Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Maxwell Balfour (10 March 1898 – 4 February 1977) 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 achieved high office in the 1950s.

Military career

Philip Balfour was born on 10 March 1898 and was educated at

Wellington College, Berkshire Wellington College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) in the village of Crowthorne, Berkshire, England. Wellington is a registered charity and currently educates roughly 1,200 pupils, between the ages of 13 a ...

, and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. He was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

on 28 July 1915, alongside

Cameron Nicholson General Sir Cameron Gordon Graham Nicholson, (30 June 1898 – 7 July 1979) was a British Army officer who served as Adjutant-General to the Forces. He later served as Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea. Military career After being educated ...

and John Kennedy of the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

. He served 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 ...

being deployed to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

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 ...

. He attended the Staff College, Camberley from 1929 to 1930. He also served in 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 opposin ...

, initially as a GSO2 before being made

Commander, Royal Artillery {{Redirect, BGRA, colour format, RGBA color model Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) was a military appointment in Commonwealth infantry and armoured divisions in the 20th century. The CRA was the senior artillery officer in the division and commanded ...

(CRA) of the 55th (West Lancashire) Infantry Division. From 1944 he was serving as Brigadier General Staff (BGS) of

John Crocker General Sir John Tredinnick Crocker, (4 January 1896 – 9 March 1963) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both world wars. He served as both a private soldier and a junior officer in the First World War, and as a distinguished br ...

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

throughout the

North West Europe campaign The North West Europe campaign was a campaign by the Commonwealth of Nations, British Commonwealth armed forces in North West Europe, including its skies and adjoining waters during World War II. The term Western Front (WWII), Western Front has als ...

, and was awarded the

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 ...

for 'gallant and distinguished services in Normandy' as a temporary

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

. After the War he joined the Control Commission 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 1945 and then became Director of Civil Affairs for the Military Government,

British Army of the Rhine There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located ...

(BAOR) in 1946. He was appointed General Officer Commanding 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division later in 1946 and then GOC 2nd Division in 1947. Finally he became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command in 1949; in that role he was critical of the standard of shooting in the British Army.Shooting Standard
Hansard, 3 February 1953 He retired in 1953.

References

External links

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Balfour, Philip 1898 births 1977 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British Army generals of World War II British Army personnel of World War I Companions of the Order of the Bath Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Artillery officers