General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir Geoffrey Randolph Dixon Musson, (9 June 1910 – 10 January 2008) was a senior

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 during 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 opposi ...

and the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

and later became

Adjutant-General to the Forces The Adjutant-General to the Forces, commonly just referred to as the Adjutant-General (AG), was for just over 250 years one of the most senior officers in the British Army. The AG was latterly responsible for developing the Army's personnel polic ...

in the late 1960s.

Military career

Educated at

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into ...

and at

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the fifth-oldest surviving college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by ...

, Geoffrey Musson was commissioned into the

King's Shropshire Light Infantry The King's Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in the Childers Reforms of 1881, but with antecedents dating back to 1755. It served in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. In 19 ...

in 1930.Debrett's People of Today 1994 During the Second World War he served in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and Italy. He was Commanding Officer of the 2nd

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd (Cornwall Light ...

from 1943Obituary: General Sir Geoffrey Musson
''The Times'', 7 February 2008 to 1944 and commander of the 36th Infantry Brigade from 1944 to 1946. He 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 ...

in May 1944 for making an assault crossing of the

Gari River The Gari is a short river that flows in Monte Cassino, Italy at the southern end of the region of Lazio. The Battle of Gari River, better known as the Battle of Rapido River, one of the bloodiest battles of the Italian Campaign of World War II o ...

, establishing a

bridgehead In military strategy, a bridgehead (or bridge-head) is the strategically important area of ground around the end of a bridge or other place of possible crossing over a body of water which at time of conflict is sought to be defended or taken over ...

on the far bank, covering the construction of

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

to allow the rest of the brigade to cross and then securing an important vantage point overlooking

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...

. Musson commanded the Commonwealth Forces in Korea from 1954 to 1955, and in 1956 he became commandant of the Infantry Training Centre. In 1958 he was appointed General Officer Commanding 7th Armoured Division, going on to be General Officer Commanding

5th Division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 5th Division (Australia) *5th Division (People's Republic of China) * 5th Division (Colombia) *Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) * 5th Light Cavalry Division (France) *5th Mo ...

later that year. He then served as Chief of Staff of Middle East Land Forces from 1959 to 1962. He became Commander-in-Chief Northern Command in 1964, and

Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

in 1967. He retired from the British Army in 1970. Musson was Colonel Commandant of the

from 1963 to 1968 and Colonel Commandant of

The Light Infantry The Light Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Light Division. The regiment was one of four 'large' regiments formed after the 1966 Defence White Paper through the amalgamation of units of the Light Infantry Brig ...

from 1968 to 1972. He lived in Hurstbourne Tarrant near

Andover, Hampshire Andover ( ) is a town in the English county of Hampshire. The town is on the River Anton, a major tributary of the Test, and is situated alongside the major A303 trunk road at the eastern end of Salisbury Plain, west of the town of Basi ...

. Musson was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1959, a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

in 1965 and a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in 1970. He was also appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

in 1945. In retirement Musson was vice-chairman of the National Savings Committee.

Family

In 1939 Musson married Elspeth Lorraine and together they went on to have one son and one daughter.

References

External links

Generals of World War II
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Musson, Geoffrey 1910 births 2008 deaths Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge British Army generals British Army brigadiers of World War II Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Distinguished Service Order King's Shropshire Light Infantry officers Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath People educated at Shrewsbury School British Army personnel of the Korean War Military personnel from Shropshire