Royal Air Force
Organization
Found in 42 Collections and/or Records:
Unknown
"Give us the tools", 9 Feb 1941
Unknown
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 9/150A/52-75
Scope and Contents
Notes for WSC's broadcast (BBC) on the war situation including: the repulsion of the threat of German invasion, the Blitz and the bombing of Britain; the strength of British spirit; the Italian attack on Greece; successes in Libya and Egypt, including victory at Sidi Barrani under General Sir Archibald Wavell [Commander in Chief Middle East] and General [Henry] Wilson; successes of the British Mediterranean Fleet against the Italian navy under Admiral [Sir Andrew] Cunningham...
Dates:
9 Feb 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Literary: News of the World articles by WSC 1., Apr 1938 - May 1938
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 8/614
Scope and Contents
Includes annotated proofs, galley proofs and cuttings from the News of the World for: "How Wars of the Future will be Waged" on the importance of the horse in the Boer War, of machine-guns and tanks in World War I, the need for foresight and initiative amongst generals, and the importance of air power in a future conflict; "Future Safeguards of National Defence" on the importance of the Navy to national defence, the German submarine campaign in World War I, the threat of air attacks on ships...
Dates:
Apr 1938 - May 1938
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: correspondence, mainly on demobilisation and the reorganisation of the Air Ministry., 01 Feb 1919 - 28 Feb 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/4
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: King Manuel II on the "future of Portugal"; General Sir William Robertson [General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the Forces in Great Britain] (3); 1st Lord Milner [Secretary of State for the Colonies] on appointing neither Major-General Sir Hugh Trenchard or General Sir John Cowans as Governor of Nigeria (2); Andrew Bonar Law [Lord Privy Seal] passing on a copy of a letter from Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Lawson on a decline in his pay and position; Philip Kerr [later...
Dates:
01 Feb 1919 - 28 Feb 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: correspondence, much on the Russian campaign., 01 Apr 1919 - 30 Apr 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/6
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: General Sir Ian Hamilton refuting press allegations; Walter Roch on the Dardanelles [Turkey] Inquiry; Field-Marshal Sir Douglas Haig [Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Forces in France and Flanders] (2); General Sir Henry Wilson [Chief of Imperial General Staff] on matters discussed at the Paris [France] Peace Conference (7); 1st Lord Milner [Secretary of State for the Colonies]; Colonel James Blair [Chief, British Military Mission in Siberia]; 1st Lord Haldane...
Dates:
01 Apr 1919 - 30 Apr 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: correspondence, much on the Russian campaign., 01 Jul 1919 - 31 Jul 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/9
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Major-General Sir Hugh Trenchard [Chief of the Air Staff] on the availability of aeroplanes for Air Ministry officials; Frederick Guest [Patronage Secretary, Treasury]; Major-General John Seely [later 1st Lord Mottistone, Under-Secretary of State for Air] on air force matters, including flying casualties (2); Austen Chamberlain [Chancellor of the Exchequer] (2) on subjects including War Office stocks and army estimates; Clive Wigram [Assistant Private Secretary and...
Dates:
01 Jul 1919 - 31 Jul 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: correspondence, much on the Russian campaign., 01 Aug 1919 - 31 Aug 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/10
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: General Sir Henry Wilson [Chief of Imperial General Staff] (4); General Sir William Robertson [Commander-in-Chief, British Army on the Rhine] on his baronetcy; Lord French [earlier Sir John French, later 1st Lord Ypres, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland] on his account of the events of 1914; Major-General John Seely [later 1st Lord Mottistone, Under-Secretary of State for Air] on air force matters and Sir Frederick Banbury's role in the O'Sullivan enquiry (3); Jack Scott...
Dates:
01 Aug 1919 - 31 Aug 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: Organisation of the Air Force: correspondence and papers., 13 Dec 1918 - 16 Sep 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/1
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: General Sir William Robertson, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the Forces in Great Britain (2); Sir Arthur Duckham; Brigadier-General William Alexander, Controller of Aircraft Supply and Production; Brigadier-General [John Steel], Director of Air Division, Admiralty; General Sir Henry Wilson, Chief of Imperial General Staff; Major-General Frederick Sykes, Chief of the Air Staff [until February 1919] (2); Major-General John Seely [later 1st Lord Mottistone,...
Dates:
13 Dec 1918 - 16 Sep 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War and Air: WSC's minutes., 01 Apr 1919 - 28 Jun 1919
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 16/16A-B
Scope and Contents
Includes carbon copies of minutes (some annotated in reply) from WSC to various individuals including: Deputy Chief of Imperial General Staff [Major-General Charles Harington]; Director of Military Intelligence [Major-General William Thwaites]; Deputy Director of Military Operations and Military Intelligence [Colonel George Cockerill]; Master-General of the Ordnance [Lieutenant-General Sir William Furse]; Quartermaster-General [Lieutenant-General Travers Clarke]; Secretary [War Office, Sir...
Dates:
01 Apr 1919 - 28 Jun 1919
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Prime Minister's Directives., 06 Mar 1941 - 12 Dec 1941
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/9
Scope and Contents
Printed directives by the Prime Minister, WSC, on subjects including: the battle of the Atlantic; food imports; army scales; the naval programme; the Mediterranean; warning Stalin against Germany (including extracts of correspondence between WSC, the Foreign Secretary [Anthony Eden, later 1st Lord Avon] and Sir Stafford Cripps [British Ambassador to the Soviet Union]; policy in Syria; Egypt and the Middle East; security of cabinet papers; the maintenance of forces in the Middle East; the...
Dates:
06 Mar 1941 - 12 Dec 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Official: War Cabinet: Prime Minister's Directives., 18 Dec 1941 - 30 Dec 1942
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 23/10
Scope and Contents
Printed directives by the Prime Minister, WSC, on subjects including: the future conduct of the war; the Pacific and the Japanese fleet; the entry of the United States into the war; the Atlantic Front; the Indian Ocean; the function of the Minister of State in the Middle East [Richard Casey]; Vichy France's co-operation with Germany; the function of the Minister Resident in West Africa [1st Lord Swinton, earlier Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, earlier Sir Philip Lloyd-Greame]; Fleet Air Arm...
Dates:
18 Dec 1941 - 30 Dec 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Political: Constituency: Woodford [Essex]: correspondence with or on behalf of constituents, A-G., Mar 1948 - May 1949
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 3/49
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Lena Prescott, Private Secretary, Ministry of Health (4); [David] Nenk, Ministry of Education; J T Williams, Private Secretary, War Damage Commission (5); Frederick Mummery, Honorary Secretary and Agent, Woodford Conservative Association (7); [Patrick] Kinna, Foreign Office (2); ?[Humphrey] Penderell Bright; Percy Cohen [Joint Director] and Iain MacLeod of the Conservative Research Department; Leah Manning; J P C Seale, Private Secretary, Air Ministry (3); Tom Driberg...
Dates:
Mar 1948 - May 1949
Conditions Governing Access:
Open (folios 250-8 opened in 2022).
File
Political: Constituency: Woodford [Essex]: correspondence with or on behalf of constituents, H-Z., Jan 1946 - Feb 1947
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 3/33
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: [Thomas] Williams, Minister of Agriculture; Frederick Mummery, Assistant Secretary, Woodford Conservative Association (4); J H Hughes of the Air Ministry (7); [Arthur] Peterson [Principal Private Secretary to the Home Secretary]; [Harold] Copeman, Private Secretary to the Financial Secretary, HM Treasury (2); Iain MacLeod, Conservative Parliamentary Secretariat. Also includes notes and copies of correspondence from secretaries Christine Taylor, Elizabeth Gilliatt,...
Dates:
Jan 1946 - Feb 1947
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Political: Constituency: Woodford [Essex]: correspondence with or on behalf of constituents, K-Z., Jan 1946 - Sep 1946
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 3/29A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Frederick Mummery, Assistant Secretary, Woodford Conservative Association (5); [Arthur] Drew, Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for War; [Percy] Cohen of Conservative and Unionist Central Office; constituent D M Reddiex (4); Lena Prescott of the Ministry of Health (6); J H Hughes of the Air Ministry (4); Mary Tyrwhitt, Director, Auxiliary Territorial Service; constituents W T Towler (4) and F C Turner (4); Stanley Reed, Secretary of the Wanstead Flats...
Dates:
Jan 1946 - Sep 1946
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Political: Constituency: Woodford [Essex]: correspondence with or on behalf of constituents, K-Z., Feb 1948 - Oct 1948
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 3/45
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: J T Williams, Private Secretary, War Damage Commission (5); Frederick Mummery, Honorary Secretary and Agent, Woodford Conservative Association (14); [Arthur] Drew, Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for War (3); [James] Chuter-Ede [Home Secretary] on an incident involving the Holborn [London] Conservative Association (2); [Robert] McAlpine [Assistant Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary]; [Christopher] Fogarty [Assistant Principal] HM Treasury (2);...
Dates:
Feb 1948 - Oct 1948
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Public and Political: General: Air Defence: Deputations to the Prime Minister., 21 Jul 1936 - 21 Jan 1937
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 2/270
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Clement Attlee [Leader of the Opposition] refusing to join the deputations to the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin; Osmund Cleverly [Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister]; Henry Pownall [Deputy Secretary], Committee of Imperial Defence; Hastings Ismay [Deputy Secretary], Committee of Imperial Defence] (2).Also includes: extracts from the transcript of the first deputation, including [?] WSC on the Government's failure to expand the air industry and the RAF...
Dates:
21 Jul 1936 - 21 Jan 1937
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Public and Political: General: Defence., 06 Nov 1936 - 20 Jan 1942
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 2/371A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents on defence issues include: Sir Thomas Inskip [Minister for Co-ordination of Defence, later 1st Lord Caldecote]; Harry Sellar, Private Secretary to Inskip (2); Leslie Hore-Belisha, Secretary of State for War, on subjects including the arming of the Guards Battalions; Sir Kingsley Wood, Secretary of State for Air, on showing WSC [air construction graphs]; 1st Lord Swinton [former Secretary of State for Air, earlier Philip Cunliffe-Lister and Philip Lloyd-Greame] on the formation...
Dates:
06 Nov 1936 - 20 Jan 1942
Conditions Governing Access:
Open.
File
Public and Political: General: Defence: Correspondence etc., 12 Jan 1936 - 27 Nov 1936
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 2/266A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Basil Liddell Hart [Military Correspondent to the Times] on the troop system used in India; "Harold R" [1st Lord Rothermere, earlier Sir Harold Harmsworth] on subjects including 1st Lord Weir's position in defence [as Adviser to the Air Ministry], the likely stop to any battleship programme, pilot training, the likelihood of a quick German victory against Britain and France, German contempt for the British Government, and the Government's refusal to discuss the...
Dates:
12 Jan 1936 - 27 Nov 1936
Conditions Governing Access:
Open, (folio 93 opened as a 'sanitised' photocopy, original closed on advice of Cabinet Office).
File
Public and Political: General: Political: Correspondence A-C., Jun 1950 - Oct 1951
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 2/113A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Sir Richard Acland on the "Churchill Arch" in the House of Commons; Commander Peter Agnew withdrawing his candidacy at Ormskirk [Lancashire]; Patrick Kinna (Foreign Office); representatives of the Conservative Research Department including [Richard] Michael Fraser [later Lord Fraser of Kilmorack] (4); Garry Allighan on his expulsion from the House of Commons; Cuthbert Alport; Leo Amery on Persian [Iranian] oil; 1st Lord Woolton [earlier Frederick Marquis, Chairman,...
Dates:
Jun 1950 - Oct 1951
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Public and Political: General: Political: Correspondence T-Z., Nov 1947 - Dec 1948
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 2/72A-B
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: Iain MacLeod, Conservative Parliamentary Secretariat, on the position of graduate teachers (2); Emanuel Shinwell, Secretary of State for War, (2) and Arthur Henderson [later Lord Rowley], Secretary of State for Air, (2) on recruitment for service auxiliaries and reserves; James Thomas [later 1st Lord Cilcennin, Vice- Chairman of Conservative and Unionist Party] (2); Colin Thornton-Kemsley (2); Reginald Maudling; 6th Lord De L'Isle and Dudley [earlier William Sidney,...
Dates:
Nov 1947 - Dec 1948
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Public and Political: General: Political: Defence - correspondence with Prime Minister Clement Attlee., Mar 1946 - Aug 1950
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 2/29A-B
Scope and Contents
Other correspondents include: Oliver Lyttelton [later 1st Lord Chandos]; Anthony Eden [later 1st Lord Avon] (2); A V Alexander [later Lord Alexander of Hillsborough] on Czechoslovak railways; Francis Graham-Harrison, Laurence Pumphrey (2), and Paul Osmond, Private Secretaries to the Prime Minister; Laurence Helsby [Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister]; Antony Head (2); 1st Lord Cherwell [earlier F A Lindemann]; Clement Davies [Leader of the Liberal Party]. Also includes notes...
Dates:
Mar 1946 - Aug 1950
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Public and Political: General: Royal Navy and Fleet Air Arm., 11 Feb 1936 - 21 Dec 1936
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 2/272
Scope and Contents
Correspondents include: 1st Lord Lloyd [of Dolobran, President of the Navy League] on WSC speaking to the League (2); Sir John Thornycroft [President and Director, J I Thornycroft and Company Limited] on his firm's designs for an aircraft carrier and anti-submarine craft and cuts in the shipbuilding industry (with a description of the anti-submarine craft); Maitland Boucher [former member of the Naval Air Division] on meeting WSC about the Fleet Air Arm (3); Vice-Admiral Sir Reginald...
Dates:
11 Feb 1936 - 21 Dec 1936
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Speeches: House of Commons and Non-House of Commons: Speech notes and source material., 01 Jul 1952 - 20 Sep 1952
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHUR 5/48A-B
Scope and Contents
Speech notes for WSC's speech (1 July, House of Commons) entitled "The Korean War" on subjects including the early demoralization of Communist forces in Korea, then the success of their negotiations and rebuilt forces; the heavy costs suffered by Britain and the United States during the armistice; harm caused by anti-American feeling in Parliament; the treatment and exchange of prisoners of war, including forcing anti-Communist soldiers to return to China or North Korea; Labour's motion of...
Dates:
01 Jul 1952 - 20 Sep 1952
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Speeches: House of Commons: speech notes and other material., 09 Jul 1941 - 01 Oct 1941
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 9/148A-B
Scope and Contents
Hansard copies of WSC's statements (9 July) on the occupation of Iceland by United States troops, the appeal for arms from Eire (Southern Ireland [Ireland]) to the United States, and British losses in Syria. Published: Complete Speeches VI, pp 6446-7.Notes for WSC's statement (15 July) on the production debate, the Anglo-Soviet Agreement against Germany, its effect on Poland, and the end of the Syrian campaign. Also includes relevant extract from Hansard. Part published: Complete Speeches...
Dates:
09 Jul 1941 - 01 Oct 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Speeches: House of Commons: Speech notes and source material., 05 Nov 1940 - 19 Dec 1940
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 9/175
Scope and Contents
Speech notes for WSC's speech (5 November) on the war situation including the air battles, the bombing of London, Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham, the threat posed by U Boats, the possibility of invasion by Germany, civil defence and the Home Guard, affairs in Egypt and the Middle East, and the Italian invasion of Greece. Source material includes correspondence from 1st Lord Beaverbrook [earlier Max Aitken, Minister for Aircraft Production], Henry Strutt [Assistant Under-Secretary of...
Dates:
05 Nov 1940 - 19 Dec 1940
Conditions Governing Access:
Open
File
Speeches: House of Commons: Speech notes and source material., 30 Sep 1941 - 11 Dec 1941
File
Reference Code: GBR/0014/CHAR 9/180A-B
Scope and Contents
Speech notes for statement by WSC (30 September) on the war situation including: the threat posed by Hitler, WSC's intention not to publish shipping losses to U-Boats, food and rations, the strength of the United States and the Soviet Union, Germany's attack on the Soviet Union, the army and Bomber Command, and events and operations in Persia [Iran]. Also includes correspondence from 1st Lord Woolton [earlier Frederick Marquis] Minister of Food, Frank Wood, and Major-General Bernard Paget,...
Dates:
30 Sep 1941 - 11 Dec 1941
Conditions Governing Access:
Open