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 ...

Sir William George Gentry, (20 February 1899 – 13 October 1991) was a professional soldier in the

New Zealand Military Forces , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

who served during 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 ...

. He was

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Afg ...

of the New Zealand Military Forces from 1952 to 1955. Born in 1899 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, United Kingdom, Gentry's family emigrated to New Zealand in 1910. He joined the New Zealand Military Forces in 1916 as a cadet. Following graduation from the

Royal Military College Royal Military College may refer to: ;Australia * Royal Military College, Duntroon, Campbell, Australian Capital Territory ;Canada * Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston, Ontario * Royal Military College Saint-Jean, Saint-Jean, Quebec ;Mala ...

in 1919, he was posted to the

New Zealand Staff Corps The New Zealand Staff Corps was a corps of professional officers in the regular New Zealand Military Forces which, in peacetime, administered the Territorial Force. During the First and Second World Wars, many members of the corps commanded batta ...

and held a number of staff positions in New Zealand and abroad. He saw active service during the Second World War as part of the

2nd New Zealand Division The 2nd New Zealand Division, initially the New Zealand Division, was an infantry Division (military), division of the New Zealand Army, New Zealand Military Forces (New Zealand's army) during the World War II, Second World War. The division was ...

, initially as a staff officer but later on as a brigade commander. After the cessation of hostilities in 1945 he held senior staff positions in the New Zealand Military Forces. From 1952 Gentry served as

until his retirement in 1955. He died in 1991 in

Lower Hutt Lower Hutt ( mi, Te Awa Kairangi ki Tai) is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand. Administered by the Hutt City Council, it is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. It is New Zealand's sixth most p ...

Early life

Gentry was born in

on 20 February 1899 to Frederick Gentry, a leather salesman, and his wife, Eliza . When he was 11 years old, his family emigrated to New Zealand, settling in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. 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, New Z ...

, he was one of the limited number of New Zealand entrants in 1916 who enrolled in the

at Duntroon in Australia.

Military career

Gentry graduated from Duntroon in 1919 and was posted to the

. He was seconded to 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 ...

for two years, serving on the North-West Frontier during the Waziristan campaign and the Moplah rebellion. On returning to New Zealand, he held a number of staff positions in the Central Military District and was promoted to captain in 1926. In 1934 he was sent to England on attachment to the

Corps of Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

for 18 months and also attended engineering courses. He then served at General Headquarters in Wellington as staff officer, Engineers, before returning to England to attend the

Staff College Staff colleges (also command and staff colleges and War colleges) train military officers in the administrative, military staff and policy aspects of their profession. It is usual for such training to occur at several levels in a career. For ex ...

Camberley Camberley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, approximately south-west of Central London. The town is in the far west of the county, close to the borders of Hampshire and Berkshire. Once part of Windsor Forest, Cambe ...

, graduating in 1939.

Second World War

General Bernard Montgomery and Brigadier William Gentry (right) in Tunisia during the Second World War Shortly after the outbreak of the

, Gentry was promoted to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

. He briefly served with the British Expeditionary Force in France before traveling to Egypt to join the Second

New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

(2NZEF). Promoted to

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 ...

, he served as assistant adjutant and quartermaster general of the

during the

Battle of Greece The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...

. In the

Battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...

he was acting general staff office (GSO1) in the stead of Brigadier

Keith Stewart Vice-Admiral Keith Stewart (1739 – 3 March 1795) was a Scottish Royal Navy officer and politician who sat in the House of Commons on two occasions. Having began his naval career in around 1753, Stewart was promoted to commander in 1761 an ...

, who was fulfilling an equivalent role with Creforce. Gentry performed his duties competently and was in the

1942 New Year Honours The 1942 New Year Honours were appointments by King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 30 December 1941.United Kingdom and Britis ...

appointed

Officer of 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 o ...

(OBE) for his services during this time. He was also awarded the Greek

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 ...

. In October 1941, after the departure of Stewart to take up the position of Deputy Chief of Staff in New Zealand, Gentry became GSO1 of the 2nd New Zealand Division. In this role, he served under General

Freyberg Freyberg may refer to: *Barbara Freyberg, Baroness Freyberg (died 1973), British peeress *Bernard Freyberg, 1st Baron Freyberg (1889–1963), New Zealand's most famous soldier and military commander *Paul Freyberg, 2nd Baron Freyberg, Paul Richard ...

and developed a relationship where he could question Freyberg "without arousing impatience or irritation". He earned a

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) for his conduct during the

First Battle of El Alamein The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert campaign of the Second World War, fought in Egypt between Axis (German and Italian) forces of the Panzer Army Africa—which included the under Field Marshal ...

. The citation for his award read: In September 1942, he was promoted to

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 ...

and appointed commander of the 6th Infantry Brigade, the previous commander having been made a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

. Despite having no experience in commanding infantry, he led the brigade well until August 1943, at which time he replaced Stewart as Deputy Chief of Staff to Lieutenant General

Edward Puttick Lieutenant General Sir Edward Puttick, (26 June 1890 – 25 July 1976) was an officer who served with the New Zealand Military Forces during the First and Second World Wars. The first New Zealand-born soldier to reach the rank of lieutenant ge ...

. He served in this role for nearly 18 months before rejoining the 2NZEF. After a period in Egypt in command of New Zealand troops there, from February 1945 Gentry commanded the newly formed 9th Infantry Brigade. His new command included the Divisional Cavalry and Machine Gun Battalion, both of which had been converted to an infantry role and were joined by the 22nd Battalion.Kay, 1967, pp. 387–389 After a period of training, the brigade participated in the final stages of the Italian Campaign and Gentry was awarded a

Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

to his DSO for his leadership of the brigade during this time. Command of his brigade was passed to Stewart on 10 November 1945Kay, 1967, p. 577 and he returned to New Zealand. He was discharged from the 2NZEF in March 1946.

Later life

After serving for a time with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the organisation responsible for the

British Commonwealth Occupation Force The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its peak, t ...

(BCOF) in Japan, Gentry had a second term as Deputy Chief of Staff, this time to Major General

Norman Weir Major General Sir Norman William McDonald Weir, (6 July 1893 – 11 July 1961) was a professional soldier in the New Zealand Military Forces. He served during the First and Second World Wars, and was Chief of the General Staff of the New Zealan ...

. In 1949 he attended the Imperial Defence College (now known as the

Royal College of Defence Studies 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 ...

) in England. After completion of his courses, Gentry returned to staff duties in New Zealand, serving as Adjutant General to Stewart, now Chief of Staff, and worked with him in preparing plans for the Government's commitment to deploy military forces to the Middle East in the event of hostilities with the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. This work led to several clashes with the Government. In the 1950 Kings's Birthday Honours,he was promoted

Commander of 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 o ...

(CBE). Promoted to major general, from 1952 to 1955 Gentry served as

of the

New Zealand Military Forces , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

. He represented New Zealand in

ANZUS The Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty (ANZUS or ANZUS Treaty) is a 1951 non-binding collective security agreement between Australia and New Zealand and, separately, Australia and the United States, to co-operate on military ...

and was involved in planning for the defence of Southeast Asia. In the

1954 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1954 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate t ...

, he was made a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

and the following year retired from the military. In a break with convention he was not rewarded with a knighthood for his services. This may have been due to some ill-feeling within the Government regarding his work developing proposed plans for New Zealand's Middle East deployment. He was appointed

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

three years later by the newly elected Labour Government in the 1958 Queen's Birthday Honours. In his retirement Gentry had a strong relationship with

the Boy Scouts Association The Scout Association is the largest Scouting organisation in the United Kingdom and is the World Organization of the Scout Movement's recognised member for the United Kingdom. Following the origin of Scouting in 1907, the association was form ...

and served as its New Zealand president from 1957 to 1967. He was awarded the association's Silver Wolf. He died on 13 October 1991 in Lower Hutt, where he had lived for many years, at the age of 92. His wife, whom he married in 1926, died in 1994.

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gentry, William 1899 births 1991 deaths Military personnel from London New Zealand Companions of the Distinguished Service Order New Zealand Companions of the Order of the Bath New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand generals New Zealand military personnel of World War II Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates People educated at Wellington College, Wellington Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies