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 ...

Reginald Kingscote "Rex" Hewer (189215 November 1970) 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 ...

cavalry officer.

Early life

Hewer was educated at

Bloxham School Bloxham School, also called All Saints' School, is an Independent school (UK), independent co-educational day and boarding school of the public school (UK), British public school tradition, located in the village of Bloxham, three miles (5 ...

, where he was a member of the

Officer Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...

Military career

Hewer was commissioned into the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

on 12 October 1914, and saw active service 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 ...

. He was 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 ...

on 17 December 1917. Following the war he served with the

7th Dragoon Guards The 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688 as Lord Cavendish's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as the 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards for Princess Charlotte in 1788. ...

, and later with the

7th Queen's Own Hussars The 7th Queen's Own Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first formed in 1689. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War and the Second World War. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in ...

. Between the wars he held command positions in the

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the component of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 Tank and the Scimitar Reconnaissance Vehicle. It includes most of the A ...

. At the start of 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 ...

, Hewer was serving as Deputy Assistant Quartermaster-General,

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 ...

. Between 1939 and 1940 he fought in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

as Assistant Quartermaster-General of Movements with the British Expeditionary Force. Following the

fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

he was appointed OBE for his part in organising the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...

and posted to

Middle East Command Middle East Command, later Middle East Land Forces, was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to ...

, first as Assistant Adjutant & Quartermaster-General, and then later Director of Movements with the same formation in the

temporary rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a m ...

of Brigadier. Hewer was Mentioned in Dispatches for services in the Middle East on 30 December 1941. He was promoted to the

substantive rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a ...

of colonel on 27 June 1942 and advanced to Commander in the Order of the British Empire on 9 September 1942. Hewer was made

Acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad r ...

Major-General on 28 March 1943. He was further mentioned in dispatches on 6 April 1944 for distinguished service in the Middle East.

United Nations

Between 1945 and 1947 Hewer was Deputy Director-General of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

European Central Inland Transport Organization The European Central Inland Transport Organization or ECITOP was a short-lived United Nations agency founded in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War to: provide for the co-ordination both in the movement of traffic and the in the alloc ...

. He retired on 29 May 1948 and was granted the honorary rank of Major-General.

References

{{Reflist, 30em 1892 births 1970 deaths 7th Dragoon Guards officers 7th Queen's Own Hussars officers British Army generals of World War II British Army personnel of World War I Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath People educated at Bloxham School Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Armoured Corps officers Royal Field Artillery officers Royal Artillery officers