Sir A. P. Herbert CH |
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Member of Parliament for Oxford University |
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In office 14 November 1935 – 23 February 1950 Serving with Lord Hugh Cecil (1910–1937) Sir Arthur Salter (1937–1950) |
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Monarch |
George V Edward VIII George VI |
Preceded by | Sir Charles Oman |
Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
Personal details | |
Born | 24 September 1890 Ashtead, Surrey, England |
Died | 11 November 1971 London, England |
Nationality | British |
Political party | Independent |
Spouse(s) | Lady Gwendolyn Herbert (née Quilter) |
Alma mater | New College, Oxford |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/branch | Royal Navy |
Years of service | 1914–1918 1939–1945 |
Rank | Sub-Lieutenant (WWI) Petty Officer (WWII) |
Unit |
Royal Naval Division Royal Naval Auxiliary Patrol |
Commands | Water Gipsy |
Battles/wars |
World War I World War II |
Sir Alan Patrick Herbert CH (24 September 1890 – 11 November 1971), also known as A. P. Herbert or simply A. P. H., was an English humorist, novelist, playwright and law reform activist who served as an independent Member of Parliament (MP) for Oxford University from the 1935 general election to the 1950 general election, when university constituencies were abolished.
Herbert was born in Ashtead, Surrey on 24 September 1890. His father, Patrick Herbert, was a civil servant in the India Office, and his mother, Beatrice (née Selwyn), was the daughter of Sir Charles Jasper Selwyn, a Lord Justice of Appeal. He had two younger brothers; both were killed in battle—one in 1914 and the other in 1941. His mother died of tuberculosis when he was eight years old, shortly before he left to attend The Grange in Folkestone, a preparatory school.
Herbert then attended Winchester College, where he won the King's Medal for English Verse and the King's Medal for English Speech, which was awarded by Herbert Asquith, the Prime Minister at the time. He took an active part in the College's debating society and Shakespeare society. As a student at Winchester, Herbert sent verses to the offices of Punch, and received notes of encouragements and suggestions from the editor, Owen Seaman. Herbert was also Captain of Houses, one of the College's three football divisions.