Alfred Reade Godwin-Austen
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General Sir Alfred Reade Godwin-Austen, (17 April 1889 – 20 March 1963) was a British Army officer who served during the
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and the Second World Wars.


Early life and military career

The second son of Lieutenant Colonel A. G. Godwin-Austen, late the 24th and
89th (The Princess Victoria's) Regiment of Foot The 89th (Princess Victoria's) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of the British Army, raised on 3 December 1793. Under the Childers Reforms the regiment amalgamated with the 87th (Royal Irish Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot to form the Princess Victor ...
, Reade Godwin-Austen was born in Frensham,
Farnham Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a trib ...
in
Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
, on 17 April 1889. He was educated at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate, and later at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, to pursue a military career, following both his father and great-grandfather. Godwin-Austen was a great-grandson of Major General Sir Henry Godwin, who commanded the British and Indian forces in the Second Anglo-Burmese War. His uncle was Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen, who gave his name to the second highest mountain in the
Karakoram The Karakoram is a mountain range in Kashmir region spanning the borders of Pakistan, China, and India, with the northwest extremity of the range extending to Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Most of the Karakoram mountain range falls under the ...
range; this mountain is now better known as K2. Upon passing out from Sandhurst, Godwin-Austen 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 South Wales Borderers in 1909. During his service in the First World War, he was awarded the Military Cross and twice
mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...
while serving as a staff officer with the
13th (Western) Division The 13th (Western) Division was one of the Kitchener's Army divisions in the First World War, raised from volunteers by Lord Kitchener. It fought at Gallipoli, in Mesopotamia (including the capture of Baghdad) and Persia. War service 1914– ...
, a
Kitchener's Army The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the Fi ...
formation, on Gallipoli, in Palestine and in Mesopotamia.Smart, p. 120


Between the wars

Godwin-Austen attended 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 ...
, as a student from 1924 to 1925, alongside fellow students such as Ivor Thomas,
Noel Beresford-Peirse Lieutenant-General Sir Noel Monson de la Poer Beresford-Peirse KBE, CB, DSO (22 December 1887 – 14 January 1953) was a British Army officer. Family background Beresford-Peirse was the son of Colonel William John de la Poer Beresford-Pe ...
, Vyvyan Pope, Douglas Graham,
Michael O'Moore Creagh Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Sir Michael O'Moore Creagh, (16 May 1892 – 14 December 1970) was a British Army officer who served in both the world wars. He commanded the 7th Armoured Division (United Kingdom), 7th Armoured Div ...
, Daril Watson,
Archibald Nye Lieutenant-General Sir Archibald Edward Nye, (23 April 1895 – 13 November 1967) was a senior British Army officer who served in both world wars. In the latter he served as Vice-Chief of the Imperial General Staff (VCIGS). After the Second W ...
,
Humfrey Gale Lieutenant General Sir Humfrey Myddelton Gale, (4 October 1890 – 8 April 1971) was an officer in the British Army who served in the First and Second World War, during which he was Chief Administrative Officer at Allied Forces Headquarters ...
and
Noel Irwin Lieutenant General Noel Mackintosh Stuart Irwin & Two Bars, MC (24 December 1892 – 21 December 1972) was a senior British Army officer, who played a prominent role in the British Army after the Dunkirk evacuation, and in the Burma campaign ...
, all of whom rose to high command in the next war. He served in numerous staff positions at the War Office until receiving a position as an instructor at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. Due to a lack of promotion in his own regiment, Godwin-Austen transferred to the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry and commanded the 2nd Battalion from 1936 to 1937, before being employed with the British Military Mission to the Egyptian Army from 1937 to 1938. His next appointment, during the Arab revolt in Palestine, was in successive command of the
13th In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave pl ...
and 14th Infantry Brigades, the latter post being held until August 1939, shortly before the Second World War began. While in Palestine, Godwin-Austen gained a reputation for being very sympathetic towards and supportive of the Zionist movement. In the conflict between Jewish and Arab residents, he believed the Arabs were "clearly the aggressors" and the Jewish residents of the territory needed to be protected. Godwin-Austen advocated that the British army provide said protection.


Second World War

On the outbreak of war in September 1939, Godwin-Austen, mentioned in despatches for his services in Palestine, had just been promoted to the acting rank of major general to become General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 8th Infantry Division.
Bernard Montgomery Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, (; 17 November 1887 – 24 March 1976), nicknamed "Monty", was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War, the Irish War of Independence and t ...
had relinquished command and returned to England to command the 3rd Infantry Division. The understrength division was responsible for internal security in the British Mandate of Palestine. After the division was disbanded in February 1940, Godwin-Austen was nominated in July to command the
2nd (African) Division The 2nd (African) Division was a British Empire colonial unit that fought during the Second World War. On 19 July 1940, the 2nd (African) Division was formed in Kenya, British East Africa. On 24 November of that year, the division was redesignat ...
, which was forming in Kenya.Mead, p.168 He was again mentioned in despatches in July 1940. In mid-August, before taking up his command, Godwin-Austen was sent to
British Somaliland British Somaliland, officially the Somaliland Protectorate ( so, Dhulka Maxmiyada Soomaalida ee Biritishka), was a British Empire, British protectorate in present-day Somaliland. During its existence, the territory was bordered by Italian Soma ...
to take over the British forces during the Italian conquest of British Somaliland. His withdrawal at the decisive
Battle of Tug Argan The Battle of Tug Argan was fought between forces of the British Empire and Italy from 11 to 15 August 1940 in British Somaliland (later the independent and renamed Somalia). The battle determined the result of the Italian conquest of British ...
was fatal to his attempt to defend the territory but it allowed almost the entire
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contingent to withdraw to Berbera and evacuate by sea to
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. Commonwealth losses in the short campaign are estimated to have been exceedingly light, about 260 (38 killed, 102 wounded and 120 missing). Prime Minister
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
, stung by the loss to British prestige, criticised General Sir Archibald Wavell, Commander-in-Chief of
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 ...
, concerning the loss of British Somaliland, which was a Middle East Command responsibility. Because of the few casualties, Churchill fretted that the British had abandoned the colony without enough of a fight. He demanded the suspension of Godwin-Austen and the convening of a court of inquiry. Wavell claimed that the defence of Somaliland was a textbook withdrawal in the face of superior numbers. He pointed out to Churchill that "A bloody butcher's bill is not the sign of a good tactician". According to Churchill's staff, Wavell's retort moved Churchill to greater fury than they had ever seen. Wavell refused to accede to Churchill's demand and Godwin-Austen moved on to take command of his division in Kenya on 12 September. Churchill was to retain his grudge towards him.Mead, p.169 During the East African Campaign, Godwin-Austen led the 2nd (African) Division (renamed 12th (African) Division) as part of East Africa Force, commanded by Lieutenant General
Alan Cunningham General (United Kingdom), General Sir Alan Gordon Cunningham, (1 May 1887 – 30 January 1983) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the British Army noted for his victories over Italian forces in the East African Campaign (World War ...
, in its advance from Kenya into Italian East Africa. His division invaded Italian Somaliland on 11 February and by late February had scored an emphatic victory over Italian forces at Gelib. Once Mogadishu had been taken, Cunningham swung his force inland across the
Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; so, Ogaadeen, am, ውጋዴ/ውጋዴን) is one of the historical names given to the modern Somali Region, the territory comprising the eastern portion of Ethiopia formerly part of the Harargh ...
desert and into Ethiopia, entering the capital, Addis Ababa, on 6 April. At the end of the campaign, Godwin-Austen was promoted to his last fighting command, leading the Western Desert Force (which became XIII Corps) in the Western Desert campaign in North Africa. During
Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during the Second World War by the British Eighth Army (United Kingdom), Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) ...
, he was vociferous in his opposition to the suggestion of Alan Cunningham, by now commanding Eighth Army, and so once more his direct superior, that they should abandon the offensive after the setback of Rommel's "dash to the wire". The Commander-in-Chief Middle East, now General Claude Auchinleck, chose to continue the offensive; Crusader went on to relieve the
Siege of Tobruk The siege of Tobruk lasted for 241 days in 1941, after Axis forces advanced through Cyrenaica from El Agheila in Operation Sonnenblume against Allied forces in Libya, during the Western Desert Campaign (1940–1943) of the Second World War. ...
and push the Axis forces back to El Agheila and Cunningham was relieved of his command. When Rommel counter-attacked in January 1942, the Allies were forced to retreat in some confusion. Godwin-Austen, seeing that one of his divisions, the
4th Indian Infantry Division The 4th Indian Infantry Division, also known as the Red Eagle Division, is an infantry division of the Indian Army. This division of the British Indian Army was formed in Egypt in 1939 during the Second World War. During the Second World War, i ...
, was under threat, after consulting with Cunningham's successor, Lieutenant General Neil Ritchie, ordered them to withdraw. Ritchie changed his mind and issued a countermand directly to Major General
Francis Tuker Lieutenant General Sir Francis Ivan Simms Tuker KCIE CB DSO OBE (4 July 1894 – 7 October 1967) was a senior British Indian Army officer who commanded the 4th Indian Infantry Division during the Second World War. Early life The son of Willi ...
, the divisional commander. Feeling that Ritchie had by this action displayed a lack of confidence in him, Godwin-Austen tendered his resignation to Auchinleck, which was reluctantly accepted.Mead, p. 171 Tuker was later to write: "His going was the latest of many misjudegments which had started to shake confidence in the leadership. We lost the wrong man." In spite of support from General Sir Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, and Sir James Grigg, the
Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...
, Churchill was adamant that Godwin-Austen should not receive a new posting. Churchill relented in November after the intervention of South African Field Marshal Jan Smuts and Godwin-Austen was appointed Director of Tactical Investigation at the War Office. He subsequently became Vice Quartermaster-General at the War Office and as the war ended, the Quartermaster-General and then Principal Administrative Officer in India, reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, General Sir Claude Auchinleck.


Postwar

Godwin-Austen was knighted in 1946 and retired from the army on 5 March 1947, after having achieved the rank of general. Serving as Chairman of the South-West Division of the National Coal Board, from 1946 to 1947, he was also Colonel of the South Wales Borderers from 1950 to 1954. Godwin-Austen, a bachelor, after suffering from a long illness, died in
Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...
on 20 March 1963, just under a month from his 74th birthday.Smart, p. 121


Notes


References


Bibliography

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External links

* * "GODWIN-AUSTEN, General Sir Alfred Reade", in
British Army Officers 1939–1945
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