Harry Legge-Bourke MP political papers
Details
Type of record: Archive
Title: Harry Legge-Bourke MP political papers
Classmark: SC MS Legge-Bourke
Creator(s): Legge-Bourke, Sir Henry (1914-)()
Date(s): 1942-1977
Size and medium: 5 boxes
Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/167051
Description
MS 742: The collection deals mainly with constituency organisation and various general political matters, showing especially the way he went about fighting general elections. Sections on aviation (including interesting correspondence with Barnes Wallis), other scientific research and development, Middle Eastern affairs, Gibraltar and the European Economic Community follow.
MS 771: The material in this collection of additional papers mainly comprises correspondence between Selby and Legge-Bourke arising from the two publications, especially Selby's; unless otherwise stated all the letters refer to either or both of the two books or to matters arising.
Biography or history
Sir Harry Legge-Bourke (1914-1973) was educated at Eton and RMA Sandhurst. He was commissioned into the Royal Horse Guards in 1934 and served throughout the Second World War, rising to the rank of major. As the earliest of these papers show, he had already developed an interest in current affairs and in 1945 he was elected Conservative MP for the Isle of Ely, a seat which he retained until his death. He never took high office and remained a back-bencher but his experience and qualities gained him much respect: he became chairman of the 1922 Committee of Conservative back-benchers and in 1971 chairman of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee. He was awarded the KBE in 1960.
Provenance
The collection contains 2 deposits MS 742 and MS 771
Access and usage
Access
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