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. ...

Harry Kenneth Dimoline, (6 September 1903 – 15 November 1972) was an officer in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

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 a police officer in Malaya during the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War was a guerrilla war fought in British Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and the military forces ...

Second World War

A part-time officer in the 59th (4th West Lancashire) Medium Brigade, Royal Artillery of the Territorial Army (TA) during the 1920s and 1930s, Dimoline had risen to be second-in-command of the regiment by 1939. He was then charged with raising and commanding a duplicate regiment as the TA rapidly expanded just before the outbreak of the

. He commanded the 68th (4th West Lancashire) Medium Regiment at 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 ...

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

and then in the Western Desert. In March 1942 he was promoted to

Commander, Royal Artillery {{Redirect, BGRA, colour format, RGBA color model Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) was a military appointment in Commonwealth infantry and armoured divisions in the 20th century. The CRA was the senior artillery officer in the division and commanded ...

(CRA) in 4th Indian Infantry Division, serving with it 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 ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and

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 re ...

; he was also acting commander of the 4th Indian Division during the Second Battle of Monte Cassino. He then served as CRA with 47th (London) Infantry Division in the United Kingdom before taking up the same role with 17th Indian Infantry Division in

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

Post-war

Dimoline served as Honorary

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

Auxiliary Police,

Federation of Malaya The Federation of Malaya ( ms, Persekutuan Tanah Melayu; Jawi script, Jawi: ) was a federation of what previously had been British Malaya comprising eleven states (nine Malay states and two of the British Empire, British Straits Settlements, P ...

, during the

Career summary

* Commissioned into 59th (4th West Lancashire) Medium Brigade,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

, Territorial Army as

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 ...

(19 October 1921) * Promoted

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 ...

(19 October 1923) * Promoted

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 ...

(1 July 1926), initially a provisional rank, later confirmed * Promoted

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

(29 May 1931) * Promoted

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 colone ...

commanding 68th (4th West Lancashire) Medium Regiment, RA (5 May 1939) * Commander Royal Artillery 4th Indian Division,

–

(1942–1944) * Acting

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 ...

(6 February 1944 – 9 March 1944) * Acting General Officer Commanding 4th Indian Division, Italy (1944) * Commander Royal Artillery 47th (London) Infantry Division (1944) * Commander Royal Artillery 17th Indian Infantry Division,

(1944–1945) * Substantive

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 ...

(11 April 1945) *

Supernumerary Supernumerary means "exceeding the usual number". Supernumerary may also refer to: * Supernumerary actor, a performer in a film, television show, or stage production who has no role or purpose other than to appear in the background, more commonl ...

colonel and honorary brigadier (20 December 1945) * Transfer to Territorial Army Reserve of Officers (13 February 1951) * Retired (6 September 1961)

Personal

Dimoline's elder brother was Major General

William Dimoline Major General William Alfred Dimoline, (6 July 1897 – 24 November 1965) was a senior British Army officer who saw service during the First and Second World Wars. His nickname was "Dimmy." Early career Dimoline was educated at Dean Close Sch ...

Footnotes

References

* * Anon, ''History of the 359 (4th West Lancs.) Medium Regiment R.A. (T.A.) 1859–1959'', Liverpool: 359 Medium Regiment, 1959. * * * *
Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dimoline, Harry 1903 births 1972 deaths Military personnel from Cheshire British Army brigadiers of World War II Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British people of the Malayan Emergency Royal Artillery officers Recipients of the Colonial Police Medal