college in Chancery Lane but it appears from the side bar that there were eventually many other franchised Clark’s Colleges all around the South East of England, plus Cardiff, Leicester and Southampton. If you read the detailed comments, it appears that the teaching in these franchises was of variable quality.
One Clark’s Bromley ‘old boy’ was Admiral Raymond Lygo who became Vice Chief of the Naval Staff and then Chief Executive of British Aerospace.
Here is a photo of the Brixton franchise on the corner of Brixton Hill and Lambert Road:
Robert Armstrong was more than ‘Economical with the Truth’
The 1987 book Spycatcher, by ex-MI5 officer Peter Wright, made explosive claims about the UK's espionage operations. The government tried to stop its publication, including in Australia where Cabinet Secretary Robert Armstrong was forced to reveal in court that he had been 'economical with the truth' when he signed a letter that was deliberately misleading.Â
A more serious issue was revealed when previously secret documents were declassified a few days ago. According to the Financial Times, Robert Armstrong also told the Australian court that it was totally untrue that he had in 1980 helped journalist Chapman Pincher write a sympathetic article about MI5 Chief Roger Hollis who was, for a time, suspected of being a Soviet agent. (Peter Wright's book contained a section about Hollis.) The papers published in 2023 revealed that Armstrong’s denial was a pure lie.Â
I hope that no modern Cabinet Secretary would lie in court, whether in the UK or overseas, not least because of the likelihood of their behaviour being exposed.
Civil Service Hostels
Information needed!
I was struck by a tweet from Sonia Sodha suggesting that the government should re-introduce student halls-type housing in London, along the lines of the old civil service hostels. But I realised that I have no information at all about the hostels, such as when and why they were introduced, and when they were closed down. Memories are also welcome. Can anyone help, please, by commenting below or emailing me?
Fairfield
Information needed!
Stuart Hylton’s book Careless Talk claims that an anti-feminist organisation called Fairfield was set up in 1939 with the aim of excluding women from the civil service. Does anyone know anything more than this? If so, please comment below or email me.
Martin Stanley - Editor - Understanding the Civil Service