Sir Archibald Rowlands GCB MBE (26 December 1892 – 18 August 1953) was a British civil servant. After serving as private secretary to three Secretaries of State for War, he was

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are ...

to the

Ministry of Aircraft Production Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

during the Second World War. He then worked in India and later acted as a special advisor to

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 187611 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pa ...

, the

Governor-General of Pakistan The governor-general of Pakistan () was the Political representation, representative of the Monarchy of Pakistan, Pakistani monarch in the Dominion of Pakistan, established by the Indian Independence Act 1947. The office of governor-general was ...

. Rowlands was born on 26 December 1892 and went to school in

Penarth Penarth ( , ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay. Penarth is a Seaside resort#Brit ...

. He then studied at the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

, obtaining a first-class degree in modern languages in 1914. He then studied at

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship ...

, with his university career being interrupted for three years during the First World War, during which he saw action as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the

Army Cyclist Corps The Army Cyclist Corps was a corps of the British Army active during the First World War, and controlling the Army's bicycle infantry. History Formation Volunteer cyclist units had been formed as early as the 1880s, with the first complete bicy ...

; he was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

and was awarded the Military MBE. In 1920, he joined the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

as a member of the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

, serving as private secretary to Sir Herbert Creedy, Secretary at the War Office, and then as private secretary to Viscount Hailsham, Viscount Halifax and

Duff Cooper Alfred Duff Cooper, 1st Viscount Norwich, (22 February 1890 – 1 January 1954), known as Duff Cooper, was a British Conservative Party politician and diplomat who was also a military and political historian and writer. First elected to Parl ...

, who were successively the

Secretary of State for War The secretary of state for war, commonly called the war secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The secretary of state for war headed the War Offic ...

; Hailsham used to declare that Rowlands was the ideal private secretary. In 1936, Rowlands was seconded to the Indian Government as Adviser on Military Finance, before returning in 1939 Deputy Under-Secretary at the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...

, then becoming

to the

in 1940. He left the Ministry of Aircraft Production when

Wilfrid Freeman Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfrid Rhodes Freeman, 1st Baronet, (18 July 1888 – 15 May 1953) was one of the most important influences on the rearmament of the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the years up to and including the Second World War. He was par ...

conditioned his return on an equal or higher status to the permanent secretary, and his work was followed in 1943 by a return to India as adviser to the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

on war administration, supervising various British government branches that had been moved to India during the war. He became Finance Member of the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

's Executive Council. He was also chairman of the committee that reported into the administration of the province of Bengal, making various recommendations for improvement. In 1946, he left India to become Permanent Secretary to the

Ministry of Supply The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK government formed on 1 August 1939 by the Ministry of Supply Act 1939 ( 2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 38) to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Ministe ...

, succeeding Oliver Franks. However, he stayed about a year in this position before being seconded as a special advisor to

, the

. He proposed removing levels of provincial administration to allow the unification of government in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

. His obituary in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' said of his work in India and Pakistan that "he showed a vision and judgment which was little short of miraculous in the trying latter days of British rule and in the early days of native rule in the sub-continent. Industry and energy he had in abundance, yet these would have availed him little if there had not been a touch of genius in a mind at once penetrating and kindly – a rare combination." After his year in Pakistan was over, he returned to the Ministry of Supply and was also a member of the Economic Planning Board. He was made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in 1941 and a

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...

in 1947. He retired at the age of 60 and became a member of the board of

Express Newspapers Northern & Shell (holding company name Northern and Shell Network Ltd) is a British publishing group, founded in December 1974 and owned since then by Richard Desmond. Formerly a publisher of pornographic magazines including '' Penthouse'' and '' ...

. He died in

Henley-on-Thames Henley-on-Thames ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Thames, in the South Oxfordshire district, in Oxfordshire, England, northeast of Reading, Berkshire, Reading, west of M ...

on 18 August 1953.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowlands, Archibald 1892 births 1953 deaths People from Penarth Permanent Secretaries of the Ministry of Aircraft Production Civil servants in the War Office Civil servants in the Air Ministry Private secretaries in the British Civil Service Members of the Order of the British Empire Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Alumni of the University of Wales Welch Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I People educated at Stanwell School British expatriates in Pakistan Army Cyclist Corps officers Members of the Council of the Governor General of India Military personnel from the Vale of Glamorgan