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 o ...

James Oliver Ewart (3 April 1917 – 1 July 1945) 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 ...

Intelligence officer An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a rank, used in the same way ...

who because of his language skills would be posted to a number of staff officer posts in Allied headquarters in Western Europe. He spent most of his active service career in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

and

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

theatres of operation 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 ...

, where he frequently worked with Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery.

Biography

The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 BU2263

Ewart's father and an uncle had both seen service in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, his father (also James Oliver) having served in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

with the Royal Engineers where he was both Mentioned in dispatches and 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 ...

(MC). Ewart's family were Scottish and he spent many of his pre-war years living in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. He was the only child of James Oliver and Flora Livingstone Ewart. He was educated in Edinburgh and attended

George Watson's College George Watson's College is a co-educational independent day school in Scotland, situated on Colinton Road, in the Merchiston area of Edinburgh. It was first established as a hospital school in 1741, became a day school in 1871, and was merg ...

and is recorded as being a very able student and sportsman. Having left school Ewart then went on to attend the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and graduated with 1st Class Honours in Classics. However, it was his language skills that would prove vital in his war service after university; he could speak French, German, Dutch, Modern Greek, Spanish and Italian.

Service career

Ewart was initially commissioned into the 7th/9th (Highlanders) Battalion

Royal Scots The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment), once known as the Royal Regiment of Foot, was the oldest and most senior infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, having been raised in 1633 during the reign of Charles I of Scotland. The regime ...

(a mobilised Territorial infantry unit) on 13 January 1940; his service number was 113332. However, prior to his battalion's embarkation for France in June 1940 he was transferred to 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 ...

's Directorate of Military Intelligence. He would later transfer to the Intelligence Corps on 19 July 1940. He would finish his service as the second most senior intelligence staff officer in Field Marshal Montgomery's 21st Army Group during the liberation of Europe; and he would be one of the key staff at the surrender of German forces to Montgomery on 4 May 1945 on Lüneburg Heath. He was even captured on film standing next to his commander, as "

Monty Monty is a masculine given name, often a short form of Montgomery, Montague and other similar names. It is also a surname. Notable people with the name or nickname include: First name Nickname * Bernard Montgomery (1887–1976), British Secon ...

" reads out the terms of German surrender to an Allied film crew. Teilkapitulation – 040545

His qualities as a staff officer during sensitive negotiations were recognised by his commander and he was awarded the

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 ...

on 21 June 1945, having earlier been awarded the OBE for his service in Sicily. Ewart died on duty of injuries he received in a road traffic accident on 1 July 1945, near the town of

Melle Melle may refer to: People * Basil Melle (1891–1966), South African cricketer * Gil Mellé (1931–2004), American artist, jazz musician and film composer * John van Melle (1887–1953), Dutch-born South African author * Melle Mel (born 19 ...

, Germany. He was buried at the Munster Heath War Cemetery, Kreis Warendorf,

Nordrhein-Westfalen North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhab ...

, Germany. He was survived by his wife (Margaret Armstrong Ewart) and his parents.

References

External links

British Army Officers 1939−1945
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ewart, James Oliver 1917 births 1945 deaths Burials in Germany Royal Scots officers Intelligence Corps officers Officers of the Order of the British Empire British Army personnel killed in World War II Alumni of the University of Edinburgh People educated at George Watson's College Road incident deaths in Germany Military personnel from Argyll and Bute British colonels