Garner Evans: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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{{Short description|British politician}}

'''Emlyn Hugh Garner Evans''' (3 September 1910<ref name="Year of birth">Evans' year of birth is in dispute. The year 1911 is given in "Who Was Who", various editions of the "Times House of Commons", and the contemporary editions of "Dod's Parliamentary Companion"; however M. Stenton and S. Lees, "Who's Who of British MPs" vol. IV page 111 (compiled from Dod's) and the "Biographical History of Gonville and Caius College" vol. V page 399 give 1910. The dates of his educational qualifications fit closer with a birth year of 1910.</ref> &ndash; 11 October 1963) was a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[barrister]], [[Royal Air Force]] officer, and politician. Early in his career he adhered to the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] and was once arrested in Nazi Germany for expressing anti-fascist views. He later transferred to the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]-allied [[National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)|National Liberals]] and was elected to Parliament; however his continued allegiance to the Liberal side brought about a premature termination of his Parliamentary career.▼

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}

▲'''Emlyn Hugh Garner Evans''' (3 September 1910<ref name="Year of birth">Evans'He yearwas ofrecorded birthby ishis family as being aged 7 months in disputethe April 1911 Census. He is recorded as being 53 at the time of his death. The year 1911 is incorrectly given in "Who Was Who", various editions of the "Times House of Commons", and the contemporary editions of "Dod's Parliamentary Companion"; however. M. Stenton and S. Lees, "Who's Who of British MPs" vol. IV page 111 (compiled from Dod's) and the "Biographical History of Gonville and Caius College" vol. V page 399 give 1910. The dates of his educational qualifications fit closer with a birth year of 1910.</ref> &ndash; 11 October 1963) was a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[barrister]], [[Royal Air Force]] officer, and politician. Early in his career he adhered to the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] and was once arrested in Nazi Germany for expressing anti-fascist views. He later transferred to the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]-allied [[National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)|National Liberals]] and was elected to Parliament; however his continued allegiance to the Liberal side brought about a premature termination of his Parliamentary career.

==Education==

Evans was born in [[Llangollen]] in [[Denbighshire]], North [[Wales]], where his father, Henry, was a saddler.<ref name="Caius history">"Biographical History of Gonville and Caius College", Vol. V ed. by F.E.A. Trayes, M.A. (Cambridge University Press, 1948), p. 399.</ref> He attended the local county Grammar School, from where he entered the [[Aberystwyth University|University College of Wales at Aberystwyth]] and obtained a [[Bachelor of Laws]] degree in 1931.<ref name="Caius history" /> He then went on to [[Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge|Gonville and Caius College]] in 1932 where he read law. While at [[University of Cambridge|Cambridge]], Evans was already an active member of the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]]. He became involved in the [[Cambridge Union Society]] and was President of the Union in 1934.<ref name="Who Was Who">"Who Was Who", A & C Black.</ref> He was also President of the [[Cambridge University Liberal Club]].<ref name="Times Guide 1935">"The Times House of Commons 1935", p. 87.</ref> He graduated with a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in 1934, which was converted into a [[Master of Arts (Oxbridge)|Master of Arts]] in 1939.<ref name="Caius history" />

==Chester candidate==

He spoke at the 1935 Liberal Party Assembly as the delegate of the Cambridge University Liberal Union, seconding a motion moved by [[Isaac Foot]] on behalf of the party executive that set out the party's aims.<ref name="Liberal aims">"'The Balancing Element'", ''The Times'', 24 May 1935, p. 21.</ref> While working as a secretary,<ref name="Times Guide 1935" /> he was selected as Liberal Party candidate for [[City of Chester (UK Parliament constituency)|City of Chester]] at the [[1935 United Kingdom general election, 1935|1935 general election]] shortly before the poll.<ref name="Chester candidate">"Ready Forfor Thethe Election", ''The Times'', 22 October 1935, p. 18.</ref> Although the seat was reckoned the Liberals' best prospect in [[Cheshire]],<ref name="1935 prospects">"A County Solid Forfor Thethe Government", ''The Times'', 2 November 1935, p. 8.</ref> Evans came second in a three-cornered fight, 6,699 votes behind the Conservative winner.<ref name="Times Guide 1935" />

==Youth politics==

In January 1936, Evans was Cambridge's delegate to the Conference of University Liberal Societies and proposed a resolution which deplored the [[League of Nations]] procedure by which the [[United Kingdom]] and [[France|French]] governments drew up the peace settlement in the [[Second Italo-Abyssinian War|Italo-Abyssinian War]]. He urged that the peace terms be settled by impartial men at Geneva. The ensuing speaker, future Prime Minister [[Harold Wilson]] from [[University of Oxford|Oxford]], agreed and the motion was passed.<ref name="University Liberals">"University Liberals And Peace Proposals", ''The Times'', 11 January 1936, p. 14.</ref> Evans became President of the [[Union of University Liberal Societies]],<ref name="Who Was Who" /> and that June, he was elected to the Liberal Party council.<ref name="Liberal Party council">"Liberal Party Convention", ''The Times'', 20 June 1936, p. 17.</ref>

==Parliamentary Careercareer==

In 1938, Evans was selected by Denbigh Liberals to be their prospective parliamentary candidate at a General Election, expected to take place in either 1939 or 1940. His task was to defeat the sitting Liberal National MP and regain the seat for his party. However, due to the outbreak of war, the elections did not take place.

==Wartime==

Evans became editor of "''The New Commonwealth Quarterly"'', a journal published by the [[New Commonwealth InstituteSociety]] which studied international relations, in 1935.<ref name="Who Was Who" /> ([[Winston Churchill]] was chairman of the institute's British section from 1936.<ref name="Churchill New Commonwealth">Peter Barberis, John McHugh and Mike Tyldesley, "Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations" (Pinter, 2000), p. 340.</ref>) Evans also helped to found the [[World Youth Congress Movement|World Youth Congress]] in 1936, and was elected President of its Politicalpolitical Sectionsection during its meeting in [[Geneva]] in 1936 and re-elected at the meeting in [[New York City]] in 1938.<ref name="Who Was Who" /> During a foreign tour of [[Germany]] in 1936, Evans was arrested for "anti-Fascist views".<ref name="Times Guide 1950">"The Times House of Commons 1950", p. 237.</ref> On the outbreak of war he joined the [[Royal Air Force]] and served overseas in North Africa and [[Italy]], serving for most of the war as a Squadronsquadron Leaderleader,<ref name="Times Guide 1950" /> and ending as a Wingwing Commandercommander.<ref name="Times Guide 1945">"The Times House of Commons 1945", p. 108.</ref>

==Move to the National Liberals==

At the end of the war, Evans was again adopted as Liberal candidate for [[Denbigh (UK Parliament constituency)|Denbigh]] and fought the seat at the [[1945 United Kingdom general election, 1945|1945 general election]]. He was defeated by 4,922 votes.<ref name="Times Guide 1945" /> He resumed his legal training and was called to the [[Bar association|Bar]] by [[Gray's Inn]] in 1946.<ref name="Who Was Who" /> With a Labour government in power, Evans became attracted by the reforms proposed to the [[National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)|Liberal National]] organisation which had been allied to the Conservative Party since 1931. When a joint statement of principles of Liberals and Conservatives was published in a pamphlet called "Design for Freedom" in February 1947, Evans was one of the signatories.<ref name="Design for Freedom">"'Design For Freedom'", ''The Times'', 19 February 1947, p. 2.</ref> Although the full merger was not agreed, the Liberal Nationals were reorganised into the National Liberal Party later in 1947, and Evans joined.

==Election for Denbigh==

The sitting National Liberal Member of Parliament for [[Denbigh (UK Parliament constituency)|Denbigh]], Sir [[Henry Morris-Jones]], was a National Liberal and announced his retirement. Evans was selected as his replacement by the local National Liberal Association in April 1948; he then attended several local branches of the Conservative Association (with whom the National Liberals were in alliance) to reassure them, and committed himself to defeating the Labour government.<ref name="Selection">D. Dutton, "A Stepping Stone for Wavering Radicals", p. 113.</ref> This reassurance worked and he was adopted as candidate in November 1949.<ref name="Adoption for Denbigh">"Liberal Adoption", ''The Times'', 12 November 1949, p. 2.</ref>

The election saw some confusion as the National Liberals claimed the official mantle of Liberalism; Evans, who faced a Liberal opponent, demanded that the electors were informed whether their Liberal candidate would back Conservatives or Labour in the event that the Liberals held the balance of power.<ref name="Balance of power">"Liberalism Inin Danger Inin Wales", ''The Times'', 20 February 1950, p. 8.</ref> Garner Evans himself broke the spirit of the 'Woolton-Teviot Agreement' between Conservatives and National Liberals by referring to himself as a 'National Liberal' only on his election literature.<ref name="Woolton-Teviot">D. Dutton, "A Stepping Stone for Wavering Radicals", p. 114.</ref> He won the seat with a narrow majority of 1,209 over the Liberal candidate, and only 38.9% of the total vote.<ref name="Times Guide 1950" />

Evans made his [[maiden speech]] in June 1950 in support of the United Kingdom joining the [[Schuman Declaration|Schuman Plan]], but his main point was to call on the Labour Party to get back to idealism and internationalism and reject the 'economic nationalism' outlined by [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]] [[Stafford Cripps]].<ref name="Schuman plan">"Parliament", ''The Times'', 28 June 1950, p. 2.</ref> He was re-elected in the [[1951 United Kingdom general election, 1951|1951 general election]] with a much improved majority of 7,915 over Labour; the previous Liberal candidate had taken a job in [[Switzerland]] and his replacement could not get established.<ref name="1951 election">"Shock For Liberals Inin North Wales", ''The Times'', 23 October 1951, p. 7.</ref>

==Campaigns==

In Parliament Evans was made Secretary to the Parliamentary Committee on Atomic Energy.<ref name="Who Was Who" /> He pressed for more help for his constituents: in December 1953 he stated that the best aid the Government could give to agriculture in Wales was a marketing policy,<ref name="Agricultural marketing">"Parliament", ''The Times'', 9 December 1953, p. 4.</ref> and in November 1954 he insisted that the [[Home Secretary]] could not manage Welsh affairs without additional ministerial help and called for new Minister of State in the [[House of Lords]].<ref name="Welsh Minister of State">"Parliament", ''The Times'', 25 November 1954, p. 11.</ref> Early in 1955, Evans was one of six Members of Parliament to visit the [[British Army of the Rhine]] and bring back a report calling for [[Nationalnational Serviceservice]]men to be paid the same as the regular [[British Army|Army]], among other changes.<ref name="BAOR pay grouse">"Pay 'Grouse' In B.A.O.R.", ''The Times'', 11 February 1955, p. 4.</ref>

==Welsh affairs==

There was some local criticism of Garner Evans as the Parliament wore on. In December 1954 an extraordinary meeting of the Conservative Central Council in the constituency was called to hear a report on a complaint against him: it was alleged that he had addressed a meeting in [[Llanrwst]] when "not in a fit condition to do so". The meeting passed a vote recording its displeasure, but also adopted him as its candidate for the next election.<ref name="Llanrwst meeting">D. Dutton, "A Stepping Stone for Wavering Radicals", p. 118.</ref>

The return of the popular Liberal candidate from 1950 ensured that Evans's majority was cut in the [[1955 United Kingdom general election, 1955|1955 general election]] to 4,641.<ref name="Times Guide 1955">"The Times House of Commons, 1955", p. 203.</ref> Evans spoke in January 1956 in favour of encouraging the [[Welsh language]] through education and broadcasting, arguing that Welsh nationalism was caused by fear of the loss of language and culture.<ref name="Welsh language">"Parliament", ''The Times'', 31 January 1956, p. 12.</ref> When the Government appointed a Ministerminister with responsibility for Welsh Affairs, Evans echoed Labour complaints about the lowly status of the new Ministerminister and described his powers as "nebulous".<ref name="Welsh minister">"Parliament", ''The Times'', 16 December 1957, p. 11.</ref>

==Political stances==

Evans was generally loyal in his voting behaviour in the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]] although he did twice rebel against the [[whip (politics)|whip]] on minor technical issues.<ref name="Dissension">[[Philip Norton, Baron Norton of Louth|Philip Norton]], "Dissension in the House of Commons" (Macmillan, 1975), pp. 88, 132. The issues were allowing the cross-examination of officials proposing the compulsory purchase of forests, and increasing the transitional period of a new [[Rates (tax)|rating]] system.</ref> He supported the ending of [[Capital punishment in the United Kingdom|capital punishment]] on a free vote in 1956.<ref name="Capital punishment vote">"Vote Against Hanging", ''The Times'', 18 February 1956, p. 3.</ref> When [[S. O. Davies]] introduced the Government of Wales Bill in 1955 which would have created a devolved Welsh Parliament, Evans questioned whether the Welsh people supported it,<ref>''[httphttps://hansardapi.millbanksystemsparliament.comuk/historic-hansard/commons/1955/mar/04/government-of-wales-bill#S5CV0537P0_19550304_HOC_165 Hansard]'', HC 5ser vol 537 col 2520.</ref> and went on to vote against the Bill making any progress.<ref>''[httphttps://hansardapi.millbanksystemsparliament.comuk/historic-hansard/commons/1955/mar/04/government-of-wales-bill#column_2527 Hansard]'', HC 5ser vol 537 cols 2527-8.</ref>

==Relations with the Conservatives==

Continuing concerns at Garner Evans's political and personal performance both in Parliament and in the constituency prompted a meeting of the Conservative Central Council to be called in May 1958. Despite Garner Evans pleading to the meeting that "I have spent pretty well all my life trying to bring Liberals and Conservatives together", the delegates passed a [[Vote of confidence|motion of no confidence]] in their Member of Parliament by 44 to 15.<ref name="No confidence">D. Dutton, "A Stepping Stone for Wavering Radicals", p. 119.</ref> The association President then said that he would then move to discuss with the National Liberals how to select a candidate acceptable to both parties.<ref name="Conservative repudiation">"Conservatives to Press for New Candidate", ''The Times'', 16 May 1958, p. 4.</ref> In November 1958 Conservative Central Office reported that Evans had told them he would not be a candidate for re-election.<ref name="Standing down">"42 Members Not To Seek Re-Election", ''The Times'', 7 November 1958, p. 7.</ref> The Conservative Association subsequently selected [[Geraint Morgan]].

This situation put the National Liberals in a quandary as they had not withdrawn support from Garner Evans. In July 1958 he issued a statement to his electors pledging continued support for the Government and urging the Conservatives not to take any "hasty action" which might place his and other National Liberal seats in jeopardy. The same month, a meeting of the National Liberals pledged support for him; however the Conservatives undertook prolonged negotiations.<ref name="Conservative - National Liberal strife">D. Dutton, "A Stepping Stone for Wavering Radicals", p. 120.</ref>

It was only on the eve of the [[1959 United Kingdom general election, 1959|1959 general election]] that a deal worked out by Conservative Chairman Lt-Col. J. C. Wynne-Edwards was agreed under which Morgan agreed to run as a 'Conservative and National Liberal' candidate.<ref name="Conservative - National Liberal strife"/> Morgan spoke to the National Liberals and persuaded them to pledge official support to him.<ref name="Geraint Morgan">"National Liberals to Support Conservative", ''The Times'', 2 September 1959, p. 6.</ref> During the election campaign, the Liberal candidate attacked the Conservatives for withdrawing support from Evans.<ref name="1959 campaign">"East Flint Eyes Labour Steel Plans Askance", ''The Times'', 8 October 1959, p. 3.</ref>

==Sources==

* {{cite journal|author= David Dutton,|s2cid=144840476 "[http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content|title=a772240883~tab=send 'A Stepping-Stone for Wavering Radicals': Conservatives, National Liberals and Denbighshire Politics 1947-64]", [http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content |journal=t713634559~link=cover Contemporary British History], Volume |volume=22, Issue |issue=1 (|date=March 2008), |pages 111-125=111–125|doi=10.1080/13619460601065875 }}

==References==

{{reflistReflist|230em}}

==External links==

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070609202701/http://screenandsound.llgc.org.uk/cronfa/title.php?titleno=1298 Home movies] depicting Emlyn Garner Evans deposited in the National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales.

*{{Hansard-contribs | mr-emlyn-evans | Emlyn Garner Evans }}

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{{succession box

|title=[[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] for [[Denbigh (UK Parliament constituency)|Denbigh]]

|years=[[1950 United Kingdom general election, 1950|1950]] &ndash; [[1959 United Kingdom general election, 1959|1959]]

|before=Sir [[Henry Morris-Jones]]

|after=[[Geraint Morgan]]}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Emlyn Garner}}▼

{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->

| NAME = Evans, Emlyn Garner

| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =

| SHORT DESCRIPTION =

| DATE OF BIRTH = 3 September 1910

| PLACE OF BIRTH =

| DATE OF DEATH = 11 October 1963

| PLACE OF DEATH =

}}

▲{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Emlyn Garner}}

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[[Category:UK MPs 1951–1955]]

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[[Category:Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates]]

[[Category:20th-century British lawyers]]

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[[Category:Presidents of the Cambridge Union]]