Archibald Boyd-Carpenter

Career

The fourth son of William Boyd-Carpenter, Bishop of Ripon and Canon of Westminster, Archibald Boyd-Carpenter was educated at Harrow School and at Balliol College, Oxford, where he was Secretary and President of the Oxford Union. Following college he worked for three years in the editorial staff of the Yorkshire Post.

With the start of the Second Boer War in late 1899, Boyd-Carpenter volunteered for active service and was commissioned with the Imperial Yeomanry, seeing service in South Africa attached to the Highland Light Infantry. He was promoted to captain on 17 April 1901, and was from 1901 to 1902 Staff Captain to Major-General Lord Chesham, and Brigadier General Herbert Belfield while they served as Inspector general of Imperial Yeomanry.

For his service in the war, he was mentioned in dispatches and awarded the Queen's medal (with 3 clasps) and the King's medal (with 2 clasps). After the war ended in June 1902, he returned home with Belfield in the SS Kinfauns Castle leaving Cape Town two months later, and relinquished his commission in the Imperial Yeomanry in October 1902. He later served in the First World War.

He was Mayor of Harrogate, 1909–1910 and 1910–1911; Alderman of the Borough and represented Harrogate on the West Riding County Council, 1910–1919. He was elected as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Bradford North from 1918 to 1923, for Coventry from 1924 to 1929 and for Chertsey from 1931.

Boyd-Carpenter held ministerial office as Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour from November 1922 until March 1923, Financial Secretary to the Treasury from March to May 1923, Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty and Paymaster General from May 1923 until January 1924. Boyd-Carpenter was knighted in 1926.

Boyd-Carpenter married Annie Dugdale in 1907 and they had a son and daughter. He died on 27 May 1937 in Harrogate, aged 64.

His son, John, was also a Conservative MP and Minister.