Lieutenant-Colonel William Henry Clement Le Hardy (1889 – 28 December 1961) was an English

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can consis ...

Early life

Le Hardy was born into a family of archivists. His great-uncle, Sir Thomas Hardy and his grandfather Sir William Hardy were Deputy Keepers of the Public Records, and his father

William John Hardy William John Hardy (29 September 1857 – 17 July 1919) was an English archivist and antiquarian. Life He was born in London, the younger son of Sir William Hardy. Hardy like his father was connected with the Historical Manuscripts Commission, ...

(died 1919) was a record agent in the firm of Hardy and Page, later Hardy and Reckitt. His uncle on his mother's side was William Page, record agent and general editor of the ''

Victoria County History The Victoria History of the Counties of England, commonly known as the Victoria County History or the VCH, is an English history project which began in 1899 with the aim of creating an encyclopaedic history of each of the historic counties of En ...

''. Hardy was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

. He served in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in France (where he was seriously wounded, and decorated). Between the wars he commanded the 23rd (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment, in the Territorial Army; and in

World War II 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 opposing ...

he saw active service in the Middle East and Italy.

Career

Following his father's death in 1919 Hardy took control of the family firm, succeeding his father as editor of the calendars of the

Quarter Sessions The courts of quarter sessions or quarter sessions were local courts traditionally held at four set times each year in the Kingdom of England from 1388 (extending also to Wales following the Laws in Wales Act 1535). They were also established in ...

records of Hertfordshire and

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

, and working on those of Buckinghamshire. In 1946 Hardy became county archivist of

(three days a week) and Hertfordshire (two days a week), resigning the Middlesex post in 1956 to concentrate on Hertfordshire. "To his drive and initiative both counties owe the rapid development of their record offices on modern lines and the growth of their record holdings." As a county archivist, he had the reputation of being attentive to the needs to users of the archive.W. B. J., 'Lieut.-Col. W. Le Hardy', ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'', 3 January 1962 Le Hardy was a founder-member of the

British Records Association The British Records Association (widely known as the BRA, pronounced as three letters) is a British learned society founded in 1932 to promote the preservation, understanding, accessibility and study of historic records and archives. It is a regi ...

in 1932, and served almost continuously on its Council until his death, aged 72. Also a founder-member of the Society of Local Archivists, he was chairman of its council from 1949 to 1954, and elected a Vice-President when the Society became the

Society of Archivists The Society of Archivists (SoA), which was in existence from 1947 to 2010, was the principal professional body for archivists, archive conservators and records managers in the United Kingdom and Ireland. In 2010 the Society amalgamated with the Na ...

in 1955. He was elected a Fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

, and was active in its Essay Club.

Works

*(with Dorothy Bushby) ''Wormley in Hertfordshire'', Staples Press, 1954 *''Guide to the Hertfordshire Record Office'', vol I, 1960

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Hardy, William 1889 births 1961 deaths British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of World War II People educated at Westminster School, London English archivists London Regiment officers Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London