Sir Arthur Llewellyn Armitage (1 August 1916 – 1 February 1984), was a British academic who was the President of

Queens' College, Cambridge Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the oldest colleges of the university, founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. The college spans the River Cam, colloquially referred to as the "light s ...

, from 1958 until 1970, Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University between 1965–67 and Vice-Chancellor of

Victoria University of Manchester The Victoria University of Manchester, usually referred to as simply the University of Manchester, was a university in Manchester, England. It was founded in 1851 as Owens College. In 1880, the college joined the federal Victoria University. Afte ...

between 1969 and 1980. Born in

Marsden, West Yorkshire Marsden is a large village in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It is in the South Pennines close to the Peak District which lies to the south. The village is west of Huddersfield at the confluence of the River C ...

, Armitage was educated at

Hulme Grammar School Oldham Hulme Grammar School, formerly Hulme Grammar School, is a private grammar school in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History Oldham Grammar School was founded in 1611 by several charitable individuals including Laurence Chadeton, b ...

and in 1933 went to

, where he gained a first class degree in Law. After he spent two years at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

on a Commonwealth Fund Fellowship and was called to the Bar in

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

1940. He served for five years in the Army during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, achieving the rank of Major. He became a Fellow and tutor of the college in 1947. He was elected President of Queens' in 1958 upon the death of

John Archibald Venn John Archibald Venn (10 November 1883 – 15 March 1958) was a British economist. He was President of Queens' College, Cambridge, from 1932 until his death, Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University 1941–1943, university archivist, and a ...

. In 1969 he was appointed Vice-Chancellor of

, the appointment caused student protests at the time, with over 3000 students occupying the main university building in protest over the lack of consultation on the appointment. He later served as Chairman of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors. In his later years, Armitage chaired a series of government committees under

James Callaghan Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, ( ; 27 March 191226 March 2005), commonly known as Jim Callaghan, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980. Callaghan is ...

and

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

, including the

Social Security Advisory Committee The Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) is a statutory body that provides impartial advice to the UK government on social security issues. When the SSAC reports on government proposals for regulations the report must be presented to Parliament ...

; the Armitage Committee, set up to review the rules governing the political activities of civil servants; and an independent inquiry into lorries and their effect on people and the environment. Armitage was President of

Cambridge University Cricket Club Cambridge University Cricket Club, first recorded in 1817, is the representative cricket club for students of the University of Cambridge. Depending on the circumstances of each individual match, the club has always been recognised as holding ...

between 1965 and 1970. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in the

1975 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1975 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 1975 to celeb ...

List.

References

* "Obituaries: Sir Arthur Armitage", The Times (London, England), Monday, Feb 06, 1984; pg. 16 {{DEFAULTSORT:Armitage, Arthur Llewellyn 1916 births 1984 deaths Military personnel from Yorkshire Knights Bachelor Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge Fellows of Queens' College, Cambridge Presidents of Queens' College, Cambridge Members of the Inner Temple Vice-Chancellors of the Victoria University of Manchester Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cambridge 20th-century British lawyers British Army personnel of World War II British Army officers