John Nichols (British Army officer)
John Nichols | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | "Crasher" |
Born |
5 July 1896 Markington, Yorkshire, England |
Died |
7 February 1954 (aged 57) Aldershot, Hampshire, England |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/branch | British Army |
Years of service | 1914–1948 |
Rank | Major General |
Unit |
Lincolnshire Regiment Indian Staff Corps Border Regiment |
Commands held |
114th Infantry Brigade (1945) 182nd Infantry Brigade (1943–45) 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division (1942–43) 151st Infantry Brigade (1942) Habforce (1941) 1st Battalion, Essex Regiment (1940–41) |
Battles/wars |
First World War Waziristan campaign Anglo-Iraqi War Second World War |
Awards |
Distinguished Service Order & Bar Military Cross & Bar Mentioned in Despatches (2) Officer of the Legion of Merit (United States) War Cross, 1st Class (Greece) |
Major General John Sebastian Nichols, DSO & Bar, MC & Bar (5 July 1896 – 7 February 1954) was a senior British Army officer who, during the Second World War, commanded the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division.
Early life and military career
Nichols was born on 5 July 1896 in the town of Markington, Yorkshire.[1][2][3][4]. His father was the Reverend Sebastian Elijah Nichols, an Anglican clergyman, and his mother was Carolibe Isabel Mare.[5]. He was educated at Eton College and was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the Lincolnshire Regiment of the British Army in September 1914, a month after the outbreak of the First World War in August.[6] He served with the 1/5th Battalion, Lincolns, serving as part of the 138th (Libcoln and Leicester) Brigade of the 46th (North Midland) Division, on the Western Front, earning the nickname of "Crasher", and being awarded the Military Cross (MC) in 1918, in addition to being wounded.[7][8]
Between the wars
Nichols joined the Indian Army during the interwar period, and attended the Staff College, Camberley from 1930 to 1931, alongside such students as George Hopkinson, Miles Dempsey, Manley James and George Symes. He later transferred to the Border Regiment.[8] From 1937 to 1940, he was a member of the British military mission to Egypt[9]. He the served in the Waziristan campaign, where he was awarded a Bar to his MC for operations with the Waziristan Field Force in 1921.[10]
Second World War
During the Second World War he commanded the 1st Battalion, The Essex Regiment, and later a mixed formation known as Habforce[11] which forced a successful conclusion to the Anglo-Iraqi War.[8] Later in the Western Desert he commanded the 151st Infantry Brigade during the Battle of Gazala and the 10th Indian Infantry Division.[8] From July 1942 he commanded the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division, leading it in the First Battle of El Alamein, the Second Battle of El Alamein and in the Tunisian Campaign at the Battle of the Mareth Line. He was relieved of his command in March 1943 by General Sir Bernard Montgomery, the Eighth Army commander, blamed for his division's poor performance during the battle, although the blame was more a faulty plan than it was Nichols'.[8] He was succeeded as 50th Division commander by one of Montgomery's protegees, Major General Sidney Kirkman.[8] He later became commander of the 182nd Infantry Brigade in the United Kingdom from November 1943 until late March 1945.[8] He also commanded the Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force from March to July 1945. In August 1945 he took command of the 114th Infantry Brigade (formerly the 211th Infantry Brigade).[9][8]
Postwar
He retired from the army as a brigadier, although he had attained the rank of acting major general during his military career.
References
- ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915
- ↑ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007
- ↑ 1901 England Census
- ↑ England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966, 1973-1995
- ↑ Alumni Oxonienses: The Members of the University of Oxford, 1715-1886 Volume 3. Oxford: University of Oxford. 1891. p. 1022. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
- ↑ "No. 28918". The London Gazette. 29 September 1914. p. 7696.
- ↑ "No. 31583". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 October 1919. p. 12322.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Smart, p. 233
- 1 2 http://www.generals.dk/general/Nichols/John_Sebastian/Great_Britain.html
- ↑ "No. 32811". The London Gazette. 3 April 1923. p. 2512.
- ↑ "Ophelia - Operations & Codenames of WWII". codenames.info. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
Bibliography
- Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.
Military offices | ||
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Preceded by Thomas Rees |
GOC 10th Indian Infantry Division June – July 1942 |
Succeeded by Alan Blaxland |
Preceded by William Ramsden |
GOC 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division 1942–1943 |
Succeeded by Sidney Kirkman |