Edward Backhouse (British Army officer)

Edward Backhouse
Born (1895-02-07)7 February 1895
Bosmere, Suffolk
Died 20 November 1973(1973-11-20) (aged 78)
Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Allegiance  United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
Years of service 1914–1948
Rank Brigadier
Commands held 54th Infantry Brigade
18th Infantry Division
Battles/wars First World War
Second World War
Awards Commander of the Order of the British Empire, Mentioned in Dispatches

Brigadier Edward Henry Walford Backhouse CBE DL (7 February 1895 – 20 November 1973) was a British Army officer who served in both world wars and was twice taken prisoner.

Early life

Backhouse was born in Suffolk, the son of Rev. Edward Bell Backhouse and Mary Anne Emmeline Walford. He was educated at St. Lawrence College, Ramsgate, before attending the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.

Military career

Backhouse commissioned in the Suffolk Regiment on 25 February 1914.[1] He fought in the opening stages of the First World War, but was wounded and captured at the Battle of Le Cateau on 26 August 1914. He was promoted to captain January 1917, while still a prisoner of war.

Following the end of the war, Backhouse returned to service with the Suffolk Regiment. Between 1927 and 1928 he attended the Staff College, Camberley, and from 1929 to 1932 he was a staff captain in Southern Command. He then served as brigade major of the 10th Infantry Brigade before becoming Officer Commanding, Depot Suffolk Regiment in 1934. Between 1936 and 1938 Backhouse held various positions at the War Office, and from 1938 to 1939 he was Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion, Suffolk Regiment.[2]

Upon the outbreak of the Second World War, Backhouse became commander of the 54th Infantry Brigade, and was deployed to British Malaya. He was acting General Officer Commanding of the 18th Infantry Division for one month in 1940. Backhouse led the 54th Brigade during the Battle of Singapore and following the British garrison's surrender was taken as a prisoner of war by the Japanese. He was released from capture at the end of the war and in 1946 he was Mentioned in Dispatches for his leadership during the fall of Singapore in 1942. On 10 February 1948 Backhouse retired from the regular army with the rank of brigadier.[3]

From 1947 to 1957 Backhouse served as the honorary Colonel of the Suffolk Regiment, and in 1949 he was made a Deputy Lieutenant for Suffolk. He was made a Vice-Lieutenant for the county in 1965.[4] From 1953 to 1959 Backhouse was Chairman of the Suffolk Territorial and Auxiliary Forces Association. He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1961 New Year Honours.[5]

Personal life

He married Eileen Noël Newby Jenks in Colchester in 1920; together they had one son and one daughter.[6]

References

  1. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 28806. p. 1550. 24 February 1914. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  2. ↑ 'Backhouse, Edward Henry Walford' in British Army Officers 1939-1945 at unithistories.com, accessed 5 July 2015
  3. ↑ 'Backhouse, Edward Henry Walford' in British Army Officers 1939-1945 at unithistories.com, accessed 5 July 2015
  4. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 43746. p. 8077. 24 August 1965. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  5. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 42231. p. 8897. 31 December 1960. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  6. ↑ 'Backhouse, Edward Henry Walford' in British Army Officers 1939-1945 at unithistories.com, accessed 5 July 2015
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