Sir Patrick Wall

Patrick Henry Bligh Wall was born in Cheshire on 19 October 1916, the son of Henry Benedict Wall and Gladys Eleanor Finney. He was educated at Downside School, Bath. In 1935 he was commissioned in the Royal Marines, training to become a specialist in naval gunnery. During the Second World War, he served on various Royal Navy vessels, including Iron Duke, Valiant and Malaya, between 1940 and 1943. From 1943 to 1945 he served in RN support craft, with the United States Navy and then with the Royal Marine Commandos. He was awarded both the Military Cross and the US Legion of Merit in 1945. After the war he studied at the Royal Naval Staff College and the Joint Services Staff College, and was a staff instructor at the School of Combined Operations between 1946 and 1948. His last appointment afloat was in HMS Vanguard in 1949. He retired as a Major in 1950 in order to concentrate on a political career. However he remained a Reservist, commanding 47 Commando, Royal Marine Forces Volunteer Reserve, from 1951 until its disbandment in 1956. He was awarded the Volunteer Reserve Decoration (VRD) in 1957. His involvement in naval affairs was continued for many years through his work with the City of Westminster Sea Scout and Sea Cadet organisations, and the London Sea Scout Committee.

He contested the Cleveland constituency for the Conservative Party in the general election of 1951, and again at a bye-election the following year. He was subsequently elected for the Haltemprice Division of Hull (later of East Yorkshire) at a bye-election in February 1954, which in 1983 became the Beverley constituency, where he remained MP until his retirement in 1987. In Parliament he served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food between 1955 and 1957, and then to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, January 1958 - December 1959. Thereafter, as a leading back-bencher, Sir Patrick served on numerous Parliamentary and Conservative Party committees, of which the most important were: President of the Yorkshire Area Young Conservatives (1955 - 1960), Chairman of the Mediterranean Group of the Conservative Commonwealth Council (1954 - 1967), Chairman of the Conservative Parliamentary East and Central Africa Committee (1956 - 1959), Vice Chairman of the Conservative Commonwealth Affairs Committee (1960 - 1968), Vice Chairman of the Conservative Overseas Bureau (1963 - 1973), and Vice Chairman of the Conservative Defence Committee (1965 - 1971). He was a member of the Select Committee on Defence, 1980 - 1983. He was also Chairman of the Conservative Fisheries Committee (1962 - 1983), the All Party Fisheries Committee, and of the Africa Committee of the Conservative Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee. He was a Committee member of the Monday Club, and its Chairman between 1978 and 1980. He was also Chairman of: the Africa Centre (1961 - 1965); Joint East and Central Africa Board (1965 - 1975); Conservative Southern Africa Group (1970 - 1978); Conservative Africa Sub Committee (1979 - 1983); and the Royal Marines Parliamentary Group (1956 - 1987). In 1964 he founded the 92 Committee, following a meeting of MPs at his London home (92 Cheyne Walk) who desired to 'keep the Conservative Party Conservative'. This was disbanded in 1984.

Sir Patrick was Vice Chairman of the British Section of the Inter Parliamentary Union (1974 - 1984) and Chairman of the British Bahrain, British Maltese, British South Africa and British Taiwan Groups. He represented Britain at the 17th General Assembly of the United Nations in 1962. He was leader of the British Delegation to the North Atlantic Assembly (1979 - 1987), Chairman of the NAA's Military Committee (1977 - 1981), Vice President and then President of the NAA (1983 - 1985) and Chairman of the NAA's Conservative / Christian Democrat Group (1977 - 1987). He was a member of the Defence Committee of the Western European Union and Council of Europe (1972 - 1973).

As a politician he specialised in the problems of the Mediterranean countries, the Middle East, and of East, Central and Southern Africa, travelling widely and frequently in those areas and beyond. He visited Africa over 20 times, sometimes for several months at a time. His particular parliamentary subject interests were defence, the fishing industry, and Commonwealth and foreign affairs.

In addition to this national and international career, Sir Patrick was also involved in local government, both as a member of Westminster City Council between 1953 and 1962, and as Vice President of the Urban District Councils Association, 1965 - 1974.

Outside the political field, he was President of the British UFO Society, Vice President of the British Sub Aqua Club (1955 - 1987) and became a Fellow of the Institute of Journalists in 1989. A Roman Catholic, he founded and chaired the Pro Fide movement in 1970. This national body has numerous high level national and international contacts.

Sir Patrick has produced numerous books and articles during his long career, including: The Royal Marine Pocket Book (6 vols.) (1944), Student power (1968), Defence policy (1969), Overseas aid (1969), The Soviet maritime threat (1973) and various editions of The southern oceans and the security of the free world. His many articles have dealt with subjects ranging from defence and religion to Rhodesia. In the late 1950s he devised Commentapes, a series of taped commentaries on Commonwealth issues, and attempted to launch it as a commercial venture.

In addition to the above activities, Sir Patrick was a keen yachtsman, and a qualified pilot and parachutist, as well as being an enthusiastic marine diver. He also had a passionate interest in building model ships and aeroplanes, possessing some 6000 specimens by late 1992. These were placed on loan in the Museum of Army Transport at Beverley in February 1993.

Sir Patrick was knighted for his political services in 1981. He had earlier been made a Knight of the Sovereign Order of Malta, and was created a Freeman of Beverley in 1989. When not travelling, he found time during his retirement to build up a collection of exotic birds at his Brantinghamthorpe home, including parrots and peacocks. He suffered a severe stroke in September 1992, and moved into a home for retired army officers in Sussex. He married Sheila Elizabeth Putnam on 19 November 1953 and had one daughter, Rosemary, born in 1955. Sir Patrick died in May 1998.

From the guide to the PAPERS OF SIR PATRICK WALL (1916 - 1998), 1890 - 1992, (Hull University, Brynmor Jones Library)