Herbert Lumsden
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Lieutenant-General Herbert Lumsden, CB, DSO, MC, psc (8 April 1897 - January 6, 1945) was a British Army general during World War II.
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[edit] Early career
Herbert Lumsden was born in 1897, the son of John Lumsden. Educated at Eton, at the outbreak of the Great War he was only 17 years old. He served in the ranks with the Territorial Force for ten months before passing into the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. He was commissioned into the Royal Horse Artillery on 13 August 1916. On 26 July 1918 Lumsden was awarded the Military Cross. The citation read;
- For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during 13 days of continuous fighting in charge of a forward section. He invariably showed the greatest coolness and courage in the face of danger, keeping his section in action, and always volunteering for any officer's patrol work. As FOO he was consistently shelled whenever he moved his OP, and, although finally wounded, he continued to work and observe for his battery.
[edit] Interbellum period
On 19 April 1923 Lumsden married Alice Mary Roddick in Northaw. They would have two sons together. Lumsden continued to serve in the Royal Artillery until 24 June 1925 when he transferred to the 12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales), a cavalry regiment. In August he was promoted from Lieutenant to Captain after eight years in the former rank. He was an ardent horseman, despite his 6ft height, and participated in a number of Grand Nationals. In 1926 he won the prestigious Grand Military Gold Cup at Sandown riding Foxtrot.
In 1929 Lumsden attended the Staff College, Camberley and passed the course, entitling him to use the post-nominals psc after his name. Promoted to Major in 1931, he held staff appointments in the cavalry for the next four years, being G.S.O.3 of Aldershot Command and then Brigade Major of the 1st Cavalry Brigade. After a period of not being employed he became G.S.O.2 at the Staff College before being given command, in 1938, of his old regiment, the 12th Royal Lancers in succession to Colonel Richard McCreery. He was still in command of the regiment, now converted to armoured cars, at the outbreak of the Second World War.
[edit] Second World War
Lumsden was widely praised for his command of his regiment during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940 as part of the British Expeditionary Force. For his actions he was awrded the Distinguished Service Order. He was promoted and commanded a tank brigade before being appointed GOC of 6th Armoured Division in the Home command.
On 5 November 1941 he was given command of the 1st Armoured Division. It was in this role that he first saw service in North Africa. A forceful and rather touchy personality, he frequently argued with his peers and superiors - the bickering over orders contributed much to the British defeat at Gazala. He was wounded twice in 1942 and received a bar to his DSO and on his return to service he survived Montgomery's cull of Eighth Army commanders. He was appointed commander of X Corps for the Second Battle of El Alamein after Horrocks turned the command down. Lumsden did not get on well with Montgomery. Montgomery was very critical of Lumsden's apparent perceived reluctance to launch vigorous offensive operations during the battle, and his alleged tardiness to pursue the retreating Afrika Korps. Lumsden was removed from command in January, 1943, not long after Alamein.
Lumsden was given command of a Corps in Britain before being sent to the Pacific as Winston Churchill's military representative to MacArthur. He was killed instantly by a kamikaze plane whilst on the bridge of USS New Mexico observing the bombardment of Lingayen Gulf on 6 January 1945. Narrowly escaping death in the same incident was Vice-Admiral Bruce Fraser, 1st Baron Fraser of North Cape, who had requested Lumsden's presence on the bombardment tour.
[edit] References
- Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War, Nick Smart. ISBN 1-84415-049-6
[edit] External links
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