Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part ...

Eric Arthur Seal (16 September 1898 – 31 March 1972) was a British

civil servant 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 ...

who served as

Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister The Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is a senior official in the United Kingdom Civil Service who acts as principal private secretary to the prime minister of the United Kingdom. The holder of this office i ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

, during

World War II 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 ...

; and as Principal Private Secretary to Winston Churchill in his role as

First Lord of the Admiralty First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the title of the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible f ...

in 1939. These two positions are public, rather than private posts. He was chairman of the UK Civil Service for seventeen years.

Early life

Eric Arthur Seal was born in

Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...

London Borough of Redbridge The London Borough of Redbridge is a London boroughs, London borough established in 1965. The borough shares boundaries with the Epping Forest District and the ceremonial county of Essex to the north, with the London Borough of Waltham Forest t ...

, the son of Arthur John Todd Seal and Wilhelmina Henrietta "Mina" Youll. His parents had married in

Edmonton, London Edmonton is a town in north London, England within the London Borough of Enfield, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London. The northern part of the town is known as Lower Edmonton or Edmonton Green, and the southern ...

on 10 August 1895. He was the eldest of 6 children. During 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 ...

he served as a Second lieutenant in the

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

and later in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

No. 62 Squadron RAF No. 62 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was originally established as a Royal Flying Corps squadron in 1916 and operated the Bristol F2B fighter in France during the last year of the First World War. After the war the squadron was disbanded and ...

Career

Seal initially entered the

Patent Office A patent office is a governmental or intergovernmental organization which controls the issue of patents. In other words, "patent offices are government bodies that may grant a patent or reject the patent application based on whether the applicati ...

in 1921, and continued to work his way through the UK Civil Service ranks within the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

from 1925 onwards. He is referred to in Arthur Marder’s memoirs as a person of influence within the Admiralty. Seal had served as Principal Private Secretary to

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 ...

and

James Stanhope, 7th Earl Stanhope James Richard Stanhope, 7th Earl Stanhope (11 November 1880 – 15 August 1967), styled Viscount Mahon until 1905, was a British Conservative politician. Background Stanhope was the eldest son of Arthur Stanhope, 6th Earl Stanhope, and Evelyn H ...

in their respective roles as First Lord of the Admiralty. On the 3 September 1939 whilst in the First Sea Lord's office shortly after 11'o'clock when the ultimatum sent to the Germans was unanswered, Seal bowed to

Ethel Goodenough Superintendent Ethel Mary Goodenough (12January 190010February 1946), usually known as Angela Goodenough, was a British naval officer who was the deputy director of the Women's Royal Naval Service when it was reformed in 1939. Early life Goo ...

and said "Miss Goodenough, I have the honour to tell you that we are at war". Within the eight months that Churchill served as First Lord of the Admiralty, Seal proved himself to be invaluable, to the extent that just weeks into Churchill’s role of

Prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, the 1st Earl Alexander of Hillsborough was instructed to release Seal from his daily duties, and transfer him for an extended period to

Downing Street Downing Street is a gated street in City of Westminster, Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. In a cul-de-sac situated off Whiteh ...

to serve as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime minister. In this role, he became Churchill’s trusted advisor on public affairs. Seal had the ability to get to the bottom of the subject matter and has been described as Churchill’s ferret. As Churchill’s Principal Private Secretary, Seal was present at the most important strategic conferences of the early war period, and the making of key political decisions affecting the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, such as the

Attack on Mers-el-Kébir The attack on Mers-el-Kébir (Battle of Mers-el-Kébir) on 3 July 1940, during the Second World War, was a British naval attack on French Navy ships at the naval base at Mers El Kébir, near Oran, on the coast of French Algeria. The attack was ...

and the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain () was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defended the United Kingdom (UK) against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany's air force ...

. According to Seal: On 4 July 1940,

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

told the French ambassador that he would have done the same.

Jean Lacouture Jean Lacouture (9 June 1921 – 16 July 2015) was a journalist, historian and author. He was particularly famous for his biographies. Career Jean Lacouture was born in Bordeaux, France. He began his career in journalism in 1950 in ''Combat'' a ...

, in a biography of

Charles De Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

, blamed the tragedy mainly on miscommunication. Other aides during this period included

Jock Colville Sir John Rupert Colville, CB, CVO (28 January 1915 – 19 November 1987) was a British civil servant. He is best known for his diaries, which provide an intimate view of number 10 Downing Street during the wartime Premiership of Winston Church ...

, John Peck,

Leslie Rowan Sir Thomas Leslie Rowan (22 February 1908 – 29 April 1972) was a British civil servant and industrialist. He served in the Colonial Office and HM Treasury, and was Principal Private Secretary to Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee, before ...

, Patrick Kinna and Elizabeth Nel. Seal, in a letter to Arthur Marder, as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, described himself as “a sole survivor” from Churchill’s previous incarnation, as First Lord of the Admiralty (1939–1940).

John Gerald Lang Sir John Gerald Lang, GCB (20 December 1896 – 22 September 1984), was a British civil servant who held the position of Permanent Secretary of the Admiralty from 1947 to 1961.''The Times'', Obituary of Sir John Gerald Lang (26 September 1984). F ...

, a very able and clear headed civil servant in charge of the Admiralty War Registry, described Seal during the Norwegian campaign as “an able man” and “a very assured person and apt to be certain of the rightness of his view”. The

Churchill Archives Centre The Churchill Archives Centre (CAC) at Churchill College at the University of Cambridge is one of the largest repositories in the United Kingdom for the preservation and study of modern personal papers. It is best known for housing the papers ...

(CAC) holds a number boxes of his official work papers (from between 1939 and 1955) that cover a wide range of subject matter; from the questionable sympathies of

Axel Wenner-Gren Axel Lennart Wenner-Gren (5 June 1881 – 24 November 1961) was a Swedish entrepreneur and one of the wealthiest men in the world during the 1930s. Early life He was born on 5 June 1881 in Uddevalla, a town on the west coast of Sweden. He ...

and

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

, to the design of an

air raid shelter Air raid shelters are structures for the protection of non-combatants as well as combatants against enemy attacks from the air. They are similar to bunkers in many regards, although they are not designed to defend against ground attack (but ...

at Chartwell House, Churchill’s weekend residence in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

; to when he was released for “special duties in the Admiralty” during May 1941, and was replaced by John Martin. These new “special duties” were highly strategic and related to the future

Lend-Lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (),3,000 Hurricanes and >4,000 other aircraft) * 28 naval vessels: ** 1 Battleship. (HMS Royal Sovereign (05), HMS Royal Sovereign) * ...

agreement, which was by now crucial to the security of the United Kingdom. Churchill appointed him as Deputy Secretary of the Admiralty for North America to secure an agreement with the United States. Although his work papers are now part of the Churchill Archives, some of his records, including correspondence with Churchill’s prime scientific adviser

Frederick Lindemann, 1st Viscount Cherwell Frederick Alexander Lindemann, 1st Viscount Cherwell, ( ; 5 April 18863 July 1957) was a British physicist who was prime scientific adviser to Winston Churchill in World War II. He was involved in the development of radar and infra-red guida ...

during 1945, form part of the National Archives. Personal papers from the time he was a Private Secretary have been made readily available to historians by his family. Seal continued to be a significant influence upon Churchill’s own writings; particularly in any references to

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

. After 1945, Seal held a number of senior civil service roles, such as Chief of Trade and Industries, replacing

Percy Mills, 1st Viscount Mills Percy Herbert Mills, 1st Viscount Mills, (4 January 1890 – 10 September 1968), known as Sir Percy Mills, Bt, between 1953 and 1957 and as The Lord Mills between 1957 and 1962, was a British industrialist, public servant and politician. Backgro ...

, where he headed various collaborative events with the United States,

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and

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 ...

; notable for being a career civil servant leading the British Delegation. In 1947 he was physically described by the

United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, als ...

as wearing glasses, being of medium build and a pipe smoker. During this period he was Vice President of the economic sub-commission on roads and railways Germany (British Element). He later became Deputy Parliamentary Under Secretary for State for Germany in the Foreign Office. Thereafter he moved onto the Ministry of Works. He was knighted (KBE) for his services in the

1955 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1955 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1955 to celebra ...

, and retired as a Deputy Director, Ministry of Works in 1959. His publication on Sir Winston Churchill in 1970 is held within the National Archives. He is listed in ''

Who was Who ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It has been published annually in the form of a hardback book since 1849, and has been published online since 1999. It has also been published on CD-ROM. It lists, and gives information on, people from around ...

''. Various sources cite an unpublished autobiography of his life, which provided a personal perspective and a first hand “working level” overview of Churchills inner circle, as well as his experiences during a critical and decisive period of World War II.

Personal

He married Gladys Leadbitter in

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

in 1926. They had three children. A year later he became the brother in law of his colleague,

Noel Atherton Noel Atherton (8 May 1899 – 15 September 1987) was a British cartographer in the Admiralty Hydrographic Office; today known as the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office. Chief Civil Hydrographic Officer and Assistant Superintendent of Charts, for ...

, through the latter's marriage to Daisy Phyllis Leadbitter, his wife's younger sister. Seal was active with the Additional Curates Society, an Anglican devotion society whilst living at his home “Seaforth”, located at Woodfield Lane,

Ashtead Ashtead is a village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, approximately south of central London. Ashtead is on the single-carriageway A24 road (Great Britain), A24 between Epsom and Leatherhead. The village is on the northern sl ...

on Surrey. Seal died in

West Itchenor West Itchenor is a village and civil parish, on the Manhood Peninsula The Manhood Peninsula is in the southwest of West Sussex in England. It has the English Channel to its south and Chichester to the north. It is bordered to its west by Chi ...

Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

on 31 March 1972 at the age of 73. His obituary was published in The Times. His wife died on 20 June 1978.

Legacy

A keen

yachtsman A yacht () is a sail- or motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a ...

, in 1956, Seal facilitated the purchase of the first Civil Service Sailing Association sailing yacht. The “Melanie”, a 42’ yacht was built in 1919 by the

Abeking & Rasmussen Abeking & Rasmussen (A&R) is a shipyard situated in Lemwerder, near Bremen in the Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. The shipyard is on the left bank of the Weser, River Weser, and currently comprises five production halls with associated work ...

shipyard. Seal and his colleagues restored the yacht. In the 1970s, Seal left his part share in the “Melanie” to Peter Townrow; his final wishes being to keep the vessel in a good state of repair, in order to continue the tradition of utilising the vessel to promote sailing to the underprivileged. He was nominated as the Civil Service Sailing Association’s First Commodore, officially opening the club on 22 June 1958. He was a sizeable monetary contributor to the Civil Service and Post Office Life Boat Fund in aid of the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on s ...

. A Civil Service lifeboat #36 was named “The Eric Seal”, in his honour and stationed at

Eyemouth Eyemouth is a town and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in Berwickshire, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It is east of the main north–south A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road and north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. The town's name ...

in the

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by West Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian, and East Lothian to the north, the North Sea to the east, Dumfries and Galloway to the south-west, South Lanarkshire to the we ...

. The lifeboat was officially named by his wife, Lady Seal on 3 August 1973.

References

Works cited