Arthur Rees
Arthur Morgan Rees CBE, QPM, DL was a Welsh international rugby union flanker, the Chief Constable of Denbighshire and later of Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent, a sports' administrator and World War II fighter pilot.
Biography
Rees was born in the village of Llangadog in 1912. He was raised as a Welsh speaker, not learning English until the age of seven. He was educated at Llandovery College before matriculating to St Catharine's College, Cambridge, earning two rugby blues. He joined the Metropolitan Police after leaving Cambridge in 1935, joining the Royal Air Force after the outbreak of the Second World War. Serving as a pilot, he rose to the rank of squadron leader, ending as acting wing commander.Rees was capped for Wales 13 times, most notably as pack leader in 1935 when they beat the All Blacks 13-12. It was described by journalist JBG Thomas as, "The most exciting international match ever played in Wales."
In 1943 he married Dorothy Webb, with whom he would have a daughter, Rosemary. With the end of the war, he returned to the Metropolitan force, rising through the ranks until becoming the Chief Constable of Denbighshire Constabulary in 1957. He remained with the Welsh force until 1964, when he became the Chief Constable of Staffordshire Police.