Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

Bernard Campbell Fletcher, (17 June 1898 – 1968) was an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

active during the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Military career

Fletcher was born on 17 June 1898 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant from the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...

into the

Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First and Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to form the Royal Highland Fus ...

on 7 April 1916. Valentine Blomfield, later a major general, was a fellow graduate. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he served in France and Belgium from 21 December 1917 to 23 April 1918, then from 21 June 1918 to 11 November 1918. He won the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

(gazetted in March 1919), and was gassed with mustard gas. The citation for his Military Cross, published in the '' London Gazette'' in October 1919, read: After the war Fletcher spent periods in North Russia during the

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

(16 August to 1 October 1919), Egypt, Palestine and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, during which he learned to speak Arabic and Hindustani. In 1929 he returned to England, where he attended the Staff College, Camberley, after which he returned to his regiment in India. Between 25 July 1933 and 24 July 1937 he held an appointment as Staff Captain in India, and was promoted to major on 4 October 1935. At some point between 1937 and 1939 he served in Palestine during the

Arab revolt The Arab Revolt ( ar, الثورة العربية, ) or the Great Arab Revolt ( ar, الثورة العربية الكبرى, ) was a military uprising of Arab forces against the Ottoman Empire in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On ...

. In 1938 he succeeded

Horatio Berney-Ficklin Major General Horatio Pettus Mackintosh Berney-Ficklin, (13 June 1892 – 17 February 1961) was a British Army officer who served in both the First and Second World Wars. During the latter, he commanded for just over three years – from July 1 ...

in command of the 2nd Battalion, Highland Light Infantry, and his promotion to lieutenant colonel was gazetted 1 July 1939. In the

Fletcher and his battalion took part in the East African Campaign as an element of the 10th Indian Infantry Brigade, which formed part of

5th Indian Infantry Division The 5th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II that fought in several theatres of war and was nicknamed the "Ball of Fire". It was one of the few Allied divisions to fight against three diffe ...

. When the brigade's commander, Brigadier

William Slim William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

, was wounded on 21 January 1941 Fletcher was given temporary command until the arrival of a permanent replacement on 20 March. Reverting to his battalion command, Fletcher was subsequently given command of Fletcher Force, an ad hoc grouping of armour and mobile infantry created to advance into Keren at the end of the

Battle of Keren The Battle of Keren ( it, Battaglia di Cheren) took place from 3 February to 27 March 1941. Keren was attacked by the British during the East African Campaign of the Second World War. A force of Italian regular and colonial troops defended th ...

and to exploit towards Asmara. He was then appointed to command Flitforce (a reference to his nickname), an ad hoc grouping created to pursue the retreating Italians towards Adigrat. On 13 April 1941, Fletcher was promoted to command the 9th Indian Infantry Brigade, also part of the 5th Indian Infantry Division, an appointment he held until 7 August 1942. For his service during the campaign Fletcher was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

, and was mentioned in despatches. Fletcher was Commanding Officer, Sub-Area, Middle East from 1942 to 1943 and assistant adjutant and quartermaster-general, Home Forces from 1943 to 1944. He was again appointed temporary

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

and temporary

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

from 2 March 1944, and appointed Brigadier, General Staff British Army Staff, Washington D.C. from 1944 to 1945. He was next posted as assistant adjutant and quartermaster-general, Home Forces in 1945, before retiring from the army on 3 September 1948 with the honorary rank of brigadier.

References

Footnotes

External links

Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Bernard Campbell 1898 births 1968 deaths British Army personnel of World War I British Army brigadiers of World War II British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Highland Light Infantry officers Recipients of the Military Cross British Army personnel of the Russian Civil War