Sir Alan Cunningham Collection

Official papers and telegrams from his period of office as High Commissioner, Palestine.

Sir Alan Gordon Cunningham (1887-1983)

Born 1 May 1887, son of Prof DJ Cunningham and Elizabeth Cumming Browne. Educated Cheltenham; Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Commissioned 1906; served European War 1914-1918; Gen. Staff Officer, Straits Settlements, 1919-1921; passed Naval Staff College, 1925; Brevet Lt.-Col, 1928; Instructor, Machine Gun School, 1928-1931; Lt.-Col., 1935; Imperial Defence Coll., 1937; Comdr Royal Artillery, 1st Div., 1937-38; Major-Gen., 1938; Comdr 5th Anti-Aircraft Div TA, 1938; Commanded 66th, 9th & 51st Divs, 1940; GOC East Africa Forces, 1940-1941; GOC-in-C 8th Imperial Army in Middle East, 1941; KCB, 1941; Commandant Staff College, Camberley, 1942; Lt-Gen., 1943; GOC Northern Ireland, 1943-1944; GOC-in-C Eastern Command, 1944-1945; Gen., 1945; High Commissioner and Commander in Chief for Palestine, 1945-1948. GCMG, 1948. Married, 1951, Margery (nee Slater), widow of Sir Harold Snagge. Died 30 January 1983.

Telegrams; papers; correspondence

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Received as a gift from General Cunningham, Oct 1968.

Sir Alan Cunningham Collection Catalogue (pdf file)

Fonds level description created by Clare Brown 24 Aug 1998 and revised by Debbie Usher 19 Feb 2003

No restrictions on copying or quotation other than statutory regulations and preservation concerns

In Middle East Centre Archive

Please note that the following list is not comprehensive. Upon further research correspondence from Cunningham may be found in collections not listed here. This list will also not include new accessions that entered the archive after the date this catalogue was compiled.

Papers relating directly to Cunningham:

• Jerusalem and the East Mission GB165-0161: See especially Box 67 File 1 Correspondence with/about High Commissioners (MacMichael, Gort, Cunningham)

Papers relating to the Anglo-American Committee of Enquiry and UNSCOP

• Crossman GB165-0068: See especially material relating to the problems of the Anglo-American Committee and UNSCOP 1946-1947 and the subsequent recognition of Israel.
• Palestine GB165-0224: Bound TS proceedings of 'Conferences on Palestine: United Kingdom-Arab Meetings, 7 February-17 March 1939'; Maps relating to the Report of the Anglo-American Committee of Enquiry regarding the problems of European Jewry and Palestine, HMSO, 1946, supplement to Cmd. 6808. 1 vol.; 5 items.
• United Nations Special Committee on Palestine GB165-0290: TS report of a conference between UNSCOP representatives Mr. Emil Sandstrom, Dr. Victor Hoo and Dr. Ralph Bunche, and the Commander and two other representatives of the Irgun Zvai Leumi, 24 June 1947, giving details of the movement's origins and policies; TS transcript of an anti-British broadcast, 13 August 1947, from The Voice of Fighting Zion, the broadcasting station of the Irgun Zvai Leumi. 14 folios.

In Other Repositories:

• Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House (Archon Code: 0162): Letters from Cunningham to Arthur Creech Jones 1945-1964. Reference: MSS Brit Emp s 332/32/3, 60. NRA 14026 Jones AC
• National Army Museum, Department of Archives Photographs Film and Sound (Archon Code:0063): Correspondence and papers 1918-1976. Reference : 8303/104. NRA 30032 Cunningham