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 ...

James Malcolm Leslie Renton CB DSO OBE (1898–1972) 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 briefly commanded the 7th Armoured Division ("The Desert Rats") 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 ...

Military career

Renton was commissioned into the Rifle Brigade in 1916 and served in

World War I 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 ...

.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> He was appointed Deputy Assistant Adjutant General for the

Iraq Levies The Assyrian Levies (also known as the Iraq Levies) were the first Iraqi military force established by the British in British controlled Iraq. The Iraq Levies originated in a local Arab armed scout force raised during the First World War. After I ...

in 1922. He also served in

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 ...

as Commander of 2nd Bn the Rifle Brigade from 1940 (leading it and losing an arm at the Battle of Sidi Saleh in 1941) and as Commander of the Support Group of 7th Motor Brigade from 1942 (leading it at the

Battle of Gazala The Battle of Gazala (near the village of ) was fought during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, west of the port of Tobruk in Libya, from 26 May to 21 June 1942. Axis troops of the ( Erwin Rommel) consisting of German an ...

). He was appointed General Officer Commanding 7th Armoured Division later that year. He went on to serve 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 ...

from 1943 before becoming Head of the British Military Mission and Inspector General of the Iraqi Army in 1944 and retiring in 1948.

References

Bibliography

External links

Generals of World War II
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Renton, James 1898 births 1972 deaths British Army major generals British Army generals of World War II Rifle Brigade officers Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Officers of the Order of the British Empire Commandants of the Senior Officers' School, Sheerness British Army personnel of World War I