Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson
Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson , GCB , GBE , DSO (born September 5, 1881 in London , † December 31, 1964 in Chilton , England ), also called Jumbo Wilson , was a British field marshal during World War II .
Life
Wilson was from Suffolk and attended Eton College . After joining the army, he attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst . He then served with the Rifle Brigade in the Boer War in South Africa .
During the First World War , Wilson served as a staff officer in France . He was mentioned three times in war reports and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1917 .
Between the world wars, Wilson was employed as an instructor, but also served under Chetwode , in India . He also dealt with the then new concept of mobile warfare.
Wilson advocated a consolidation policy for the Empire . Great Britain should withdraw more and more from all possessions outside British India and Egypt in order to save military and financial resources.
In 1939 Wilson became the commander of the British forces in Egypt and in 1941 led the ill-fated Commonwealth expedition to Greece . In contrast , the operation under his command against the Vichy-French mandate areas Syria and Lebanon in June / July 1941 was successful. Wilson then became commander in chief of the British 9th Army stationed there .
A solid, reputable and famous veteran, Wilson was chosen by Winston Churchill to replace General Claude Auchinleck as Commander of the British Eighth Army in the winter of 1942 . At the urging of Chief of Staff Alan Brooke , Bernard Montgomery was appointed instead . Wilson was instead Commander in Chief of the United Kingdom's forces in Persia and Iraq .
In 1943, after Montgomery's success in the Second Battle of El Alamein and the expulsion of German forces from North Africa , Wilson was appointed Commander in Chief of the Middle East . In 1944 he replaced Dwight D. Eisenhower as Commander in Chief of the Allied Forces in the Mediterranean and remained in this position until December 1944.
After Wilson was promoted to Field Marshal on December 29, 1944, he served as head of the British Joint Staff Mission in Washington, DC from 1945 to 1947 , succeeding the late Sir John Dill .
In 1946 he was named Baron Wilson, of Libya and of Stowlangtoft in the County of Suffolk as a peer . Wilson, who was married with two children, died in 1964.
Individual evidence
- ^ Tom Segev: Once upon a time there was a Palestine - Jews and Arabs before the founding of the state of Israel, 4th edition, Munich, 2007, p. 164
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| New title created |
Baron Wilson 1946-1964 |
Patrick Maitland Wilson |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wilson, Henry Maitland, 1st Baron Wilson |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Wilson, jumbo |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British Field Marshal in World War II |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 5, 1881 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 31, 1964 |
| Place of death | Chilton |