imported>Mxxo2 at 01:42, 21 August 2021

2021-08-21T01:42:31Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2013}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2013}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Sir John Nott-Bower
|honorific-suffix = {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|KCVO|OStJ|KPM}}
|image =
|imagesize =
|smallimage =
|caption =
|order =
|office = [[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis|Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police]]
|term_start = 1953
|term_end = 1958
|predecessor = [[Harold Scott (police commissioner)|Sir Harold Scott]]
|successor = [[Joseph Simpson|Sir Joseph Simpson]]
|birthname = John Reginald Hornby Nott-Bower
|birth_date = 16 March 1892<ref>''Liverpool, England, Church of England Baptisms, 1813-1917''</ref>
|birth_place = [[Liverpool]], Lancashire, England<ref>''1911 England Census''</ref>
|death_date = {{death date|1972|10|3|df=y}}
|death_place =
|restingplace =
|restingplacecoordinates =
|profession = [[Police officer]]
}}
'''Sir John Reginald Hornby Nott-Bower''' {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|KCVO|OStJ|KPM}} (16 March 1892 – 3 October 1972) was [[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]], the head of the London [[Metropolitan Police]], from 1953 to 1958. He was the first career police officer to hold this post.

==Early life and career in India==
Nott-Bower was the son of [[William Nott-Bower]], then [[Chief Constable]] of [[Liverpool City Police]] and later Commissioner of the [[City of London Police]], and the great grandson of [[William Nott|Major-General Sir William Nott]]. He was educated at [[Tonbridge School]] and joined the [[Indian Police Service]] by competitive examination in 1911. He was posted to the [[United Provinces of Agra and Oudh|United Provinces]] and served there until 1921, when he returned to England to work at the [[India Office]] in London. On 21 June 1918 he was commissioned a [[Second Lieutenant]] in the [[Indian Army Reserve of Officers]],<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=31230|page=3492|date=14 March 1919}}</ref> he resigned the commission in 1922.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=32746|page=3492|date=12 September 1922}}</ref>

In 1923 he returned to the United Provinces as a [[Superintendent (police)|Superintendent]]. He commanded successively [[Allahabad]], [[Lucknow]] and [[Bareilly]] districts, and also served in the [[Criminal Investigation Department]]. In the [[1931 Birthday Honours]], he was awarded the [[King's Police Medal]] (KPM)<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=33722|supp=y|page=3637|date=2 June 1931}}</ref> for bravery after he confronted [[Chandrashekhar Azad]] on 27 February 1931, after they had shot him in the thighs, making it impossible for him to escape. Azad was one of the most wanted revolutionaries in India. Azad had vowed not to be captured alive by the British, therefore with the last bullet left, he shot himself, for which John Nott-Bower is credited.

==Metropolitan Police==
On 29 June 1933, Nott-Bower joined the Metropolitan Police as Chief Constable (second in command) of No.1 District, consisting of A (Whitehall), B (Westminster), C (St James's), T (Hammersmith) and V (Wandsworth) [[Police division#United Kingdom|Divisions]]. On 1 December 1933 he was promoted to [[Deputy Assistant Commissioner]] in command of the district. On 23 July 1937, he was appointed [[Commander of the Royal Victorian Order]] (CVO).<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=34420|pages=4733–4734|date=23 July 1937}}</ref>

On 1 September 1940, he was appointed [[Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis|Assistant Commissioner "A"]], in charge of administration and uniformed policing. From 1945 to 1946 he was seconded to Austria as Inspector-General of the Public Safety Branch of the [[Allied Control Commission]], and later as Director of the Internal Affairs Division of the Commission. On his return he was promoted to [[Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis|Deputy Commissioner]]. He was appointed [[Venerable Order of Saint John|Officer of the Order of St John]] (OStJ) on 24 June 1949<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=38650|page=3132|date=24 June 1949}}</ref> and was [[Knight Bachelor|knighted]] in the [[1950 Birthday Honours]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=38929|supp=y|page=2775|date=2 June 1950}}</ref><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=38963|page=3512|date=7 July 1950}}</ref>

In the [[1953 Coronation Honours]], he was appointed [[Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order]] (KCVO).<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=39863|supp=y|page=2946|date=26 May 1953}}</ref>

==Commissioner==
On 13 August 1953, Nott-Bower was appointed Commissioner.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=39941|page=4483|date=18 August 1953}}</ref> Although he had been a popular and energetic Assistant and Deputy Commissioner, he was regarded as a somewhat lacklustre Commissioner.

In his 1955 book ''Against the Law'', [[Peter Wildeblood]] quotes an article written by [[Donald Horne]] for the ''Sydney Morning Telegraph'' printed on 25 October 1953 referring to Nott-Bower's role in the 'Great Purge' .

<blockquote>"The plan originated under strong United States advice to Britain to weed out homosexuals - as hopeless security risks - from important Government jobs.
One of the Yard's top-rankers, Commander E. A. Cole, recently spent three months in America consulting with FBI officials in putting finishing touches to the plan. But the plan was extended as a war on all vice when Sir John Nott-Bower took over as the new Commissioner at Scotland Yard in August. Sir John swore he would rip the cover off all London's filth spots....
Under laxer police methods before the US-inspired plan began, and before Sir John moved into the top job at the Yard as a man with a mission, [[Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu|Montagu]] and his film-director friend [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0401755/ Kenneth Hume] might never have been charged with grave offences against Boy Scouts....
Sir John swung into action on a nationwide scale. He enlisted the support of local police throughout England to step up the number of arrests for homosexual offences.
For many years past the police had turned a blind eye to male vice. They made arrests only when definite complaints were made from innocent people, or where homosexuality had encourages other crimes.
They knew the names of thousands of perverts - many of high social position and some world famous - but they took no action. Now, meeting Sir John's demands, they are making it a priority job to increase the number of arrests....
The Special Branch began compiling a "Black Book" of known perverts in influential Government jobs after the disappearance of the diplomats Donald Maclean and [[Guy Burgess]], who were known to have pervert associates. Now comes the difficult task of side-tracking these men into less important jobs - or putting them behind bars."</blockquote>

He introduced few reforms or innovations. He did set up the Research and Planning Branch and the Metropolitan and Provincial [[Regional Crime Squad]] and centralised traffic control in response to rising private car ownership. He did little to combat the rising crime rate, however; he refused to address the outdated hardline attitudes of many senior [[detective]]s, which were becoming increasingly out of step with postwar society; and he did not support his men in their claims for better pay and conditions. Police pay fell rapidly below [[inflation]] and rates of pay in the private sector. This caused recruiting problems and the force became seriously under strength. Nott-Bower was regarded by many of his officers as a pleasant but ineffectual man. He retired in August 1958.

==Later and personal life==
In April 1960, Nott-Bower became Chairman of the Auto Call Company, a [[fire alarm]] manufacturer.

Nott-Bower was a skilled [[horse]]man and [[polo]] player. He played [[rugby union]] for Tonbridge School and golf for the Metropolitan Police and Mid-Surrey. He was also very fond of [[contract bridge|bridge]] and [[fly fishing]].

Nott-Bower married Kathleen Buck in 1928. They had two sons and a daughter.

==Honours==

<center>
[[File:Royal Victorian Order UK ribbon.png|100px]]
<br />
[[File:Order of St John (UK) ribbon -vector.svg|100px]]
[[File:Queens Police Medal for Merit.png|100px]]
[[File:Ribbon - British War Medal.png|100px]]
[[File:Ribbon - Defence Medal.png|100px]]
<br />
[[File:UK King George V Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:UK King George VI Coronation Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:Ribbon - QE II Coronation Medal.png|100px]]
[[File:Police Long Service and Good Conduct ribbon.png|100px]]
</center>

<center>
{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:silver;" align="center"
|Ribbon || Description || Notes
|-
|[[File:Royal Victorian Order UK ribbon.png|40px]] || [[Royal Victorian Order]] (KCVO) ||
* Knight Commander [[1953 Coronation Honours]] List
* Commander (CVO) 23 July 1937
|-
| || [[Knight Bachelor]] (Kt) ||
* [[1950 Birthday Honours|1950 King's Birthday Honours List]]
|-
|[[File:Order of St John (UK) ribbon -vector.svg|40px]] || [[Order of Saint John (chartered 1888)|Order of Saint John]] (O.stJ) ||
* Officer
* 24 June 1949
|-
|[[File:Queens Police Medal for Merit.png|40px]] || [[Queen's Police Medal|King's Police Medal]] ||
* [[1931 Birthday Honours]] List
|-
|[[File:Ribbon - British War Medal.png|40px]] || [[British War Medal]] ||
|-
|[[File:Ribbon - Defence Medal.png|40px]] || [[Defence Medal (United Kingdom)|Defence Medal]] ||
|-
|[[File:UK King George V Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[King George V Silver Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 6 May 1935
|-
|[[File:UK King George VI Coronation Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[King George VI Coronation Medal]] ||
* 12 May 1937
|-
|[[File:Ribbon - QE II Coronation Medal.png|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal]] ||
* 2 June 1953
|-
|[[File:Police Long Service and Good Conduct ribbon.png|40px]] || [[Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal]] ||
|-
|}
</center>

<ref>http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw109779/Sir-John-Reginald-Hornby-Nott-Bower {{Bare URL inline|date=June 2021}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==
*Obituary, ''[[The Times]]'', 5 October 1972
*Martin Fido & Keith Skinner, ''The Official Encyclopedia of Scotland Yard'', Virgin Books, London: 1999

== External links ==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040614204614/http://www.met.police.uk/history/nott-bower.htm Metropolitan Police Service History - Sir John Nott-Bower]
*[https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp80239/sir-john-reginald-hornby-nott-bower?search=sas&sText=john+nott-bower&OConly=true Photographic portraits of Nott-Bower in the National Portrait Gallery]

{{s-start}}
{{s-civ|pol}}
{{succession box | title=[[Chief Constable|Chief Constable, No.1 District, Metropolitan Police]] | years=1933 | before=[[James Whitehead (police officer)|James Whitehead]] | after=Unknown}}
{{succession box | title=[[Deputy Assistant Commissioner|Deputy Assistant Commissioner, No.1 District, Metropolitan Police]] | years=1933–1940 | before=[[George Abbiss]] | after=Unknown}}
{{succession box | title=[[Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis|Assistant Commissioner "A", Metropolitan Police]] | years=1940–1945 | before=[[John Carter (police officer)|John Carter]] | after=[[John Ferguson (police officer)|John Ferguson]]}}
{{succession box|title=[[Deputy Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]|
years=1946–1953|before=[[Maurice Drummond|Sir Maurice Drummond]]|after=[[Ronald Howe]]}}
{{succession box|title=[[Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis]]|
years=1953–1958|before=[[Harold Scott (police commissioner)|Sir Harold Scott]]|after=[[Joseph Simpson|Sir Joseph Simpson]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nott-Bower, John}}
[[Category:1892 births]]
[[Category:1972 deaths]]
[[Category:Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis]]
[[Category:Deputy Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis]]
[[Category:Assistant Commissioners of Police of the Metropolis]]
[[Category:Indian Police Service officers in British India]]
[[Category:Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:People educated at Tonbridge School]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Queen's Police Medal]]

John Nott-Bower - Revision history

imported>Mxxo2 at 01:42, 21 August 2021