Evan Roderic Bowen KC (6 August 1913 – 19 July 2001) was a
Welsh Liberal Party politician.
Bowen was educated at
Cardigan County School,
University College, Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth University ( cy, Prifysgol Aberystwyth) is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The universi ...
,
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...
,
Brussels and the
Inns of Court. He served in the Army for five years during
World War II, reaching the rank of captain. He was a
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
and became a
King's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...
(KC) in 1952.
At the
1945 general election
The following elections occurred in the year 1945.
Africa
* 1945 South-West African legislative election
Asia
* 1945 Indian general election
Australia
* 1945 Fremantle by-election
Europe
* 1945 Albanian parliamentary election
* 1945 Bulgaria ...
, Bowen was elected at the first attempt as
Member of Parliament for
Cardiganshire
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cere ...
, succeeding
Owen Evans Owen Evans may refer to:
* Owen Evans (politician) (1876–1945), Liberal Party politician from Wales
* Jem Evans (Owen James Evans, 1867–1942), Welsh rugby union half-back
* Owen Evans (rugby union) (born 1989), Welsh rugby union prop forward
* ...
. With only a
Labour opponent he comfortably held the seat. He was re-elected in the
1950 general election with the largest Liberal majority at that election, despite facing both
Conservative and Labour opposition. During most of the 1950s he was one of a tiny group of only five or six Liberal MPs left at Westminster. He failed to succeed
Clement Davies as leader of the Liberal Party in 1956 when
Jo Grimond was chosen. Politically, he was on the right of the Liberal Party. During the
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...
, he defended the Conservative Government against opposition "carping criticisms". One of the chief opposition critics of the Government over Suez was his own party leader, Jo Grimond.
Safely returned at the
1959 general election, Bowen's seat was regarded as "the most secure Liberal seat in the whole of the United Kingdom". Even so, it was widely believed that Bowen saw his political career as secondary to his work as a lawyer, a belief that was strengthened by his appointment as
Recorder of Cardiff in 1950 and
Recorder of Merthyr Tydfil in 1953. His legal work in south Wales resulted in very infrequent appearances in the constituency and his attendance and voting record at Westminster was sporadic.
Bowen's political career came second to his judicial career although he was a President of the
Welsh Liberal Federation and member of its council. He was
Recorder of
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydf ...
and of
Carmarthen. After the 1964 election when Labour's majority in the
House of Commons was just four seats, he was persuaded by the Government to accept the position of Deputy
Speaker. This put the Labour majority in the House up to five.
His seat remained safe until the
1964 election when a Conservative candidate intervened and Labour cut his majority to around 2,000. At the
1966 general election, he was defeated by the Labour candidate by just 523 votes.
He served as National Insurance Commissioner for Wales, 1967–86, and as president of
St Davids University College, Lampeter, 1977–92. One of the libraries and a research centre at Lampeter carry his name and Roderick Bowen is also the name of one of the student halls of residence. In 1971-72 he chaired a governmental committee set up to examine road signs policy in Wales.
References
Sources
*
*
*''"Grimond's rival: the life and political career of the Liberal MP for Cardiganshire from 1945-1966, Captain E. Roderic Bowen MP (1913–2001)"'' by J Graham Jones, Journal of Liberal History, Issue 34/35, Spring/Summer 2002
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Roderic
1913 births
2001 deaths
Liberal Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies
Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge
UK MPs 1945–1950
UK MPs 1950–1951
UK MPs 1951–1955
UK MPs 1955–1959
UK MPs 1959–1964
UK MPs 1964–1966
Alumni of Aberystwyth University
Alumni of the Inns of Court School of Law
Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Ceredigion
Welsh barristers
20th-century King's Counsel