Norman Craven Brook, 1st Baron Normanbrook, (29 April 1902 – 15 June 1967), known as Sir Norman Brook between 1946 and 1964, was a British civil servant. He was
Cabinet Secretary between 1947 and 1962 as well as joint permanent secretary to
HM Treasury
His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...
and head of the
Home Civil Service
His Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as His Majesty's Civil Service, the Home Civil Service, or colloquially as the Civil Service is the permanent bureaucracy or secretariat of Crown employees that supports His Majesty's Government, whic ...
from 1956 to 1962.
Background and education
Brook was born at 18, Cricklade Road,
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
, the son of Frederick Charles Brook (1867–1937) and Annie (d. 1921), daughter of Thomas Smith, of
Bradford,
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
. Frederick Brook was at different times a schoolmaster, inspector of schools, tax assessor, and district inspector for the
Ministry of Health. He was the son of George Brook, of Bradford, a
cabinet-maker.
Harold Macmillan (although himself of recent undistinguished
crofting
Crofting is a form of land tenure and small-scale food production particular to the Scottish Highlands, the islands of Scotland, and formerly on the Isle of Man.
Within the 19th century townships, individual crofts were established on the bett ...
ancestry, notwithstanding his grandfather
Daniel MacMillan
Daniel MacMillan ( gd, Dòmhnall MacMhaolain; 13 September 1813 – 27 June 1857) was a Scottish publisher from the Isle of Arran, Scotland. MacMillan was one of the co-founders of Macmillan Publishers along with his brother Alexander in L ...
's success in founding
Macmillan Publishers
Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publ ...
) was fascinated by the fact that, despite Brook, his Cabinet Secretary, having "no background" and being of comparatively humble origins, he possessed "remarkably sound judgement". Brook was educated at
Wolverhampton Grammar School
Wolverhampton Grammar School is a co-educational independent school in Wolverhampton, England.
History
Initially a grammar school for boys, WGS was founded in 1512 by Sir Stephen Jenyns, a master of the ancient guild of Merchant Taylors, who ...
and
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road.
Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...
.
[thepeerage.com Norman Craven Brook, 1st and last Baron Normanbrook](_blank)
/ref> Maurice Bowra
Sir Cecil Maurice Bowra, (; 8 April 1898 – 4 July 1971) was an English classical scholar, literary critic and academic, known for his wit. He was Warden of Wadham College, Oxford, from 1938 to 1970, and served as Vice-Chancellor of the Univers ...
, who taught Brook at Oxford, remarked when considering his progression to the heart of the establishment
''The Establishment'' is a term used to describe a dominant group or elite that controls a polity or an organization. It may comprise a closed social group that selects its own members, or entrenched elite structures in specific institution ...
that Brook was "very quick... Came up with a front pocket stuffed full of pens. Soon disappeared inside. Learned the tricks."
Career
Brook joined the Home Civil Service in 1925 and attained the grade of Principal in 1933 and of Assistant Secretary in 1938. He was Principal Private Secretary
A private secretary (PS) is a civil servant in a governmental department or ministry, responsible to a secretary of state or minister; or a public servant in a royal household, responsible to a member of the royal family.
The role exists in ...
to Sir John Anderson
John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverley, (8 July 1882 – 4 January 1958) was a Scottish civil servant and politician who is best known for his service in the War Cabinet during the Second World War, for which he was nicknamed the "Home Front Pr ...
from 1938 to 1942, Deputy Secretary (Civil) to the War Cabinet
A war cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war to efficiently and effectively conduct that war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers, although it is quite common for a war cabinet to have senio ...
in 1942, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Reconstruction
The Ministry of Reconstruction was a department of the United Kingdom government which existed after both World War I and World War II in order to provide for the needs of the population in the post war years.
World War I
The Ministry of Recons ...
from 1943 to 1945, Additional Secretary to the Cabinet from 1945 to 1946, and Secretary of the Cabinet
The Permanent Under-Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office, known informally as the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary, is the second-most senior civil servant of the Cabinet Office. It was conventionally joined with the positions of Cabinet Se ...
from 1947 to 1962. He was also joint permanent secretary to HM Treasury
His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...
and head of the Home Civil Service
His Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as His Majesty's Civil Service, the Home Civil Service, or colloquially as the Civil Service is the permanent bureaucracy or secretariat of Crown employees that supports His Majesty's Government, whic ...
from 1956 to 1962. Brook was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...
(CB) in 1942, promoted to Knight Commander (KCB) in 1946 and Knight Grand Cross (GCB) in 1951, and sworn of the Privy Council in 1953.
Churchill and Brook were colleagues during the Second World War and Churchill's 1951-1955 government. Brook was his adviser. Brook was a member of The Other Club
The Other Club is a British political dining society founded in 1911 by Winston Churchill and F. E. Smith. It met to dine fortnightly in the Pinafore Room at the Savoy Hotel during periods when Parliament was in session. The club's members over ...
. Brook succeeded Sir Edward Bridges as a secretary to the treasury in 1956. He served there to 1962.
On 24 January 1963 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Normanbrook, of Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
in the County of London. Between 1964 and 1967 he was Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC
The Board of Governors of the BBC was the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation. It consisted of twelve people who together regulated the BBC and represented the interests of the public. It existed from 1927 until it was replace ...
. He was one of the twelve pall bearers at Sir Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...
's funeral in 1965.
Personal life
Lord Normanbrook married Ida Mary, daughter of E. A. Goshawk, in 1929. He died in June 1967, aged 65, when the barony became extinct.
See also
* List of residents of Wolverhampton
This is a list of notable people born in or associated with the city of Wolverhampton in England.
A
* Antonio Aakeel – (born ca.1985) English actor
* Sir James Adams KCMG (1932–2020) – diplomat; ambassador to Egypt and Tunisia
* Jac ...
The Papers of Lord Normanbrook
held at 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 of ...
References
External links
* Bridges, Edward Ettingdene; The Other Club.
** Colville, John. 1981. The Churchillians.London:Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
** Gilbert Martin. 1983–1988. Winston S.Churchill.Vol.6-8.London:Heinemann.
** Seldon Abthony.1981.Churchill's Indian Summer. London:Hodder and Stoughton.
** Trend, Lord.1981."Brook, Norman Craven, Baron Normanbrook". In the Dictionary of National Biography 1961–1970, edited by E.T.Williams andC.S.Nicholls. Oxford:Oxford University Press.
**
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Normanbrook, Norman Brook, 1st Baron
1902 births
1967 deaths
People educated at Wolverhampton Grammar School
Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford
Chairmen of the BBC
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
BBC Governors
Brook, Norman
Brook, Norman
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Brook, Norman
Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II