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 a ...

Michael Forrester CB

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 ...

DSO & Bar MC & Bar (31 August 1917 – 15 October 2006) 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 ...

officer who served with distinction 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 opposin ...

and later commanded the 4th Division.

Early life and military career

Educated at Haileybury,Obituary: Major-General Michael Forrester
/ref> Forrester was commissioned into the

Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

in 1938Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> and, serving with the 2nd Battalion of his regiment, then commanded by

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Robert Ross, took part in the response to the Arab revolt in Palestine in 1939.

World War II

He served in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and in the Western Desert before becoming

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the 1/6th Battalion, Queen's Royal Regiment in 1943; in that role he secured the key bridge at

Scafati Scafati () is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of southern Italy. Geography Scafati is situated on the river Sarno. Under the bridge over the river into the village, the Sarno divides into a primary and t ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and then took part in the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

before being wounded there in October 1944.

Postwar

He was appointed CO of the 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment and served in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

during 1951 and 1952. He was made Director of Staff at the

Staff College, Camberley Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which i ...

in 1953, a General Staff Officer at General Headquarters East Africa in 1955 during the

Mau Mau Uprising The Mau Mau rebellion (1952–1960), also known as the Mau Mau uprising, Mau Mau revolt or Kenya Emergency, was a war in the British Kenya Colony (1920–1963) between the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA), also known as the ''Mau Mau'', an ...

and Commanding Officer of

3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment The 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment (3 PARA), is a battalion sized formation of the British Army's Parachute Regiment and is a subordinate unit within 16 Air Assault Brigade. Roled as an Airborne light infantry unit, the battalion is capable ...

in 1957. He went on to be Colonel, Military Operations 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 ...

in 1960, Commander of 16th Parachute Brigade Group in 1961 and General Officer Commanding 4th Division 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 ...

in 1965. His last appointment was as Director of Infantry at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

in 1968 before he retired in 1970.

Family

In 1947 he married Pauline Fisher (the marriage was dissolved in 1960); they had two sons.

References

External links

British Army Officers 1939−1945Imperial War Museum Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forrester, Michael 1917 births 2006 deaths Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies British Army major generals British Army personnel of World War II British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine British military personnel of the Mau Mau Uprising British Parachute Regiment officers Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Companions of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College Military personnel from Portsmouth Queen's Royal Regiment officers Recipients of the Military Cross