Henry Maitland Wilson
Field Marshal Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson, GCB, GBE, DSO (5 September 1881 – 31 December 1964), also known as Jumbo Wilson, was a senior British Army officer of the 20th century. He saw active service in the Second Boer War and then during the First World War on the Somme and at Passchendaele. During the Second World War he served as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) British Troops in Egypt, in which role he launched Operation Compass, attacking Italian forces with considerable success, in December 1940. He went on to be Military Governor of Cyrenaica in February 1941, commanding a Commonwealth expeditionary force to Greece in April 1941 and General Officer Commanding (GOC) British Forces in Palestine and Trans-Jordan in May 1941.
The Lord Wilson | |
|---|---|
Wilson in 1944 | |
| Nickname(s) | "Jumbo" |
| Born | 5 September 1881 London, England |
| Died | 31 December 1964 (aged 83) Chilton, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Buried | St. George's, Stowlangtoft, Suffolk, England |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army |
| Years of service | 1900–1947 |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
| Service number | 17547 |
| Unit | Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) |
| Commands held | British Joint Staff Mission to Washington (1944–47) Supreme Allied Commander Mediterranean Theatre (1944) Middle East Command (1943–44) Persia and Iraq Command (1942–43) Ninth Army (1941–42) British Forces in Palestine and Trans-Jordan (1941) Cyrenaica (1941) British Troops in Egypt (1939–41) 2nd Infantry Division (1937–39) 6th Infantry Brigade (1934–35) 1st Battalion, Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) (1927–30) |
| Battles/wars | Second Boer War First World War North-West Frontier
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| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches (5) War Cross (Greece) Virtuti Militari (Poland) Army Distinguished Service Medal (United States) Legion of Merit (United States) |
| Other work | Constable of the Tower of London |
Wilson became GOC Ninth Army in Syria and Palestine in October 1941, GOC Persia and Iraq Command in August 1942 and GOC Middle East Command in February 1943. He was Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean from January 1944 and Chief of the British Joint Staff Mission in Washington D. C. from January 1945 until 1947.