John Mogg (British Army Officer)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

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 Herbert John Mogg, (17 February 1913 – 28 October 2001) 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 also held the
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
position of
Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) and head of ACO's headquarters, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE). The commander is ...
(DSACEUR) and was "in his time, probably the British army's most popular general".


Army career

He was educated at St Michael's School, Victoria, B.C., Malvern College,Debrett's People of Today 1994 and the
Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...
. After Malvern he took a Y-cadetship with 3rd Battalion,
Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...
. After three years in the ranks he was selected for Sandhurst, where he gained the
Sword of Honour The ''Sword of Honour'' is a trilogy of novels by Evelyn Waugh which loosely parallel Waugh's experiences during the Second World War. Published by Chapman & Hall from 1952 to 1961, the novels are: ''Men at Arms'' (1952); ''Officers and Gent ...
in 1936, being commissioned into the 1st Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, (43rd & 52nd) in August 1937.


Second World War

In 1939, he was posted to 5th Battalion, Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, a newly formed Territorial training unit, and served initially as Adjutant and later Second in Command. By 1943, Major Mogg was in Command of a Divisional Battle School at Margate, 61st Infantry Division,
XI Corps 11 Corps, 11th Corps, Eleventh Corps, or XI Corps may refer to: * 11th Army Corps (France) * XI Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XI Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...
, Home Forces. Mogg approached Major General Adrian Carton de Wiart, VC., and later Major General Brian Wainwright, Commanding Officers, 61st Infantry Division seeking an operational command. In the weeks before D-Day he was appointed Second in Command, 9th Battalion Durham Light Infantry, 151st Brigade. On D-Day, 6 June 1944, 9th DLI landed on Gold Beach at Le Hamel, Asnelles. In the breakout from the Normandy beachhead, 9DLI supported by 4th/7th Dragoon Guards were ordered to attack the village of Lingevres, 14 June 1944, defended by the
Panzer Lehr Division The Panzer-Lehr-Division (in the meaning of: Armoured training division) was an elite German armoured division during World War II. It was formed in 1943 onwards from training and demonstration troops (''Lehr'' = "teach") stationed in Germany, ...
. John Mogg gave an account of his experiences of the battle, during which the Commanding Officer, Lt Col. Humphrey Woods, DSO, MC* was killed and Mogg assumed command.
"As we crossed the start line all hell let loose from our own side and what with
Typhoons A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...
and the artillery barrage and the tanks all shooting up the enemy positions in the wood, you could have seen the ground literally dance in front of you. And trees were coming down and I thought to myself "Good Lord, nobody can ever live in that thing, we must be able to walk straight on to our objective"." "And so we crossed right on time, 10.15, across the start line, with Humphrey Woods on the left and me on the right and we went through the corn, and the Geordies were never very tall guys and the corn that year was extremely high. We advanced about halfway across the corn with still this barrage going on when you suddenly saw the odd Geordie dropping in the corn and you couldn’t quite make this out where it was coming from. But, in fact, it was machine-gun fire coming from the forward edge of the wood and quite a lot of Geordies were dropping in the corn as casualties all the way along." "However we advanced...and I spoke to Humphrey Woods on my radio, and this is the last time I heard him, and he said "We are running into terrible trouble here on the left, all the ‘A’ Company officers are casualties. I am trying to get on with ‘B’ Company and I will try and see how it happens. If not, if we don’t make any ground, you go on, whatever you do go on to your side of the village and I will try and collect as many of our soldiers and then come round behind you, because it’s obviously going to be easier your side". And, in fact, he was right, it was easier our side and apart from a fair amount of hand to hand fighting of ‘C’ Company on the right we got into the woods." “...There was a scene of utter destruction with the church in ruins and many of the buildings had collapsed and there was very heavy shelling from the far side of the village. I suddenly had a message to say that Humphrey Woods had been killed and I suddenly realized that meant that I was the senior officer in the place and that made me the Commanding Officer, which filled me with utter despair to start with but I realized I must do something about it." "I remember my Gunner officer was up by the Church in his tank at the main crossroads and we made a plan for some Artillery Fires which I could call for quickly." "We had an ‘O’ group with the two Company Commanders, the Anti Tank Platoon Commander, Carrier Platoon Commander, the Gunner and the 4th/7th Sqn Leader. I allocated positions for the Coys. blocking both roads and then I sited the Anti tank guns."
Lingevres was taken and held against repeated German counter attacks until 9DLI and 4th/7th Dragoon Guards were relieved. The Battalion suffered casualties of 226 men and 22 Officers. Mogg was awarded DSO for his actions at Lingevres, presented in the field by Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery,https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205416890 and became a distinguished commander of the 9th Battalion,
Durham Light Infantry The Durham Light Infantry (DLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1968. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) and t ...
from the Invasion of Normandy to the defeat of Germany. 9DLI saw further action at the Falaise pocket, the crossing of the Albert Canal and at Gheel, Belgium. On 23 September, 151st Brigade was ordered to move north and east of Eindhoven with 231st Brigade to guard the right flank of Operation Market Garden. In November 1944 151st Brigade was disbanded and some units return to Britain. However 9DLI was reinforced and transferred to 7th Armoured Division, 131st Infantry Brigade, as a motorised battalion fighting at the
Roer Triangle The Rur or Roer (german: Rur ; Dutch and li, Roer, , ; french: Rour) is a major river that flows through portions of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. It is a right (eastern) tributary to the Meuse ( nl, links=no, Maas). About 90 perce ...
in January 1945 and the town of Ibbenbüren in March. 9DLI ended the war near Hamburg.


Post War

In 1945 he attended the Staff College, Camberley as a student. After two years in
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
as GSO1, 7th Armoured Division, he returned to the Staff College as a member of the Directing Staff. From 1950-52 he was Commanding Officer (CO) of the 10th Battalion, Parachute Regiment. In 1952 he became Chief Instructor at the School of Infantry at Warminster and from 1954 to 1956 was GSO1 at the
Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...
. From 1958 he Commanded, 28th Commonwealth Infantry Brigade Group in the final stages of the Malayan Emergency, where he received the Meritorious Medal from the Sultan of Perak. On return he was appointed Director of Combat Development 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 ...
and promoted to Major General. ''"His next appointment, as Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, (1963-66), was an inspired choice. He loved the job, and it suited him down to the ground. He fired up the cadets with his own enthusiasm for the army, for soldiering in all its aspects, and for sport of many kinds, from cricket to horses. His appointment to the key command of First (British) Corps in Germany in 1966., pointed to his future advancement to the top of the army's tree,"'' He was appointed General Officer Commanding Southern Command in 1968, General Officer Commanding,
Army Strategic Command The Army Strategic Reserves Command ( id, Komando Cadangan Strategis Angkatan Darat; abbreviated ) is a combined-arms formation of the Indonesian Army. Kostrad is a Corps level command which has up to 35,000 troops. It also supervises operationa ...
later that year and, finally,
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 ...
in 1970. He delivered the Kermit Roosevelt Lecture in April 1969 at Fort Leavenworth; an exchange programme with the US Army supported by the Kermit Roosevelt Fund. His lecture was suitably entitled; "Communication as a military art." He travelled extensively as Adjutant General, visiting British units overseas and reassuring Britain’s allies in the Middle East and elsewhere at the time of Britain's withdrawal from ‘East of Suez’; earning the sobriquet ‘Marco Polo” amongst his colleagues at the MOD. His final appointment was with
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
at
SHAPE A shape or figure is a graphical representation of an object or its external boundary, outline, or external surface, as opposed to other properties such as color, texture, or material type. A plane shape or plane figure is constrained to lie ...
, Mons as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, DSACEUR between 1973 and 1976. He was ADC General to the Queen from 1971 to 1974, Colonel Commandant of the
Royal Green Jackets The Royal Green Jackets (RGJ) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, one of two "large regiments" within the Light Division (the other being The Light Infantry). History The Royal Green Jackets was formed on 1 January 1966 by the amalgama ...
from 1965 to 1973, Commandant of the
Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...
from 1963 to 1974. and Honorary Colonel of the 10th Battalion, Parachute Regiment,(1973–78) Mogg promoted many sports and adventure training within the army and was a president of a number army and veteran's associations.The Telegraph obituaries : General Sir John Mogg
/ref> He served various charities mostly connected with the armed services or adventure training. He was respectively Chairman of Operation Drake Fellowship (now part of Fairbridge (charity),
Operation Raleigh Raleigh International is a youth expedition organisation based in the UK. On 19 May 2022 Raleigh International Trust ceased operations and entered Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation. The Raleigh International brand was bought by Impact Travel Group ...
, President of the Army Cricket Association, Army Free Fall Parachute Association, Army Saddle Club, the
British Horse Society The British Horse Society (BHS) is a membership-based equine charity, with a stated vision of "a Society which provides a strong voice for horses and people and which spreads awareness through support, training and education". It currently has ...
, the Ex-Services Mental Welfare Society, The
Normandy Veterans' Association The Normandy Veterans' Association (NVA) was an association formed in 1981 of ex-servicemen and women who served in the 1944 Normandy invasion. The association was represented at the 70th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy in June 2014. Due to dwi ...
and Chairman of The
Army Benevolent Fund ABF The Soldiers' Charity, formerly the Army Benevolent Fund,Third Sector Magazine"Charity rebranding: a change of vision and strategy" ''Third Sector Magazine'', 06/04/10 is the national charity of the British Army. Since 1944, it has provided ...
. His interest in education was shown in his Chairmanship of the governors of the Royal Soldiers' Daughters School and Icknield School, Watlington. He was also a long serving governor of
Bradfield College Bradfield College, formally St Andrew's College, Bradfield, is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) for pupils aged 11–18, located in the small village of Bradfield in the English county of Berkshire. It is note ...
and his old school Malvern. In
Detmold Detmold () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of . It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947. Today it is the administrative center of t ...
, Germany, a primary school for children whose parents are serving in the British Army was named after Sir John Mogg. He was made Vice Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire in 1979.


Obituary

''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' and The Daily Telegraph obituaries summed up his personality and personal style: ''"John Mogg's large frame was combined with an exceptionally genial, warm and sympathetic character, which appealed not only to soldiers of all ranks, but to people in every walk of life, whatever their nationality. In his time, he was probably the British army's most popular general, and finished his career in one of Nato's most influential posts, as deputy supreme allied commander (1973–76) at headquarters at Mons, in Belgium. Here, his sound common-sense and even temperament were valuable in balancing the direct approach, and sometimes abrasive personality, of the supreme commander, the US General
Alexander Haig Alexander Meigs Haig Jr. (; December 2, 1924February 20, 2010) was United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Prior to and in between these ...
."'' ''"John Mogg was a large man in every sense. Tall and heavily built, he always paid close attention to what someone was saying, ready with help and often a joke. His special gift was to appear to have the leisure to deal with any problem or request, although few people can have led such a busy life."''


Family

John Mogg was born near Comox, Vancouver Island, BC., the son of Captain Herbert Barrow Mogg, MC. (d. 1978), late Wiltshire Regiment & 4th Battalion Canadian Engineers, and Alice Mary Mogg, daughter of Lt Col John Fane Ballard, late DCLI, and Mary née Clerke Brown of Kingston Blount, Oxon. In 1939, he married Cecilia Margaret Molesworth (1914-2018), the daughter of Rev. John Hilton Molesworth (d.1921). Sir John and Lady Mogg had three sons.{{cite news , title=Sophie's Brush With Greatness , url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/local-news/sophies-brush-with-greatness-1168373 , access-date=26 August 2018 , publisher=Manchester Evening - News 22 January 2013 , quote=Rochdale solicitor's firm Molesworth, Bright and Clegg. The firm was set up in 1840 by John Molesworth, one of the vicar's sons and Sophie's great-great grandfather.


References

{{Reflist, 30em {{s-start {{s-mil {{s-bef, before=
George Gordon-Lennox Lieutenant-General Sir George Charles Gordon-Lennox (29 May 1908 – 11 May 1988) was a senior British Army officer who served during the Second World War. Military career Gordon-Lennox was the eldest child of Lord Bernard Gordon-Lennox and ...
{{s-ttl, title= Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, years=1963–1966 {{s-aft, after= Peter Hunt , - {{s-bef, before= Sir Richard Goodwin {{s-ttl, title= GOC 1st (British) Corps, years=1966–1968 {{s-aft, after= Sir Mervyn Butler , - {{s-bef, before= Sir Geoffrey Baker {{s-ttl, title= GOC-in-C Southern Command, years=1968 {{s-aft, after= Sir David Yates , - {{s-bef, before=New post {{s-ttl, title= General Officer Commanding, Army Strategic Command, years=1968–1970 {{s-aft, after= Sir Mervyn Butler , - {{s-bef, before= Sir Geoffrey Musson {{s-ttl, title=
Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...
, years=1970–1973 {{s-aft, after= Sir Cecil Blacker , - {{s-bef, before= Sir Desmond Fitzpatrick {{s-ttl, title=
Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) and head of ACO's headquarters, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE). The commander is ...
, years=1973–1976 {{s-aft, after= Sir Harry Tuzo {{s-end {{DEFAULTSORT:Mogg, John 1913 births 2001 deaths Canadian military personnel from British Columbia People educated at Malvern College Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst British Army personnel of World War II Coldstream Guards soldiers Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry officers Durham Light Infantry officers Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British Army generals British Army personnel of the Malayan Emergency Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Commandants of Sandhurst NATO military personnel Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Academics of the Staff College, Camberley