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 James Stuart Steele (26 October 1894 – 24 July 1975) 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 served as

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 ...

Early life and military career

Born in

Ballycarry Ballycarry () is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is midway between Larne and Carrickfergus, overlooking Islandmagee, and is part of the Mid and East Antrim Borough Council area. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 981. Ar ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

and educated at the

Royal Belfast Academical Institution The Royal Belfast Academical Institution is an independent grammar school in Belfast, Northern Ireland. With the support of Belfast's leading reformers and democrats, it opened its doors in 1814. Until 1849, when it was superseded by what today is ...

and at Queen's University Belfast, Steele was

gazette A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspaper ...

d as a temporary second lieutenant in the

Royal Irish Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...

, on 26 September 1914 during 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 ...

and posted to the 7th (Service) Battalion. He served on the Western Front from 1915 to 1917. He served at the battles of Messines, Somme and at Passchendaele. He was given a regular commission in June 1916. He was mentioned in despatches in April 1917 and was awarded the MC in August 1917. Steele served the rest of the war in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and was mentioned in despatches again.

Between the wars

He stayed in the army and attended the

Staff College, Quetta ( ''romanized'': Pir Sho Biyamooz Saadi)English: Grow old, learning Saadi ur, سیکھتے ہوئے عمر رسیدہ ہو جاؤ، سعدی , established = (as the ''Army Staff College'' in Deolali, British India) , closed ...

from 1927 to 1928. He was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel on 1 July 1936 and transferred to the

Sherwood Foresters The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for just under 90 years, from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Worcestershire Regiment to ...

and was made a lieutenant colonel on 14 October 1937. Steele commanded the 1st Battalion, Sherwood Foresters from 1937 to 1939: the battalion was deployed to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

in 1937 and to Palestine during the Arab revolt in Palestine in 1939. Returning to England, he was promoted to

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 ...

on 27 June 1939 and made Assistant Adjutant-General at 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 ...

on the same date.

Second World War

In July 1939, Steele was posted to the mobilization branch of the

Staff. He signed the executive signal for the mobilization of the army. He was promoted to brigadier on 8 November 1939 and took over command of the 132nd Infantry Brigade in November 1939. He 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 ...

in 1940 and 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 ...

(DSO) for his part in the engagement on the

River Escaut The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

and the subsequent withdrawal to Dunkirk. Promoted to the acting rank of major-general on 15 February 1941, he became General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the

59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division The 59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was formed during the Second World War and fought in the Battle of Normandy. In March 1939, after Germany re-emerged as a significant military power ...

, a second line TA formation. His major-general's rank was made temporary on 15 February 1942. Made an acting lieutenant-general on 8 April 1942, he commanded II Corps until September when he became Deputy Chief of Staff for Middle East Command in 1942. He returned to England and was then appointed Director of Staff Duties at the War Office in 1943, and was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) on 14 October 1943. He was promoted to major general on 20 September 1944 (with seniority backdated to 4 January 1944).

Postwar

Steele was promoted to lieutenant general in 1946. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) and High Commissioner in

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 ...

in 1946. In that capacity he signed a

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pe ...

with

Marshal Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his death ...

. He was promoted to

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 ...

in 1947. He was

from 1947 to 1950 when he retired from the British Army. He was awarded the CB in 1943, the KCB in 1949 and the GCB in 1950. He was also awarded the KBE in 1946. He was colonel of the

Royal Ulster Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...

from 1947 to 1957.

Family

He married Janet Gibson Gordon and together they went on to have two daughters.

Bibliography

References

External links

Generals of World War II
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, James 1894 births 1975 deaths British Army generals Alumni of Queen's University Belfast British Army generals of World War II British Army personnel of World War I British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Staff College, Quetta Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Military personnel from County Antrim People educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution People from County Antrim Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Ulster Rifles officers Sherwood Foresters officers War Office personnel in World War II