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. In ...
Edmund Charles Wolf Myers, (12 October 1906 – 6 December 1997) was a
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 ...
officer who fought in the
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 opposin ...
. Myers was an officer in the
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...
.
Military career
From October 1942 to early 1944,
brevet
Brevet may refer to:
Military
* Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay
* Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college
* Aircre ...
ted first to
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 of ...
and then to
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. In ...
, Myers headed the
SOE-controlled
British Military Mission to
occupied Greece. In this capacity, he was directly involved in the coordination of the rival
ELAS
The Greek People's Liberation Army ( el, Ελληνικός Λαϊκός Απελευθερωτικός Στρατός (ΕΛΑΣ), ''Ellinikós Laïkós Apeleftherotikós Stratós'' (ELAS) was the military arm of the left-wing National Liberat ...
and
EDES
The National Republican Greek League ( el, Εθνικός Δημοκρατικός Ελληνικός Σύνδεσμος (ΕΔΕΣ), ''Ethnikós Dimokratikós Ellinikós Sýndesmos'' (EDES)) was one of the major resistance groups formed during t ...
partisan groups for the destruction of the Gorgopotamos viaduct in November 1942 (
Operation Harling
Operation Harling, also known as the Battle of Gorgopotamos ( el, Μάχη του Γοργοποτάμου) in Greece, was a World War II mission by the British Special Operations Executive (SOE), in cooperation with the Greek Resistance groups ...
), and for the British destruction of the
Asopos
Asopos ( el, Ασωπός; also Latinised as Asopus) is a village and a former municipality in Laconia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Monemvasia
Monemvasia ( el, Μονεμβασιά, ...
railway bridge on 21 June 1943 as part of
Operation Animals
Operation Animals was a World War II mission by the British Special Operations Executive (SOE), in cooperation with the Greek Resistance groups ELAS, Zeus, EDES, PAO and the United States Army Air Force. The operation took place between 21 June ...
. Increasingly drawn into the brewing conflict between the Communist-dominated ELAS and the republican EDES, as well as into British designs to restore the unpopular
Greek monarchy
The monarchy of Greece ( el, Μοναρχία της Ελλάδας, Monarchía tis Elládas) or Greek monarchy ( el, Ελληνική Μοναρχία, Ellinikí Monarchía) was the government in which a hereditary monarch was the sovereign of ...
postwar, Myers was criticised by the Foreign Office for what they believed to be favourable treatment towards ELAS and he was removed from his post. He was succeeded as head of the British mission by his deputy,
Chris "Monty" Woodhouse.
Being parachute-qualified, Myers then entered service as Commander Royal Engineers in the
1st Airborne Division. In this capacity he fought at the
Battle of Arnhem
The Battle of Arnhem was a battle of the Second World War at the vanguard of the Allied Operation Market Garden. It was fought in and around the Dutch city of Arnhem, the town of Oosterbeek, the villages Wolfheze and Driel and the vicinity fro ...
. Myers was sent across the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
on 22 September 1944 to establish contact with the
1st Polish Parachute Brigade
The 1st (Polish) Independent Parachute Brigade was a parachute infantry brigade of the Polish Armed Forces in the West under the command of Major General Stanisław Sosabowski, created in September 1941 during the Second World War and based in S ...
. As chief engineer officer, he was responsible for organising the Rhine crossings of the Poles, and finally the evacuation of the remnants of the 1st Airborne Division from Arnhem. During this operation, he was wounded by
shrapnel
Shrapnel may refer to:
Military
* Shrapnel shell, explosive artillery munitions, generally for anti-personnel use
* Shrapnel (fragment), a hard loose material
Popular culture
* ''Shrapnel'' (Radical Comics)
* ''Shrapnel'', a game by Adam C ...
. For his part in the battle, he was awarded the Dutch
Bronze Lion
The Bronze Lion ( nl, Bronzen Leeuw) is a high Royal Dutch award, intended for servicemen who have shown extreme bravery and leadership in battle favouring The Netherlands; in some special cases it can be awarded to Dutch or foreign civilians. It ...
.
In 1955, Myers published his memoirs from his time in occupied Greece under the title ''Greek Entanglement''.
References
External links
Lieutenant-Colonel Edmund Charles Wolf Myers from the ''Pegasus Archive''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myers, Eddie
1906 births
1997 deaths
British Army personnel of the Korean War
British Army brigadiers of World War II
British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine
British Special Operations Executive personnel
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit
Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
Greece in World War II
Greek Resistance members
People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College
People from Kensington
Recipients of the Bronze Lion
Recipients of the Legion of Merit
Military personnel from London
Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley
Royal Engineers officers