Keith David Palmer (3 October 1968 – 22 March 2017) was a British

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

who was posthumously awarded the

George Medal The George Medal (GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI,''British Gallantry Medals'' (Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138 is a decoration of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, awarded for gallantry, typically by civilians, or in cir ...

, the second highest award for gallantry " not in the face of the enemy". Though unarmed, he stopped a knife-wielding terrorist from entering the Palace of Westminster during the 2017 Westminster attack; he died from wounds he received in this attack. He had worked for the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) for 16 years, and had joined the MPS's Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Group in April 2016.

Police career

Palmer had served in the British Army as a Bombardier with the Royal Regiment of Artillery until August 2001 when he was discharged. In November 2001, Palmer joined the Metropolitan Police as a

police constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

(PC). From 2002 to 2009, he served in the

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is the southeasternmost of the London boroughs that make up Greater London, bordering the ceremonial county of Kent, which most of Bromley was part of before 1965. The borough's population is an estimated 332,3 ...

. He then joined the

Territorial Support Group The Territorial Support Group (TSG) is a Met Operations unit of London's Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) which specialises in public order policing, amongst other specialist areas. In 2012 it consisted of 793 officers and 29 support staff. Th ...

, a grouping that specialises in

public order In criminology, public-order crime is defined by Siegel (2004) as "crime which involves acts that interfere with the operations of society and the ability of people to function efficiently", i.e., it is behaviour that has been labelled criminal ...

and operates across Greater London. In 2015, he was nominated as "best thief taker" at the Commissioner's Excellence Awards in recognition of making 150 arrests in twelve months. In April 2016, he joined the MPS's Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Group.

Westminster attack

On 22 March 2017, Palmer was in

New Palace Yard New Palace Yard is a yard (area of grounds) northwest of the Palace of Westminster in Westminster, London, England. It is part of the grounds not open to the public. However, it can be viewed from the two adjoining streets, as a result of Edward ...

guarding the Palace of Westminster. At approximately 14:40, he was approached by Khalid Masood, who was armed with two knives. Though unarmed, Palmer confronted Masood in an attempt to stop him. Masood fatally injured Palmer during this encounter. By confronting Masood, Palmer delayed him long enough for an armed police officer to arrive and shoot Masood dead.

Funeral

Palmer was granted the rare honour of lying in rest in the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft, Palace of Westminster; other recipients of this honour include: the former

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

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 from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

in 2013 and the former

Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official responsib ...

Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British politician, writer and diarist who served as a Cabinet minister in the 1960s and 1970s. A member of the Labour Party, ...

in 2014. On 9 April 2017, his coffin was received into the chapel with a guard of honour of police officers. A private service was then held for his family. Officers kept vigil next to the coffin overnight. The following day, on 10 April, Palmer's coffin travelled in procession to

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ) or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwar ...

, escorted by motorcycle outriders from the Special Escort Group of the Metropolitan Police. The route was long and avoided

Westminster Bridge Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side. The bridge is painted predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the ...

where the terrorist attack had begun. Instead, the procession crossed the Thames over

Lambeth Bridge Lambeth Bridge is a road traffic and footbridge crossing the River Thames in an east–west direction in central London. The river flows north at the crossing point. Downstream, the next bridge is Westminster Bridge; upstream, the next bridge i ...

, during which a ten-second horn salute was given by boats on the river. Tens of thousands of people lined the streets, including 5,000 police officers. The procession was fronted by a colour party carrying the Metropolitan Police Service Standard, who were followed by five mounted police officers. Then came the funeral conductor and chaplains (including

Rose Hudson-Wilkin Rose Josephine Hudson-Wilkin, (born 19 January 1961) is a British Anglican bishop, who has been suffragan Bishop of Dover in the diocese of Canterbury - deputising for the Archbishop - since 2019: she is the first black woman to become a Chur ...

Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons The Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, also known as the Speaker's Chaplain, is a Church of England priest who officiates at services held at the Palace of Westminster and its associated chapel, St Mary Undercroft. The Chaplain ...

) who were walking in front of the

hearse A hearse is a large vehicle, originally a horse carriage but later with the introduction of motor vehicles, a car, used to carry the body of a deceased person in a coffin at a funeral, wake, or memorial service. They range from deliberately a ...

. The hearse carried Palmer's coffin which was draped in the police flag, and there were "red and white floral tributes atop the hearse"; these "spelled out 'No 1 Daddy', 'husband', 'son', 'brother', 'uncle' and 'Keith'". Making up the rear were cars carrying his family, and four more mounted officers. Palmer was given a full police funeral at Southwark Cathedral. It was attended by his family and friends, and a number of dignitaries including

Cressida Dick Dame Cressida Rose Dick (born 16 October 1960) is a British retired senior police officer who served as Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis from 2017 to 2022. She is both the first female and first openly homosexual officer to lead the M ...

, the newly appointed Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. Dick read the poem "

Funeral Blues "Funeral Blues", or "Stop all the clocks", is a poem by W. H. Auden which first appeared in the 1936 play ''The Ascent of F6''. Auden substantially rewrote the poem several years later as a cabaret song for the singer Hedli Anderson. Both versi ...

" by

W. H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...

at the service which was her first public engagement since taking up the post. The address was given by Andrew Nunn, the Dean of Southwark.

Personal life

Palmer was married to his wife, Michelle. They have a daughter, who was aged five at the time of Palmer's death. Palmer was a supporter of Charlton Athletic F.C. and held a season ticket. The club honoured him by replacing his regular seat at The Valley stadium with "a white chair bearing his warrant number 'P204752'".

Honours

In the 2017 Birthday Honours, Palmer was awarded the

(GM) "for confronting an armed terrorist to protect others and Parliament". In recognition of his sacrifice, the Metropolitan Police Service retired his shoulder number (4157U) and stated that it would "not be reissued to any other officer". His name has been added to the United Kingdom's Police Roll of Honour by the

Police Roll of Honour Trust The Police Roll of Honour Trust is a charitable organisation registered in England & Wales and Scotland, it was founded in 2000 and records all those British police officers who have died on and in the line of duty. It has been granted a Royal Cha ...

. He was awarded the outstanding bravery of the year award at the 2018 Met Excellence Awards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Keith 1968 births 2017 deaths Deaths by stabbing in London Male murder victims English murder victims Metropolitan Police officers killed in the line of duty Recipients of the George Medal Metropolitan Police officers English terrorism victims Victims of Islamic terrorism Terrorism deaths in England People murdered in Westminster 2017 murders in the United Kingdom