Searching for a Ghost
As a new member of the Metropolitan Police Royalty Protection Department (SO15 at the time) it was not only important to learn my new responsibilities but to know a thing or two about the buildings themselves. When I arrived at Buckingham Palace in January 1987 I started to look into the history of this famous building. Apart from the well known details an interesting tale was told about a police officer being killed at the Garden Gate during World War Two. At first this information was accepted on face value but little fact was known about the incident, including the name of the unfortunate officer.
What appeared a genuine story seemed to be failing the test of time. As I looked into this event I was not sure if it was fact or fiction. The longer serving officers had no doubt about the story but others had tried to establish the facts before, with little luck. What made matters worst were the stories of ghost sightings at the location, some past down and others by serving officers!
As I became established at the department I began to look deeper into the story. It appeared no record was kept about the event at New Scotland Yard, I also contacted the Police Archives who knew nothing of it either. This I felt wasn't too surprising as my research showed over 200 serving police officers had lost their lives in London alone. Records where lost or only searchable once details and dates were known.
Dates of the bombings at the Palace where known and that showed the North Lodge, the subject of the story, had been bombed on the evening of 8th March 1941. I decided to check Police Orders after that date and found it showed, two days after, an 'A' Division officer being killed in an air raid. Little details were listed in the Orders such as how, when and where officers had been killed. Armed with this name I contacted Robin Gills at the Metropolitan Police Museum who again had no details of the bombing but could give service details on the listed officer.
I was confident I had my man. The story was beginning to turn from myth to fact. I just needed to dig deeper so I could link the officer to the Palace.
What appeared a genuine story seemed to be failing the test of time. As I looked into this event I was not sure if it was fact or fiction. The longer serving officers had no doubt about the story but others had tried to establish the facts before, with little luck. What made matters worst were the stories of ghost sightings at the location, some past down and others by serving officers!
As I became established at the department I began to look deeper into the story. It appeared no record was kept about the event at New Scotland Yard, I also contacted the Police Archives who knew nothing of it either. This I felt wasn't too surprising as my research showed over 200 serving police officers had lost their lives in London alone. Records where lost or only searchable once details and dates were known.
Dates of the bombings at the Palace where known and that showed the North Lodge, the subject of the story, had been bombed on the evening of 8th March 1941. I decided to check Police Orders after that date and found it showed, two days after, an 'A' Division officer being killed in an air raid. Little details were listed in the Orders such as how, when and where officers had been killed. Armed with this name I contacted Robin Gills at the Metropolitan Police Museum who again had no details of the bombing but could give service details on the listed officer.
I was confident I had my man. The story was beginning to turn from myth to fact. I just needed to dig deeper so I could link the officer to the Palace.
The Roll of Honour at New Scotland Yard listing PC Robertson being killed on the 8th March 1941.
© Alan Graham 2021