Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat

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Lord Lovat in Newhaven after returning from the Dieppe Raid , August 1942

Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat , DSO MC TD (born July 9, 1911 at Beaufort Castle near Beauly , Inverness-shire ; † March 16, 1995 in Beauly, Inverness-shire) was a Scottish nobleman and British general Command leader in World War II .

Life

He was the eldest son of Simon Fraser, 14th Lord Lovat (1871-1933) from his marriage to the Hon. Laura Lister (1892-1965), daughter of Thomas Lister, 4th Baron Ribblestone . When his father died in 1933, he inherited his title of nobility as 15th Lord Lovat and 4th Baron Lovat as well as the chief dignity of Clan Fraser ("25th MacShimidh"). The baron title was also associated with a seat in the British House of Lords .

He attended Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire to be followed by studies at and graduated Magdalen College of the University of Oxford as a Master of Arts from. He entered the British Army and served first as a second lieutenant with the Lovat Scouts and from 1931 with the Scots Guards , where he rose to the rank of lieutenant in 1934 . In 1937 he retired from regular military service and became a reserve officer . In July 1939 he was reactivated as captain of the Lovat Scouts and in 1940 he volunteered for the newly formed Commandos .

On March 3, 1941 he took part in the successful commando operation against the Lofoten and in April 1941 a raid on the French coastal town of Hardelot . He was awarded the Military Cross for this in July . In 1942 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and on August 19, 1942 commanded Commando No. 4 in the loss-making Dieppe raid . For the latter, he was awarded the Companion of the Distinguished Service Order . He rose to the rank of brigadier and in early 1944 became commander of the newly formed 1st Special Service Brigade . On D-Day , 1944, he took with this unit on Sword Beach on the Normandy landings in part and moved to the Pegasus Bridge before. His continued popularity is due to the fact that he personally led his troops into battle to the tune of his piper, Bill Millin , to the bagpipes . Six days later he was seriously wounded by his own artillery fire near Bréville . After recovery, he became State Secretary in Churchill's cabinet . For his achievements in the war he was later awarded the French Croix de guerre and as a Knight of the Legion of Honor. In 1946 he was inducted into the Order of Saint John as Commander . In 1953 he was awarded the Territorial Decoration .

In 1994 he had to sell his family home Beaufort Castle due to financial difficulties . From his 1938 marriage with Rosamond Broughton (1917–2012), daughter of Sir Henry Broughton, 11th Baronet, he had six children. He survived his eldest son, Simon Augustine Fraser (1939–1994), by a year, which is why his son, Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser (* 1977) inherited the title of nobility as 16th Lord Lovat in 1995.

reception

In the film The Longest Day in which Fraser is played by Peter Lawford , the relief of the Airborne Forces of Operation Tonga at Pegasus Bridge by the commandos under Fraser's command is depicted, with Lovat apologizing to the Airborne Forces commander, Major John Howard , for letting us know his troops were two minutes late from the schedule.

Fraser was responsible for the dismissal of the writer Evelyn Waugh from the service of the Commandos in 1941 . He then portrayed him unflatteringly in his novel Officers and Gentlemen as the character of the aspiring hairdresser Trimmer McTavish, which Fraser persistently annoyed: "Do you realize, thanks to that monster, I am Trimmer?" (German: "Do you realize that I'm a trimmer because of this monster?")

Literature and web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Max Harper Gow / Louis Jebb: Lord Lovat . Obituary in The Independent , March 20, 1995, accessed March 4, 2020
  2. ↑ Johnson (1912)
predecessor Office successor
Simon Fraser Lord Lovat
Baron Lovat
1933-1995 		Simon Fraser
personal data
SURNAME Fraser, Simon, 15th Lord Lovat
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lovat, Simon
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish general and commanding officer in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH July 9, 1911
PLACE OF BIRTH Beaufort Castle , Beauly , Inverness-shire
DATE OF DEATH March 16, 1995
Place of death Beauly , Inverness-shire