William Jackson (British Army officer)
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General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Sir William Godfrey Fothergill Jackson, (28 August 1917 – 12 March 1999) 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,
military historian Military history is the study of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to local and international relationships. Professional historians norma ...
, author and
Governor of Gibraltar The governor of Gibraltar is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government. The role of the governor is to act as the ...
.


Military career

Educated at
Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...
, the
Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of Sig ...
, and
King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...
, William Jackson was commissioned into the
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 ...
in 1937.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> He served with the
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 ...
in the Norwegian campaign 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 ...
, where he was one of the first British officers to engage the enemy. His work in blowing up bridges as the British retreated from
Lillehammer Lillehammer () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. Some of the more notable villages in the municip ...
earned Jackson his first
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 ...
(MC). He also served in
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
,
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
and
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 ...
during the war. He was twice injured by a land mine. The one at
Bou Arada Bou Arada is a town and commune in the Siliana Governorate, Tunisia. As of 2004 it had a population of 12,273.
in Tunisia placed him in bed for four months before he joined
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
's headquarters, where the
Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...
was being planned. He won a
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to his MC in 1944 at the
Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...
in recognition of "gallant and distinguished services", and by the end of the war Jackson was in post as an acting major but was only formally promoted captain in August 1945, having been promoted to lieutenant in 1940. He was also
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 ...
in 1945 for his services in Italy. After the war he became a general staff officer at Headquarters Allied Land Forces, South East Asia in 1945 before moving on to be an instructor 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 1948. Promoted major in 1950, he was an instructor at the
Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town ...
from 1951. He was promoted
brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...
lieutenant colonel in 1955 and was appointed Assistant Adjutant & Quartermaster General (Plans) 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 ...
during the
Suez crisis The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...
in 1956. Jackson was appointed an
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 ...
in the
1957 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1957 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 ...
. In 1958 he was promoted lieutenant colonel and became
Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...
, Gurkha Engineers in Malaya. In 1960 he was promoted full colonel and in 1961 returned to 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 Colonel General Staff at the Minley Division. He was Deputy Director of Staff Duties 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 ...
from 1962 and joined the
Imperial Defence College 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 1965 being promoted brigadier in March. He went on to be Director of the Chief of Defence Staff's Unison Planning Staff in 1966 in the temporary rank of major-general (his rank of major-general was confirmed as permanent in July 1966) and Assistant Chief of the General Staff (Operational Requirements) 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. In 1970 Jackson was promoted to lieutenant-general and appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief for Northern Command. He was knighted as a
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...
in 1971, and in 1973 he became
Quartermaster-General to the Forces The Quartermaster-General to the Forces (QMG) is a senior general in the British Army. The post has become symbolic: the Ministry of Defence organisation charts since 2011 have not used the term "Quartermaster-General to the Forces"; they simply ...
in the local rank of full general with formal promotion to general coming four months later. Advanced to
Knight Grand Cross 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 ...
in the 1975 Birthday Honours, Jackson retired from active army service in February 1977, taking a post of Military Historian at the
Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for supporting the prime minister and Cabinet. It is composed of various units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government objecti ...
from 1977 to 1978 and then becoming Governor and Commander-in-Chief of
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...
, overseeing the colony's transition to a
British dependent territory The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former Bri ...
and where he was a stalwart advocate for self-determination in the territory. Jackson retired from his post in Gibraltar in 1982 (having had his tenure extended by a year) and returned to being historian at the Cabinet Office until 1987. He had held five honorary military appointments: as
ADC General Aide-de-camp general is a senior honorary appointment for General (United Kingdom), generals in the British Army. The recipient is appointed as an aide-de-camp general to the head of state, currently King Charles III. They are entitled to the post-n ...
to the Queen (1974–1979), Colonel Commandant the Royal Engineers (1971–1981), Colonel the Gurkha Engineers (1971–1976), Colonel Commandant Royal Army Ordnance Corps (1973–1976) and Colonel of the Territorial Army Volunteer Reserve Engineer and Railway Staff Corps.


Works

*''
History of the Second World War The ''History of the Second World War'' is the official history of the British contribution to the Second World War and was published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO). The immense project was sub-divided into areas to ease publication, ...
'', The Mediterranean and Middle East, vol. 6 (1984–1988; editor) *''Attack in the West: Napoleon's First Campaign Re-read Today'' (1953); *''From Fortress to Democracy: Political Biography of Sir Joshua Hassan'' (1995) *''Seven Roads to Moscow'' (1957); *''The Battle for Italy'' (1967); *''The Battle for Rome'' (1969) *''Alexander of Tunis'' (1972) *''Overlord: Normandy 1944'' (1978); *''Withdrawal From Empire: A Military View'' (1986) *''The Rock of the Gibraltarians: A History of Gibraltar'' ; (1987) *''The Alternative Third World War, 1985–2035'' (1987) *''Britain's Defence Dilemma: An Inside View: Rethinking British Defence Policy in the Post-Imperial Era'' (1990) *''The Chiefs: the Story of the United Kingdom Chiefs of Staff'' (1992) *''The Pomp of Yesterday: the Defence of India and the Suez Canal'' (1995) *''Britain's Triumph and Decline in the Middle East'' (1996)


Legacy

* His name is given to a large residential estate in
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...
(''Sir William Jackson Grove'').


References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, William Godfrey Fothergill People educated at Shrewsbury School 1917 births 1999 deaths British Army personnel of World War II British Army generals Governors of Gibraltar Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Military Cross Historians of Gibraltar Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Academics of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst 20th-century English historians People from Blackpool Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Military personnel from Lancashire