Lieutenant General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Sir Lewis Macclesfield Heath, (23 November 1885 – 10 January 1954) was an officer in the
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
during the early to mid-twentieth century.
Early life and family
Heath was born 23 November 1885, the son of Col. Lewis Forbes Heath of the
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
.
He was educated at
Wellington College Wellington College may refer to:
*Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England
** Wellington College International Shanghai
** Wellington College International Tianjin
* Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...
and
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...
. He joined the British Indian Army in 1905.
In 1915, Heath married Marjorie, daughter of Brigadier General A. B. H. Drew, and had three sons and two daughters. In 1941, he remarried Kathleen Longeron of
Auckland
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
and had another son.
Military service
Heath joined the
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
on 18 January 1905
and served with the
King's African Rifles
The King's African Rifles (KAR) was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from Britain's various possessions in East Africa from 1902 until independence in the 1960s. It performed both military and internal security functions within ...
from 1909 to 1913.
He was promoted to captain on 18 January 1914.
He saw action 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 ...
where he was injured losing an eye and suffering permanent damage to his left arm.
He was subsequently 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 i ...
.
Following the war he fought in the
Third Anglo-Afghan War
The Third Anglo-Afghan War; fa, جنگ سوم افغان-انگلیس), also known as the Third Afghan War, the British-Afghan War of 1919, or in Afghanistan as the War of Independence, began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan inv ...
and served in East
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
from 1919 to 1921. He was Deputy Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster General in India and Afghanistan between 30 May 1919 and 8 August 1919, and Deputy-Assistant Adjutant-General between 9 August 1919 and 26 September 1919. On 18 January 1920, he was promoted to major.
Between 1919 and 1921 he was Commandant of the Seistan Levy Corps.
Between 21 November 1924 and 5 July 1928 Heath served as Assistant Commandant and Commandant Indian Wing, at the Army School of Education, India.
He transferred to the 10/14
Punjab Regiment Punjab Regiment may refer to the following existing units:
*Punjab Regiment (India)
*Punjab Regiment (Pakistan)
From 1922 to 1947, the British Indian Army included 6 numbered Punjab Regiments:
*1st Punjab Regiment
* 2nd Punjab Regiment
*8th Punj ...
in 1928.
He became commanding officer of the
1st Battalion,
11th Sikh Regiment
The 11th Sikh Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1922, when after World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments.S ...
in 1929 and was deployed to the
North-West Frontier in India in 1930 and 1932.
On 1 January 1929 Heath was promoted to battalion lieutenant colonel and then lieutenant colonel on 6 December 1929.
On 6 May 1932, Heath was promoted to battalion colonel.
He received 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, typ ...
(DSO) on 8 September 1933 and was promoted to colonel on 9 January 1934.
He became an instructor at the Senior Officers School,
Belgaum
Belgaum (ISO 15919, ISO: ''Bēḷagāma''; also Belgaon and officially known as Belagavi) is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka located in its northern part along the Western Ghats. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous ...
, India in 1934
and Brigade Commander,
Wana Brigade
The Wana Brigade was an Infantry formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was formed in February 1930, for service on the North West Frontier. During World War 2 it was normal practice for newly formed battalions to be posted to the ...
in 1936,
in which capacity he was deployed to the North West Frontier in 1937.
In 1939, Heath was awarded the
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...
on 2 January 1939 and promoted to Major General on 20 January of the same year.
He went on to be Commander 7th Indian Division of the
Deccan
The large Deccan Plateau in South India, southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bou ...
District in 1939.
Heath achieved success as the
General Officer Commanding the
5th Indian Infantry Division during the
East African Campaign. Heath was appointed lieutenant general on 10 May 1941 and was awarded the
Order of the British Empire
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 ...
(KBE) on 30 May 1941.
He was appointed to command
III Indian Corps on 26 April 1941 as part of the
Malaya Command
The Malaya Command was a Command (military formation), formation of the British Army formed in the 1920s for the coordination of the defences of British Malaya, which comprised the Straits Settlements, the Federated Malay States and the Unfederat ...
, which then participated in the
Battle of Malaya
The Malayan campaign, referred to by Japanese sources as the , was a military campaign fought by Allied and Axis forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 15 February 1942 during the Second World War. It was dominated by land battles betwee ...
.
He was unable to stop the
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
advance and had conflicting opinions on how to conduct the campaign with his commanding officer, Lieutenant General
Arthur Percival
Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, (26 December 1887 – 31 January 1966) was a senior British Army officer. He saw service in the First World War and built a successful military career during the interwar period but is most noted for ...
.
He was captured during the
Battle of Singapore
The Fall of Singapore, also known as the Battle of Singapore,; ta, சிங்கப்பூரின் வீழ்ச்சி; ja, シンガポールの戦い took place in the South–East Asian theatre of the Pacific War. The Empire of ...
, and held in prison in
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
,
Formosa
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...
, and
Manchukuo
Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China, Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 afte ...
(Manchuria) between 1942 and 1945.
He retired on 13 April 1946 with the rank of Lieutenant-general.
References
Bibliography
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External links
Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heath, Lewis
1885 births
1954 deaths
Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
Companions of the Order of the Bath
Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire
Indian Army generals of World War II
Indian Army personnel of World War I
King's African Rifles officers
Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Military of Singapore under British rule
Recipients of the Military Cross
World War II prisoners of war held by Japan
British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Afghan War
British Indian Army generals
Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
Military personnel of British India