John Martin (civil servant)

For other people with the same name, see John Martin (disambiguation).

Sir John Miller Martin KCMG CB CVO (15 October 1904 – 31 March 1991) was a British civil servant who served as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, during World War II. The position is a public, rather than private post. He was present at the most important strategic conferences and was knighted in 1952.

Sir John Martin KCMG CB CVO
Sir John Miller Martin in 1946
Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister
In office 1941–1945
Prime Minister	Winston Churchill
Preceded by	Eric Seal
Succeeded by	Leslie Rowan
Personal details
Born	John Miller Martin (1904-10-15)15 October 1904
Died	31 March 1991(1991-03-31) (aged 86)
Spouse	Rosalind Ross ​ (m. 1943)​
Children	1
Education	Edinburgh Academy
Alma mater	Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Occupation	Civil servant
Awards	CVO (1943) CB (1945) KCMG (1952)

Early life

John Miller Martin, born on 15 October 1904, was the son of the reverend John Martin (Church of Scotland). He was educated at the Edinburgh Academy and won a scholarship to Corpus Christi College, Oxford.^[1]

Career

Having passed the civil service examination in 1927 he joined the Colonial and Dominion offices. After a long and distinguished career his final posting was British High Commissioner for Malta in 1965 before retirement in 1967.^[2]

He was awarded a Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in the King's Birthday Honours 1943,^[3] an Order of the Bath (CB) in the 1945 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours^[4] and was knighted (KCMG) in the 1952 New Year Honours.^[5]

Personal life

He married Rosalind Ross, daughter of Sir David Ross, in 1943. The union bore one son.^[1] Sir John Martin died on 31 March 1991 at the age of 86.

References

1. "Sir John Martin". The Daily Telegraph. 3 April 1991. p. 19. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
2. "Sir John Martin". The Times. 3 April 1991. p. 14. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
3. "Page 2423 | Supplement 36033, 28 May 1943 | London Gazette | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
4. "Page 4184 | Supplement 37227, 14 August 1945 | London Gazette | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
5. "Page 4 | Supplement 39421, 28 December 1951 | London Gazette | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2022.

External links

• The Papers of Sir John Martin held at Churchill Archives Centre

Government offices
Preceded by Eric Seal	Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister 1941–1945	Succeeded by Leslie Rowan