Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

(Edward) Alexander (Wilmot) Williams CB

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

MC (8 June 1910 – 2 November 1994) 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 served 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 ...

and later commanded the 2nd Division.

Military career

Alexander Williams was born on 8 June 1910 in Herringston House,

Dorchester, Dorset Dorchester ( ) is the county town of Dorset, England. It is situated between Poole and Bridport on the A35 trunk route. A historic market town, Dorchester is on the banks of the River Frome to the south of the Dorset Downs and north of the ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the son of Captain Berkeley Cole Wilmot Williams, a

officer, and Hon. Mrs Winifred Mary Williams, the elder daughter of the second Lord Addington. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

before attending 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 infantry a ...

, from where he was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

into the

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...

(KRRC) on 28 August 1930. He was posted to the 2nd Battalion, KRRC, then serving in

Tidworth Tidworth is a garrison town and civil parish in south-east Wiltshire, England, on the eastern edge of Salisbury Plain. Lying on both sides of the A338 about north of the A303 primary route, the town is approximately west of Andover, south o ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, before the battalion moved in 1932 to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. Promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

on 28 August 1933, the 2nd KRRC returned to England in 1935. Williams, along with the battalion, now commanded by

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

Evelyn Barker General Sir Evelyn Hugh Barker (22 May 1894 – 23 November 1983) was a British Army officer who saw service in both the First World War and the Second World War. During the latter, he commanded the 10th Brigade during the Battle of France in 1 ...

, was sent to

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

in 1936, following the outbreak of 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 t ...

, before again returning to England, in 1937, where it was converted into a

motorised infantry Motorized infantry is infantry that is transported by trucks or other motor vehicles. It is distinguished from mechanized infantry, which is carried in armoured personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles, and from light infantry, which ...

battalion and became part of the Mobile Division (from April 1939 1st Armoured Division), under

Alan Brooke Field Marshal Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, (23 July 1883 – 17 June 1963), was a senior officer of the British Army. He was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), the professional head of the British Army, during the Sec ...

. In January 1939 Williams, who on 28 August 1938 was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, was made

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

to the 2nd KRRC, now commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Wilson after Barker was promoted to command a brigade. He was still adjutant upon the outbreak of the

in September. By then the battalion, alongside the 1st

Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

, formed the infantry component of the

1st Support Group 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 reco ...

, under

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 ...

Frederick Morgan, of the 1st Armoured Division, now under Major-General Roger Evans. Instead of being sent to France to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), however, the division remained in the United Kingdom. In late April 1940 the 2nd KRRC, now under Lieutenant-Colonel

Euan Miller Lieutenant General Sir Euan Alfred Bews Miller, (5 July 1897 – 30 August 1985) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both world wars and later went on to be Military Secretary. Military career Euan Miller was born on 5 July 1897 an ...

, and the 1st Rifle Brigade were transferred to the 30th Infantry Brigade, under Brigadier Claude Nicholson, and was initially to be sent to Norway to fight in the Norwegian Campaign. However, the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

invaded France and the brigade was instead sent, in mid-May, to

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...

, France, where, despite fighting bravely for several days, the 30th Brigade, along with most of the battalion, including Williams and Miller, the battalion's

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

(CO), was forced to surrender, most spending the rest of the conflict as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

(POW). Williams, however, managed to escape and, after returning to the United Kingdom, was awarded 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 i ...

(MC), for "gallant and distinguished services in recent operations", on 3 September and was made a General Staff Officer Grade 2 (GSO2) at the

Senior Officers' School The Senior Officers' School was a British military establishment established in 1916 by Brigadier-General R.J. Kentish for the training of Commonwealth senior officers of all services in inter-service cooperation. It was established as part of a ...

, before being made a

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

in late July 1942. In mid-December he was made a GSO2 with the HQ of the

British First Army The First Army was a formation of the British Army that existed during the First and Second World Wars. The First Army included Indian and Portuguese forces during the First World War and American and French units during the Second World War. Fi ...

, commanded by

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Kenneth Anderson. The army was then serving in

French North Africa French North Africa (french: Afrique du Nord française, sometimes abbreviated to ANF) is the term often applied to the territories controlled by France in the North African Maghreb during the colonial era, namely Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. In ...

, having landed there as part of

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...

some five weeks earlier. Williams remained in this post through most of the rest of the

Tunisian Campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. The ...

until, in mid-April 1943, he was made a GSO1 with a division. Upon relinquishing this appointment six months later, he was, in late January 1944, given a field command, and became CO of the 1st Battalion, KRRC. The battalion was serving in North Africa as the motorised infantry element of Brigadier

Richard Goodbody General Sir Richard Wakefield Goodbody, (12 April 1903 – 29 April 1981) was a senior British Army officer who served as Adjutant General from 1960 to 1963. Military career Educated at Rugby School and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Ri ...

's 2nd Armoured Brigade, itself part of the 1st Armoured Division, then under Major-General

Alexander Galloway Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Galloway, (3 November 1895 – 28 January 1977) was a senior British Army officer. During the Second World War, he was particularly highly regarded as a staff officer and, as such, had an influential role in the ...

. On 3 February Williams was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for his services. The battalion was training for eventual participation in the Italian campaign. Williams landed in Italy with his battalion, and most of the rest of the 1st Armoured Division, in late May 1944. In late June the battalion was transferred to the 9th Armoured Brigade, before returning to the 2nd Armoured Brigade and taking part in severe fighting in front of the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (german: Gotenstellung; it, Linea Gotica) was a German Defense line, defensive line of the Italian Campaign (World War II), Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Generalfeldmarschall, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's la ...

. Williams commanded the battalion throughout most of the battalion's service in Italy until, in March 1945, he was promoted to the acting rank of brigadier (and colonel on the same date) and was posted to

Allied Forces Headquarters Allied Force Headquarters (AFHQ) was the headquarters that controlled all Allies of World War II, Allied operational forces in the Mediterranean and Middle East theatre of World War II, Mediterranean theatre of World War II from August 1942 unti ...

(AFHQ), before being made a GSO1 with HQ Central Mediterranean Force from October until December 1946. After the War he became Assistant Adjutant-General at the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

and then, from 1954, Commanding Officer of 2nd Bn the King's Royal Rifle Corps. He was appointed Commander of 2nd Infantry Brigade in 1956, General Officer Commanding 2nd Division in 1960 and Chief of Staff at Headquarters

Far East Land Forces The Far East Command was a British military command which had 2 distinct periods. These were firstly, 18 November 1940 – 7 January 1942 succeeded by the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command ( ABDACOM), and secondly, 1963–1971 succeeded ...

in May 1962.Army Commands
His last appointments were as General Officer Commanding Singapore from November 1962 and Chairman of the Vehicle Committee at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

from 1964 before retiring in 1965. In 1970 he became

High Sheriff of Dorset The High Sheriff of Dorset is an ancient high sheriff title which has been in existence for over one thousand years. Until 1567 the Sheriff of Somerset was also the Sheriff of Dorset. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government ...

. He died on 2 November 1994, at the age of 84.

Family

In 1943 he married Sybilla Margaret Archdale. Their daughter Victoria Mary married

Francis Egerton, 7th Duke of Sutherland Francis Ronald Egerton, 7th Duke of Sutherland (born 18 February 1940), known as Francis Ronald Egerton until 2000, is a British peer from the Egerton family. Family Sutherland is the son of Cyril Reginald Egerton, the grandson of Francis Egert ...

, on 11 May 1974.The Peerage.com
/ref>

References

External links

Imperial War Museum Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Alexander Edward Wilmot 1910 births 1994 deaths Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies British Army major generals British Army brigadiers of World War II British escapees British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine British World War II prisoners of war Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Deputy Lieutenants of Dorset Escapees from German detention Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst High Sheriffs of Dorset Joint Forces Staff College alumni King's Royal Rifle Corps officers People educated at Eton College People from Dorchester, Dorset Recipients of the Military Cross World War II prisoners of war held by Germany Military personnel from Dorset