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 ...

Gerald Harry George Lloyd-Verney DSO & Bar MVO (10 July 1900 – 3 April 1957) 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 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 ...

who commanded the 7th Armoured Division ("The Desert Rats") during

World War II 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 opposing ...

. He changed his name by Deed poll from Gerald Lloyd Verney to Gerald Lloyd-Verney in 1941.

Early life

He was the son of Sir Harry Lloyd Verney and Lady Joan Elizabeth Mary Cuffe. 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, ...

, Verney was

Page of Honour A Page of Honour is a ceremonial position in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It requires attendance on state occasions, but does not now involve the daily duties which were once attached to the office of page. The on ...

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

between 1914 and 1917.Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003.

Military career

He was commissioned into the

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

in 1919. He became Aide-de-camp to the Governor of South Australia in 1928 and then, after attending the Staff College, Camberley from 1938 to 1939, transferred to the

Irish Guards ("Who Shall Separate s") , colors = , identification_symbol_2 Saffron (pipes), identification_symbol_2_label = Tartan , identification_symbol = , identification_symbol_label = Tactical Recognition F ...

in 1939.

The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 BU769

He served in

as instructor at the Staff College in 1940 before becoming Commanding Officer of 2nd Bn Irish Guards during their conversion to tanks in the UK later that year. He was appointed Commander of 32nd Guards Brigade in the UK in 1942, Commander of 6th Guards Tank Brigade in the UK (before being deployed to

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

) in January 1943 and General Officer Commanding 7th Armoured Division in North West Europe in August 1944. He was personally appointed by Bernard Montgomery to the 7th Armoured Division. He went on to be Commander of 1st Guards Brigade in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

from 1944 to 1945 when he became Military Commander in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. His last appointment was as General Officer Commanding

56th (London) Armoured Division The 56th (London) Infantry Division was a Territorial Army infantry division of the British Army, which served under several different titles and designations. The division served in the trenches of the Western Front during the First World War. ...

in 1946 before retiring in 1948.

Personal life

In 1926 he married the Hon Joyce Sybil Vivian Smith, daughter of

Vivian Smith, 1st Baron Bicester Vivian Hugh Smith, 1st Baron Bicester (9 December 1867 – 17 February 1956) was a British merchant banker. Early life Vivian Hugh Smith was born on 9 December 1867. He was the elder son of Hugh Colin Smith (son of John Abel Smith and Governor ...

and together they had two children: * Major Peter Vivian Lloyd-Verney, an Irish Guards officer who married first Caroline Evelyn Harford daughter of George Anthony Harford, descendant of

John Scandrett Harford John Scandrett Harford, FRS (8 October 1785 – 16 April 1866) was a British banker, benefactor and abolitionist. Early life and background Harford was the son of John Scandrett Harford, a prominent banker in Bristol. By the end of the 18th c ...

of Blaise Castle, and Margaret Hotham Admiral Sir Charles Frederick Hotham. They had three children together and divorced in 1982. He then married Elizabeth Anne Burke in 1983 daughter of

Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

Harry St. George Burke, of the Burkes of Clondagoff Castle, County Galway, and Evelyn Marjorie Stringer. (19 December 1930 - 12 October 2019). * Bridget Mary Lloyd-Verney who married Michael Barry Sarson, son of Captain Maurice John Sarson, on 20 October 1951 and had four children. Lloyd-Verney died on 3 April 1957 at

Enniskerry Enniskerry (historically ''Annaskerry'', from ) is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. The population was 1,889 at the 2016 census. Location The village is situated on the Glencullen River in the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains in the ea ...

, Ireland, aged 56.

References

External links

Generals of World War II
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lloyd-Verney, Gerald 1900 births 1957 deaths British Army generals of World War II Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Grenadier Guards officers Irish Guards officers Members of the Royal Victorian Order People educated at Eton College Military personnel from London British Army major generals People from Kensington War Office personnel in World War II British Army brigadiers of World War II Academics of the Staff College, Camberley