Richard O'Connor

This article deals with the British general; for the football player of the same name, see Richard O'Connor (football player) .

Richard O'Connor in Helmond, The Netherlands, October 1944

Sir Richard Nugent O'Connor KT , GCB , GBE , DSO , MC (born August 21, 1889 in Srinagar , † June 17, 1981 in London ) was a general in the British Army who was the Commander in Chief of the Western Desert at the beginning of World War II Force (Western Desert Force ) in North Africa. He was the commander of the British forces during Operation Compass , in which his forces almost completely wiped out a much larger Italian army. This victory nearly drove the Axis powers out of Africa . However, this induced Adolf Hitler to send the Africa Corps under General Erwin Rommel to try to bring the situation back under control. O'Connor was later captured and spent over two years in an Italian POW camp. However, he managed to escape and commanded the VIII Corps in 1944 during the invasion of Normandy and later during Operation Market Garden . In 1945 he assumed command of the British forces in India and later led the Northwest Army in the last days of British rule over the subcontinent. He was awarded various honors, for example he served King George VI. as aide-de-camp , which was one of the greatest awards for a British general.

Life

Early years and World War I

O'Connor was born on August 21, 1889 in Srinagar , Kashmir . He was the son of a major in the Royal Irish Fusiliers. On his mother's side, he was the grandson of a former governor of the Indian central provinces. He was born with a military career. Young Richard attended Tonbridge Castle School in 1899 and The Towers School in Crowthorne in 1902 . In 1903 his father was killed in an accident. He then moved to the Wellington School in Somerset . From 1908 he attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst .

In October of the following year he was assigned to the 2nd Battalion of the Cameronians Regiment. O'Connor stayed in close contact with this regiment for the rest of his life. In January 1910 he was transferred with the battalion to Colchester, where he received intelligence and rifle training. It was then relocated to Malta from 1911 to 1912 . O'Connor served there as the regimental intelligence officer.

During the First World War he served as an intelligence officer in the 22nd Brigade of the 7th Division. He was a captain in command of the 7th Division's intelligence company. He later served as a Brevet Brigade Major in the 91st Brigade of the 7th Division. That is, he had the authority appropriate to that rank, but had not actually been promoted to major. In February 1915 he was awarded the Military Cross . In March of the same year he took part in frontline missions at Arras and Bullecourt. O'Connor was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), and he was made a Brevet Lieutenant Colonel in command of the 2nd Infantry Battalion of the Honorable Artillery Company in June 1917 . This was part of the 7th Division under Major-General Herbert Shoubridge . In November 1917, the division was transferred to the Italian front on the Piave river to support the Italian armed forces in the fight against Austria-Hungary. At the end of October 1918, during the Battle of Vittorio Veneto , O'Connor was ordered to take the Grave di Papadopoli river island with his unit. The 2nd Battalion carried out the order successfully and was then awarded the Italian Medal of Honor in silver. He also got a bar for his DSO. This means that he was given the award again.

Interwar years

From 1920 to 1921 he attended Staff College in Camberley . O'Connor's other post during the interwar years consisted of a position as brigade major in the Experimental Brigade (5th Brigade), testing methods and procedures for using tanks and airplanes, and coordinating with infantry and artillery . Many of the theories of mechanized combined arms combat developed by the commander of JFC Fuller's brigade , Basil Liddell Hart , Heinz Guderian, and others were tried by the 5th Brigade.

He returned to his old unit, the Cameronians, as an adjutant from 1924 to 1925 . From 1925 to 1927 he served as a company commander at Sandhurst. He then returned to Camberley as an instructor at the staff school, where he worked between 1927 and 1929. In 1930 he served again with the 1st Battalion of the Cameronians in Egypt and from 1931 to 1932 in Lucknow , India. From 1932 to 1934 he was General Staff Officer 2nd degree in the War Office . He attended the Imperial Defense College in London in 1935 . In October of the same year O'Connor was promoted to brigadier general and was given command of the Peshawar Brigade in northwest India. He was later to say that he could use the knowledge of mobility he acquired during this time in Libya. In September 1938, O'Connor was promoted to major general and commander of the 7th Division in Palestine . In addition, he had other duties as military governor of Jerusalem . Here he worked with Major General Bernard Montgomery , commander of the 8th Division, in an attempt to end the unrest between the Jewish and Arab communities. In August 1939 the 7th Division was moved to the fortress of Mersa Matruh in Egypt. O'Connor had the task of defending the area against a possible impending attack by the Italian 10th Army . The Italians had gathered forces across the border in Libya.

The Italian Offensive and Operation Compass

Italy declared war on Great Britain and France on June 10, 1940. O'Connor was appointed commander of the Western Desert Force. He was given the task of defending Egypt and the Suez Canal against an Italian attack. To accomplish this mission, O'Connor planned to form a protective shield from light tanks and armored cars that had artillery support. He wanted to delay the advance of the Italians under the leadership of Marshal Rodolfo Graziani . Brigadier General William Gott was in command of these delay forces . Meanwhile his main force was to withdraw to Mersa Matruh and the Baggush Box, where strong field fortifications had been prepared. These would hold up the Italians long enough to bring in British reinforcements in time, to strengthen the defensive lines and to launch a counterattack in due course.

Graziani struck on September 13th: his forward divisions advanced sixty miles into Egypt and reached the town of Sidi Barrani . Since their supplies were running low, they dug in. O'Connor then prepared a counterattack. The British 7th Panzer Division and the 4th Indian Infantry Division were available to him. After the disaster at Dunkirk , they were the best-equipped remaining divisions of the British Army. He also had two other brigades. The total number of his men was about 36,000 soldiers. The Italians had almost five times the number of soldiers and hundreds of tanks and also more artillery pieces than the British. The Italian Air Force also outnumbered them. The British, however, were better trained, better managed and, for the most part, had superior weapon systems and equipment and greater mobility. O'Connor intended to take all of these advantages to the limit. The preparations continued: a convoy of ships was brought in from Great Britain through the Mediterranean. This risked an attack by the Axis powers. However, he managed to bring valuable war material to Egypt. These included 150 tanks, 100 artillery pieces and almost 1,000 machine guns and anti-tank guns. Meanwhile, small raid squads of the 7th Panzer Division and the newly formed Long Range Desert Group were sent out to enlighten, obstruct and disturb the Italians. These raids were also the beginning of the SAS commandos. The Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force bombed the Italian positions, airfields and stages. As a result, O'Connor, his adviser Brigadier General Eric Dorman-Smith, and his men saw how weakly led and ill-prepared the adversaries were, even though they were vastly outnumbered.

The counterattack, alias Operation Compass, began on December 8, 1940. What followed was a masterpiece of maneuvering, concentration of forces, firepower, and combined arms combat.

O'Connor's relatively small force of 31,000 soldiers, 275 tanks and 120 guns, with good support from a squadron of the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy , succeeded in tearing a gap in the Italian defense positions near the coast at Sidi Barrani. The desert forces cut through the rearward territories of the Italians. It succeeded in isolating and eliminating one Italian position after the other between the desert and the coast. The Italian cannons could not harm the heavy British Matilda tanks. Their shells ricocheted off their armor without damage. By mid-December the Italians had been completely driven out of Egypt. They left 38,000 prisoners and large quantities of war material behind.

The Western Desert Force took a short break before resuming its attack on Libya against the remnants of Graziani's disorganized army. At this point the Commander in Chief of the British Middle East Command, General Sir Archibald Wavell , ordered the withdrawal of the 4th Indian Division. This veterans division was now to lead the attack against Italian East Africa. As a replacement, O'Connor was assigned the inexperienced 6th Australian Division, which was not prepared for the desert battle. Despite this setback, the offensive continued with little delay. Towards the end of December, the 6th Australian Division besieged Bardia and was able to take it. 40,000 Italian soldiers were taken prisoner and 400 guns were captured.

In January 1941, the Western Desert Force in XIII. Corps renamed, which should be directly under the command of General Wavell. O'Connor not only approved of this move, he had even suggested it himself beforehand. The offensive continued on January 9th. On January 12th, the important port fortress of Tobruk was enclosed. She fell on January 22nd and another 25,000 Italians were taken prisoner. Important supplies, food and weapons were captured. On January 26, the remaining Italian divisions in eastern Libya began to retreat northwest along the coast. O'Connor immediately followed them to cut them off. To do this, he sent the tanks in a sweeping flank movement southwest through the desert, while the infantry pursued north along the coast. The tanks caught up with the fleeing Italians at Beda Fomm on February 5 and cut off the main coastal road and thus their escape route. Two days later the British infantry coming from the north of Benghazi were already hot on their heels, and after a loss-making and unsuccessful attempt at breaking out, the demoralized and exhausted Italians surrendered unconditionally. O'Connor telegraphed Wavell: "The fox killed in the open ..."

In two months the XIII. Corps / Western Desert Force advanced over 800 miles, had destroyed an entire Italian army of 10 divisions and took over 130,000 prisoners. 400 tanks and 1,292 guns were destroyed or captured. Only 500 of the company's own soldiers were killed and 1,373 wounded. This was a remarkable military achievement at the time, a true British blitzkrieg . In recognition of this, O'Connor was named Knight Commander of the British Empire. This was the first of his three memberships in an order of knights. When Wavell and others congratulated him on his outstanding performance, he replied in his usual humble manner, "I suppose it could be described as a complete victory."

Turn and capture

Viewed in a broad strategic context, however, the victorious outcome of Operation Compass was not yet complete. O'Connor was fully aware of this and urged Wavell to allow him to continue the advance as quickly as possible as far as Tripoli in order to completely defeat the Italians in North Africa. Wavell agreed, and so the XIII. Corps continue forward. But O'Connor's new offensive turned out to be short-lived. When the corps reached El Agheila , a little southwest of Beda Fomm, Winston Churchill ordered the advance to be stopped there. The Axis powers had invaded Greece and Wavell was ordered to send all available forces there as soon as possible to oppose the invasion. Wavell had to surrender the 6th Australian Division, 7th Armored Division and most of the supplies and air support for this ultimately doomed enterprise. O'Connor had no choice but to maintain the position at El Agheila with a single understaffed division, negligible air support and overstretched supply lines.

But the situation was soon to get worse for the British. Around March 1941, Hitler dispatched General Erwin Rommel and the German Africa Corps to support the almost completely defeated Italians. Wavell and O'Connor now faced a capable adversary with a commander who, with his ingenuity and daring, would soon prove a worthy match. Rommel wasted little time before embarking on his own offensive. By the end of March he had what was left of the British XIII. Corps driven from the positions at el-Agheila and Benghazi and most of Cyrenaica recaptured.

Lieutenant General Richard O'Connor (center in the background) with LtGen. Philip Neame (center), Major General Gambier-Parry (right) and Brigadier Coombe (left) in the foreground of a Junkers Ju 52 after it was captured by the Germans on April 6, 1941.

Wavell was rightly concerned about this sudden turnaround. In addition, he was now in command of an area that encompassed almost the entire eastern Mediterranean. So he appointed General Sir Philip Neame to command the troops of Great Britain and the Commonwealth in Egypt. Neame and O'Connor quickly became friends, as they both preferred to command from the front lines rather than from remote headquarters. When the two went on a nightly reconnaissance mission on April 7, 1941, they were captured by a German patrol.

O'Connor was to spend the next two and a half years as a prisoner of war, mostly at the Castello di Vincigliati near Florence . The conditions of detention for the mostly high-ranking Allied officers were very good. Here he and Neame found themselves in the illustrious company of Major General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart and Deputy Air Marshal OT Boyd, among others . Although the conditions of her captivity were not bad, the officers soon formed an escape club and planned the breakout. Her first attempt was simply to try to climb the wall. This earned them a month of solitary confinement. The second attempt was to dig an escape tunnel between October 1942 and March 1943. The attempt was initially successful. Boyd managed to get to Como on the Swiss border, but O'Connor and de Wiart were arrested near Bologna in the Po Valley. It was only after the Italian surrender in September 1943 that O'Connor was able to successfully escape with the support of the Italian resistance movement when he was to be taken away from Vincigliati. After a failed meeting with a submarine, he took a boat to Termoli and from there to Bari . There he was greeted by General Harold Alexander on December 21, 1943. Later in life, he kept in touch with his captive comrades and the former Italian resistance fighters who had helped him escape. On his return to Great Britain, O'Connor was formally bestowed the knighthood that he had been awarded in 1941. He was also promoted to lieutenant general. Montgomery suggested that O'Connor should succeed him as commander of the British 8th Army. The post was then awarded to Oliver Leese . O'Connor was given command of a corps.

VIII Corps and Normandy

On January 21, 1944, O'Connor became Commander of the VIII Corps. It consisted of the British Guard Armored Division, the 11th Armored Division, the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division and the 6th Guard Armored Brigade, the 8th Group of the Royal Artillery and the 2nd Regiment of the Household Cavalry. This was a strong force, but it still required a great deal of preparation and training for the upcoming Operation Overlord . O'Connor was more than up to the task. During the following months the Corps carried out many maneuvers in Yorkshire . Several of these were also carried out with new types of mine clearance tanks, the so-called Hobart's Funnies . During an April inspection of the Guards Armored Division by Prime Minister Winston Churchill , O'Connor raised concerns about the armor and emergency exits on the Cromwell and Sherman tanks. These concerns later turned out to be justified. Churchill was impressed with O'Connor, and the two stayed in correspondence.

On June 11, 1944, O'Connor and a vanguard of the VIII Corps reached the area around Caen in Normandy during the Battle of Caen . Their first task was to break out of the bridgehead of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division and cross the Odon and Orne rivers . After that, the units were to take positions in the higher terrain near Bretteville-sur-Laize , thus cutting off Caen from the south.

The outbreak and the crossing of the rivers succeeded immediately. O'Connor's superior officer, Bernard Montgomery, congratulated him on the Corps' success. But it turned out to be much more difficult to cut off Caen (Operation Epsom). O'Connor voiced his concerns that the Germans might counterattack. Therefore, he advocated that the corps should first establish itself in the conquered area before advancing further to Caen. However, this recommendation was not followed. The Germans then actually began such a counterattack and the VIII Corps was pushed back across the Orne River. O'Connor tried again to establish a beachhead ( Operation Jupiter ), but had little success.

The next major mission of the VIII Corps was in Operation Goodwood . The attack began on July 18 with a massive air strike by the USAAF's 9th Air Force and was followed by a successful three-pronged advance on July 20 to capture Bras and Hubert-Folie on the right flank, Fontenay on the left flank and the ridge of the hill Bourguebus completed in the middle. This was followed by Operation Bluecoat , which was planned by O'Connor himself. The 15th (Scottish) Division attacked in the direction of Vire east and west of Bois du Homme to enable the American advance in Operation Cobra . The rapid advance was followed by bitter fighting in the south for the first two days, with heavy casualties on both sides.

While the Allies were preparing to oust the Germans from France, O'Connor learned that the VIII Corps would not participate in this phase of the campaign. The VIII. Corps was kept in reserve and by the XII. Corps replaced under Lieutenant General Neil Ritchie . In mid-August, the scope of his command was reduced when the 11th Panzer Division assigned to XXX. Corps and the 15th (Scottish) Division to the XII. Corps were incorporated. During his time in reserve, O'Connor maintained a lively correspondence with Churchill, Montgomery, and others, suggesting improvements to armored vehicles and addressing various other issues, such as combat fatigue. Some of his recommendations were followed, such as putting rams on the tanks to cope with the difficulties of the many rows of hedges. Most, however, have been ignored.

Operation Market Garden, India and beyond

O'Connor remained in command of the VIII Corps; he was given the task of creating Horrocks ' XXX. Corps to support Operation Market Garden . This was a plan of Montgomery to set up a bridgehead over the Rhine in the Netherlands . Although important units had been withdrawn from his corps, his corps was able to take the Dutch cities of Deurne and Helmond . O'Connor suggested a possible sequence of operations that could be performed over the next few days. These included the construction of bridges over the Scheldt and the Maas Canal, as well as the capture of Soerendonck and Weert . Had these actions been carried out, they could possibly have bypassed the main German defense positions that the XXX. Corps stayed too long. This might save Operation Market Garden, save thousands of lives, and end the war in Europe weeks or even months earlier. Next, the VIII Corps took part in the advance to capture Venraij and Venlo , which began on October 12th.

In early September 1944, O'Connor heard rumors that he might be transferred to India. When he wrote about it to Montgomery, Montgomery assured him that it was unlikely. On November 27, he was ordered to take command of Lieutenant General Sir Mosely Mayne in the Eastern Army in India. This marked the end of a long and distinguished career as a soldier. As was the custom, O'Connor stayed in contact with members of the VIII Corps after his transfer to India. He received reports of their advances with pride.

In November 1945, O'Connor was promoted to general and appointed commander of the Northwest Army in India. In July 1946 he received the post of Adjutant General of the Armed Forces and General Aide-de-camp of the King. He now spent most of his time visiting British troops stationed across India and the Far East. However, his time as adjutant general was short. After a disagreement over the canceled demobilization of soldiers stationed in the Far East, O'Connor offered to resign, which was accepted. Shortly thereafter, he was made the Knight Grand Cross of the Bath .

O'Connor retired in 1948 at the age of 58. Nevertheless, he stayed in contact with the army and took on other tasks.

He was the commandant of the Army Cadet Force in Scotland from 1948 to 1959, Colonel of the Cameronians from 1951 to 1954, Lord Lieutenant von Ross and Cromarty from 1955 to 1964, and served as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1964. His wife Jean died in 1959. In 1963 he married Dorothy Russell. In July 1971 he was made Knight of the Thistle . He played himself in the English series The World at War from 1974. He died on June 17, 1981 in London.

literature

• King's College London Liddell Hart Center for Military Archives: Papers of General Sir Richard O'Connor KT, GCB, SO, MC (1889–1981).
• Cyril Nelson Barclay: Against great odds. The story of the first offensive in Libya in 1940-41, the first British victory in the Second World War. Including many extracts from the personal account of Sir Richard N. O'Connor, and with a foreword by Sir John Harding . Sifton, Praed & Co, London 1955.
• Correlli Barnett: The Desert Generals. Kimber, London 1960 (2nd edition. Allen Unwin, London et al. 1983, ISBN 0-04-355018-5 ).
• John Baynes: The Forgotten Victor. General Sir Richard O'Connor, KT, GCB, DSO, MC. Brassey's, London et al. 1989, ISBN 0-08-036269-9 .
• Richard Doherty: Ireland's generals in the Second World War. Four Courts Press, Dublin 2004, ISBN 1-85182-865-6 .
• R. Ernest Dupuy , Trevor N. Dupuy : The Encyclopedia Of Military History. From 3500 BC to the Present. 2nd revised edition. Jane, London 1986, ISBN 0-7106-0380-0 .
• John Keegan : Churchill's Generals. Abacus, London 2000, ISBN 0-349-11317-3 .
• Ian Sumner: British Commanders of World War II. Osprey Publishing, Oxford et al. 2003, ISBN 1-84176-669-0 .