Athelstan Popkess

Athelstan Horn Popkess CBE (1895–1967) was Chief Constable of Nottingham City Police from 1930 to 1959.[1] He was the youngest Chief Constable ever appointed at the time, and achieved notoriety following an investigation into corruption in Nottingham City Council.

Background

He had been a member of the Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary and was photographed giving the Nazi salute in a Stuttgart boxing ring in 1936.

Chief Constable

His appointment at age 37 was not without controversy, but he was a visionary policeman. Nottingham was the first city in Britain to develop an ARP (Air Raid Precautions) network. It was developed because of the foresight of the Chief Constable. The city was divided into zones, controlled by report and control centres with 45 auxiliary fire service stations.

Amongst his other innovations were:

  • the first forensic laboratory in England
  • three position mug shots
  • the introduction of police dogs
  • an advanced driving school
  • traffic wardens
  • wireless communications in his Mechanised Division which grew to a force of 39 vehicles and 70 officers using Standard Ensign cars and Triumph Thunderbird motorbikes

His career was abruptly cut short in 1960 over an issue in the constitutional question of control of the police. He refused to hand over a report into financial irregularities by some City Council members to the Watch Committee. He was suspended as unfit for office under the Municipal Corporations Act 1882. Intervention by Rab Butler, the Home Secretary saw him reinstated but he retired that same year.[2]

The "Popkess Affair" was a prime factor in the appointment of the Royal Commission and the subsequent Police Act 1964 which sought to establish the respective powers of the Home Secretary, a Police Authority and the Chief Constable.

He died at the age of 72 in Torquay.

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References
  1. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
  2. A history of policing in England and Wales from 1974. Timothy Brain. 2010
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