Robert Henry Dundas Bolton OBE (13 January 1893 – 30 October 1964) was an English first-class cricketer, soldier, police officer and Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Constabulary.

Bertie Bolton
Personal information
Full name
Robert Henry Dundas Bolton
Born(1893-01-13)13 January 1893
Mysore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India
Died30 October 1964(1964-10-30) (aged 71)
St Pancras, London, England
BattingRight-handed
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1910–1912Dorset
1913–1922Hampshire
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 7
Runs scored 121
Batting average 10.08
100s/50s –/–
Top score 24
Catches/stumpings 2/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 1 January 2010

The son of Edward Crawford Bolton,[1] he was born in British India at Mysore in January 1893. He was educated at Rossall School, where he played for the school cricket team.[2] Bolton played minor counties cricket for Dorset from 1910 to 1912, making sixteen appearances in the Minor Counties Championship.[3] In 1913, he made two appearances in first-class cricket for Hampshire against Cambridge University and Warwickshire, the latter in the County Championship.[4] Four months into the First World War, he was commissioned into the British Indian Army Reserve as a second lieutenant in November 1914.[5] He served in the East African campaign with the 101st Grenadiers from 27 November 1914 to 3 September 1916,[6] and was promoted to lieutenant in November 1915.[7] The regiment was transferred to Palestine and here he saw service from 4 September 1916 to 31 October 1918. He was transferred to the 2nd battalion 101st Grenadiers on its formation at Suez on 3 February 1917.[6] On 4 June 1917 he was appointed to the Indian Army as a lieutenant with seniority from 13 August 1916.[8] Following the war, he was made acting captain between 6 February and 8 December 1919,[9] before being promoted to captain in August 1919.[10] He saw service in Waziristan between 1919 and 1921.[6]

Following his service in Waziristan, he returned to England in the summer of 1921. He resumed playing first-class cricket for Hampshire, making two appearances in the 1921 County Championship against Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire. The following season, he made a further three first-class appearances in the County Championship.[4] For Hampshire, he made seven first-class appearances. In these, he scored 121 runs at an average of 10.08, with a highest score of 24.[11] On 18 November 1921, he transferred to the Duke of Wellington's Regiment of the British Army.[6] He retired from military service in November 1933, retaining the rank of captain.[12] Bolton then proceeded to join the Metropolitan Police and in 1941, he became Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Constabulary.[13] He would hold this post until 1960.[6] He was made an OBE in the 1952 New Year Honours.[14] During his time with Northamptonshire Constabulary, he also acted as a team selector for Northamptonshire.[2] Bolton died in St Pancras in October 1964.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History. Burke's Peerage. 1963. p. 442. ISBN 9780947731212.
  2. ^ a b c "Wisden - Obituaries in 1964". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  3. ^ "Minor Counties Championship Matches played by Bertie Bolton". CricketArchive. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  4. ^ a b "First-Class Matches played by Bertie Bolton". CricketArchive. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  5. ^ "No. 29021". The London Gazette. 29 December 1914. p. 11151.
  6. ^ a b c d e Cowley, Richard (1986). Policing Northamptonshire, 1836-1986. Brewin. p. 95. ISBN 9780947731212.
  7. ^ "No. 30199". The London Gazette. 24 July 1917. p. 7489.
  8. ^ "No. 30343". The London Gazette. 19 October 1917. p. 10766.
  9. ^ "No. 31830". The London Gazette. 19 March 1920. p. 3441.
  10. ^ "No. 31751". The London Gazette. 23 January 1920. p. 986.
  11. ^ "First-Class Batting and Fielding For Each Team by Bertie Bolton". CricketArchive. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  12. ^ "No. 34000". The London Gazette. 1 December 1933. p. 7768.
  13. ^ "Northants new police chief". Banbury Advertiser. 16 July 1941. p. 5. Retrieved 28 July 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. ^ "No. 39433". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1952. p. 138.
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