Sir Richard Charles Catling CMG,

OBE 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 ...

, KPM (22 August 1912 – 22 March 2005) was a British police officer who rose to the rank of Commissioner of Police in Kenya from 1954 to 1963.Sir Richard Catling
''The Times'', 12 April 2005. Catling was previously an officer with the

Palestine Police The Palestine Police Force (, ) was a British colonial police service established in Mandatory Palestine on 1 July 1920,Sinclair, 2006. when High Commissioner Sir Herbert Samuel's civil administration took over responsibility for security from ...

from 1935 until the British pulled out of the country in 1948, rising to the rank of assistant inspector-general of the CID in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. After that, he went on to play a role in countering insurgencies in Malaya and Kenya.
''The Daily Telegraph'' 05 Apr 2005 __TOC__

Early life

Catling was born in

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

into a family of butchers and farmers. He attended grammar school in

Bungay Bungay () is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . It lies in the Waveney Valley, west of Beccles on the edge of The Broads, and at th ...

, then joined a London textile company. Finding his job dull, he was on his way home by train one day in 1935, when he spotted an old friend standing on a station platform. His friend pointed out a poster calling for volunteers to join the Palestine Police. Catling crossed the platform and volunteered.

Career

Palestine

Catling joined the political branch of the CID in Jerusalem in 1936 and rose to the rank of assistant inspector-general CID in 1945, was awarded the Kings Police Medal, and held his post until the British withdrawal in 1948.

Malaysia

He then joined the Malay Police, helping deal with the Communist insurgency and being awarded the OBE in 1951. He took home leave in 1952 to marry Mary Joan Lewis (who predeceased him).

Kenya

In 1954, he became Commissioner of Police in Kenya, during the

Mau Mau rebellion The Mau Mau rebellion (1952–1960), also known as the Mau Mau uprising, Mau Mau revolt, or Kenya Emergency, was a war in the British Kenya Colony (1920–1963) between the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA), also known as the Mau Mau, and the ...

. Shortly after his appointment, he visited

Jomo Kenyatta Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He played a significant role in the ...

in jail, hoping to understand the basis for

Kikuyu Kikuyu or Gikuyu (Gĩkũyũ) mostly refers to an ethnic group in Kenya or its associated language. It may also refer to: *Kikuyu people, a majority ethnic group in Kenya * Kikuyu language, the language of Kikuyu people *Kikuyu, Kenya, a town in Cen ...

discontent. They got on well, and Kenyatta kept Catling on as Inspector-General of Police for a year after he came to power. He was appointed CMG for his services to Kenya in 1956.

Retirement

He was knighted on his retirement as Inspector-General of Police in 1964, and was made a Freeman of the City of London in 1979.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catling, Richard 1912 births 2005 deaths British people of the Palestine Emergency British people of the Malayan Emergency British people of the Mau Mau rebellion Mandatory Palestine people of World War II Palestine Police Force officers Officers_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire Companions_of_the_Order_of_St_Michael_and_St_George