Sir David Lewis Evans, OBE,

FRHistS The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

(14 August 1893 – 23 April 1987) was a Welsh archivist who served as executive head of the

Public Record Office The Public Record Office (abbreviated as PRO, pronounced as three letters and referred to as ''the'' PRO), Chancery Lane in the City of London, was the guardian of the national archives of the United Kingdom from 1838 until 2003, when it was m ...

from 1954 to 1960 (under the successive titles of Deputy Keeper of Public Records, 1954–58; and Keeper of Public Records, 1958–60).

Early life

Born on 14 August 1893, Evans was the son of the Rev. David Evans and his wife Margaret, Lewis. He attended Bridgend County School, the

University College of Wales Aberystwyth University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 stude ...

and then

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 ...

, earning

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(BA) and

Bachelor of Letters Bachelor of Letters (BLitt or LittB; Latin ' or ') is a second bachelor's degree in which students specialize in an area of study relevant to their own personal, professional, or academic development. This area of study may have been touched on in ...

(BLitt) degrees. In 1915, he was commissioned into the Duke of Wellington's Regiment and served out the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

."Evans, Sir David (Lewis)"
''Who Was Who'' (online edition, Oxford University Press, December 2007). Retrieved 10 January 2018.

Career

In 1921, Evans joined the

. In the lead-up to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he travelled across London to find suitable locations to which the Office's documents could be evacuated. Some were placed in hospital wards, but many, including

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

, were held in Shepton Mallet prison. He was then responsible for arranging their return after the war, and collected Domesday Book himself in an unmarked van. With that done, he could focus on reorganising the Public Record Office Museum. In 1947, he became Principal Assistant Keeper and simultaneously took up a lectureship at the School of Librarianship and Archives,

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, where he taught administrative history and archive studies. He served in both posts until 1954, when he was appointed Deputy Keeper – the professional head of the Public Record Office. Until 1959, the

Master of the Rolls The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Court of Appeal (England and Wales)#Civil Division, Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales ...

was nominal Keeper, but at the start of that year, the position was transferred to Evans who became the first civil servant to be Keeper of Public Records."Sir David Evans", ''The Times'' (London), 29 April 1987, p. 18. He retired the following year, but continued to serve as a member of the Advisory Council on Public Records until 1965 and as a Commissioner of the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts until 1980. He was a Governor of the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

, the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the l ...

and the

National Museum of Wales National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. In the words of ''

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 ...

'', "he was a records man of the old school who saw it as his job to make documents readily available to scholars, at whose disposal he also placed his own expertise". He was interested in mediaeval Welsh history and published ''Flintshire Ministers' Accounts, 1328–1352'' in 1929. Evans was a Fellow and Vice-President (1956–60) of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

, an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(1947) and a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

(1958). He was President of the Aberystwyth Old Students' Association in 1962–63.

Personal life

Evans was married to Marie Christine Austin, daughter of Edwin Austin, a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

. The couple had two daughters. Marie died in 1966; and Sir David on 23 April 1987.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, David 1893 births 1987 deaths Fellows of the Royal Historical Society British archivists Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford People associated with the National Archives (United Kingdom) Aberystwyth Old Students' Association Governors of the British Film Institute