Bryan Keith-Lucas (born Lucas; 1 August 1912,

Fen Ditton Fen Ditton is a village on the northeast edge of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire, England. The parish covers an area of . Fen Ditton lies on the east bank of the River Cam, on the road from Cambridge to Clayhithe, and close to junction 34 of the A ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

− 1996,

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

political scientist.

Education

The son of Alys Hubbard Lucas and Keith Lucas, professor of

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

at Cambridge and an instrument designer, Keith-Lucas was born at

and educated at

Gresham's School Gresham's School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent Day school, day and boarding school) in Holt, Norfolk, Holt, Norfolk, England, one of the top thirty International Bac ...

Holt Holt or holte may refer to: Natural world *Holt (den), an otter den * Holt, an area of woodland Places Australia * Holt, Australian Capital Territory * Division of Holt, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives in Vic ...

, and

Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

, where he read history and economics. In his

Tripos At the University of Cambridge, a Tripos (, plural 'Triposes') is any of the examinations that qualify an undergraduate for a bachelor's degree or the courses taken by a student to prepare for these. For example, an undergraduate studying mathe ...

he gained an upper Second in history and a lower Second in economics. While at Cambridge, he took a great interest in government, especially social policy and the problems of housing, thanks to two priests, Father Jellicoe and Father Scott, who had begun the St Pancras Housing Society. He decided to become a solicitor. The family name was changed to Keith-Lucas to honour the father after his death in 1916.

Career

Bryan Keith-Lucas joined the town clerk's department at

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and qualified as a solicitor in 1937. 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 ...

he served with the Buffs and

Sherwood Foresters The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for just under 90 years, from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Worcestershire Regiment to f ...

in north Africa, Italy, and Cyprus, and was

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) 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 ...

, ending the war as a major. He then returned to local government in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

. In 1948 he became senior lecturer in local government at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, and in 1950 a fellow of

Nuffield College, Oxford Nuffield College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is a graduate college and specialises in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. Nuffield is one of Oxford's newer co ...

. He served as an Oxford city councillor for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

, sat on several government committees, and advised on aspects of local government for Britain's former colonies. In 1965 he was appointed professor of government at the new

University of Kent at Canterbury A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

, and from 1970 to 1974 he was Master of

Darwin College, Kent Darwin College is the fourth-oldest college of the University of Kent, an English higher education institution in the United Kingdom. It was opened in 1970. Namesake After much debate, the college was named after Charles Darwin, the biologist ...

. He retired in 1977 and taught politics part-time at

King's School, Canterbury The King's School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for 13 to 18 year old pupils) in Canterbury, Kent, England. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and the Eton Group. It is Britain's ...

. In the last years of his life, he lived at

Wye, Kent Wye is a village in Kent, England, from Ashford and from Canterbury. It is the main settlement in the civil parish of Wye with Hinxhill. Hop varieties including Wye Challenger were bred at Wye College and named for the village. In 2013, ''S ...

Family

Keith-Lucas married Mary Hardwicke in 1946. They had a son, and two daughters. He was the brother of

David Keith-Lucas David Keith-Lucas (25 March 1911 – 6 April 1997) was a British aeronautical engineer. Early life David Keith-Lucas was one of the sons of Alys Hubbard Lucas and Keith Lucas, who invented the first aeronautical compass. After the death of K ...

(1911–1997), an aeronautical engineer, and of Alan Keith-Lucas.

Honours

*1983: Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

Publications

*''The English Local Government Franchise'' (1952) *''The Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors'' (1961) *''History of Local Government in England'' by Josef Redlich and Francis Wrigley Hirst (editor of 2nd edition, 1970) *''English Local Government in the 19th and 20th Centuries'' (1977) *''A History of Local Government in the 20th Century (with P. G. Richards, 1978) *''The Unreformed Local Government System'' (1980) *''Parish Affairs'' (1986) *''A Kentish Parson'' (Joseph Price, approximately 1736-1807; ed. with Dr G. M. Ditchfield, 1991)

Sources

*''Keith Lucas'' by John K. Bradley in ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (OUP, 2004) *''Who's Who 1993'' (A. & C. Black, London, 1993)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keith-Lucas, Bryan 1912 births 1996 deaths People educated at Gresham's School Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge Academics of the University of Kent Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British Army personnel of World War II Fellows of Nuffield College, Oxford Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Members of Oxford City Council Sherwood Foresters officers People from Fen Ditton Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) officers Military personnel from Cambridgeshire