Alan Campbell Johnson

CIE OBE
Born(1913-07-16)16 July 1913
Died25 January 1998(1998-01-25) (aged 84)
Occupation(s)Military officer, journalist, author
Military career
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Air Force
Years of service1941–1958
RankWing Commander
Battles/warsSecond World War
AwardsOfficer of the Order of the British Empire

Alan Campbell-Johnson CIE OBE (16 July 1913 – 25 January 1998) was a British Liberal Party politician, journalist, author and public relations consultant. He notably worked on the staff of Sir Archibald Sinclair and served as Press Attaché to Lord Mountbatten as Viceroy of India.

Background

He was the son of James and Gladys Campbell-Johnson. He was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford (scholar; BA 2nd Class). Hons Modern History, 1935; MA). He married, in 1938, Imogen Fay de la Tour Dunlap. They had one son and one daughter.[1]

Career

During the 1939–1945 war, Campbell Johnson enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in 1941 and received an emergency commission as an acting pilot officer in the Administrative and Special Duties Branch on 20 October.[2] He was regraded pilot officer on 20 December,[3] with promotion to war-substantive flying officer on 1 October 1942.[4] He was promoted war-substantive flight lieutenant on 28 September 1944.[5]

He served on the staff of Lord Mountbatten at Combined Operations Headquarters, S.E.A.C. in the RAF; CO HQ, 1942–43; HQ SACSEA (Wing Comdr i/c Inter-Allied Records Section), 1943–46. He rejoined Mountbatten's staff as Press Attaché when he became Viceroy and Governor-General of India, from 1947 to 1948.[6] He was Chairman of Campbell-Johnson Ltd, Public Relations Consultants, from 1953 to 1978. He was Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Public Relations President from 1956 to 1957. He was Director of Hill and Knowlton (UK) Ltd, from 1976 to 1985. He was Honorary DLitt Southampton in 1990.

Political career

He was Political Secretary to Sir Archibald Sinclair, Leader of the Liberal Party from 1937 to 1940. In 1936 he was adopted as Liberal prospective parliamentary candidate by Salisbury Liberal Association.[7] Even though the Liberals had not contested the seat in 1935 they were thought to be the main challenger to the Conservatives. He was a supporter of a Popular Front advocated by Sir Stafford Cripps which urged electoral co-operation between the Liberal and Labour parties. With a general election expected for the Autumn of 1939, he had hopes of persuading the Labour party in Salisbury to allow him a free-run at the Conservative candidate.[8] Due to the outbreak of war, the election did not take place. He was Liberal candidate for the Salisbury Division of Wiltshire at the 1945 General Election. He had to fly back from active service in Sri Lanka to fight the election campaign.[9]

General Election 1945[10] Electorate 53,710
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Maj. John Granville Morrison 16,742 44.0
Labour John Alan Lyde Caunter 12,344 32.5
Liberal Wing-Com. Alan Campbell Johnson 8,946 23.5
Majority 4,398 11.6
Turnout 70.8
Conservative hold Swing

He was Liberal candidate again for the Salisbury Division of Wiltshire at the 1950 General Election.

General Election 1950[11] Electorate: 45,958
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Granville Morrison 17,301 45.0
Labour Ald. WAJ Case 12,319 32.0
Liberal Alan Campbell-Johnson 8,847 23.0
Majority 4,982 12.9
Turnout 83.7
Conservative hold Swing

Awards and honours

He was awarded the OBE in 1946. He was awarded the Officer of US Legion of Merit in 1947.

References

  1. ↑ ‘CAMPBELL-JOHNSON, Alan’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007 accessed 30 Nov 2013
  2. ↑ "No. 35366". The London Gazette. 2 December 1941. p. 6899.
  3. ↑ "No. 35391". The London Gazette. 23 December 1941. p. 7257.
  4. ↑ "No. 35845". The London Gazette. 29 December 1942. p. 94.
  5. ↑ "No. 36819". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 November 1944. p. 5511.
  6. ↑ The Times House of Commons, 1950
  7. ↑ The Liberal Magazine, 1946
  8. ↑ Western Daily Press 30 Jan 1939
  9. ↑ The Liberal Magazine, 1946
  10. ↑ British parliamentary election results 1885–1918, Craig, F.W.S.
  11. ↑ British parliamentary election results 1885–1918, Craig, F. W. S.

Works by Alan Campbell-Johnson: Anthony Eden, a biography (1938); Viscount Halifax, a biography (1941); Mission with Mountbatten (1951); Mountbatten in Retrospect (1997)

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