Major-General Edward Frederick Lawson, 4th Baron Burnham, (16 June 1890 – 4 July 1963), was a British newspaper executive and Territorial Army

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," fro ...

who served with distinction in both

World Wars A world war is an international conflict that involves most or all of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World War I (19 ...

Early life and family

Lawson was born on 16 June 1890, the eldest son of Colonel William Levy-Lawson (1864–1943) and his wife Sibyl Mary Marshall, eldest daughter of Lt-Gen Sir Frederick Marshall. His father was the younger son of

Edward Levy-Lawson, 1st Baron Burnham Edward Levy-Lawson, 1st Baron Burnham, (28 December 1833 – 9 January 1916), known as Sir Edward Levy-Lawson, 1st Baronet, from 1892 to 1903, was an English newspaper proprietor. He was the owner and publisher of ''The Daily Telegraph''. Bi ...

, the proprietor of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', and had served in the

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot guards#United Kingdom, Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642 in the Ki ...

and then in the part-time

Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry The Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry is an Operational Hygiene Squadron of the Royal Logistic Corps, originally formed as cavalry in 1794, and has also served in artillery and signals roles. The lineage is continued by 710 (Royal Buckinghamshire Hu ...

(Royal Bucks Hussars), with which he had won a

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

(DSO) during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

.''Burke's''.''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''. His first cousin was Mrs Dorothy Coke (née Levy-Lawson, died 1937), wife of Major Sir John Coke (died 1957). His daughter Lucia wrote a book about Hall Barn, her home from age 11 and the seat of the

Baron Burnham Baron Burnham, of Hall Barn in the Parish of Beaconsfield in the Buckinghamshire, County of Buckingham, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 31 July 1903 for the influential newspaper magnate Edward Levy-Lawson, 1st ...

family. Edward Lawson was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

, where he obtained a third-class degree in modern history in 1913 and played

polo Polo is a stick and ball game that is played on horseback as a traditional field sport. It is one of the world's oldest known team sports, having been adopted in the Western world from the game of Chovgan (), which originated in ancient ...

for the university. In July 1910 he was commissioned into the Royal Bucks Hussars, a cavalry regiment of the recently created

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry in ...

(TF), of which his father became honorary colonel in 1913. On leaving Oxford, Lawson joined the family newspaper, ''The Daily Telegraph'', as a reporter, first in Paris and then in New York. On the outbreak of war in 1914 he returned to the UK to serve with the Royal Bucks Hussars.

First World War

The Royal Bucks Hussars was embodied on the outbreak of war and went to its war station near

Bury St Edmunds Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as ''Bury,'' is a cathedral as well as market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk District, West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St. Edmunds an ...

, later joining a concentration of mounted troops around Churn on the

Berkshire Downs The Berkshire Downs are a range of chalk downland hills in southern England, part of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Berkshire Downs are wholly within the traditional county of Berkshire, although split between ...

. In November the

2nd Mounted Division The 2nd Mounted Division was a yeomanry ( Territorial Army cavalry) division that served in the First World War. At the outbreak of war it was assigned to defence of the Norfolk coast. In March 1915 it formed a 2nd Line duplicate of itself, th ...

, of which the Royal Bucks formed part, was sent to guard the East Coast in

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. In April 1915 the division was shipped to Egypt, where it was reorganised as a small dismounted division and sent to

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

.Becke, pp. 9–17. 2nd Mounted Division landed at

Suvla Bay View of Suvla from Battleship Hill Suvla () is a bay on the Aegean coast of the Gallipoli peninsula in European Turkey, south of the Gulf of Saros. On 6 August 1915, it was the site for the Landing at Suvla Bay by the British IX Corps as ...

on the night of 17/18 August, with Lawson acting as landing officer. Three days later it was sent into action at the Battle of Scimitar Hill, when it was intended to push through to the second objective after the main Turkish positions had been captured. The Yeomanry moved up at 17.00, marching from their bivouacs across the plain of the Salt Lake, where they 'presented such a target as artillerymen dream of'. On reaching Chocolate Hill they paused to reorganise before moving on towards Scimitar Hill through blinding dust and smoke, with little idea of what they were supposed to do and suffering heavy casualties. Most of the division halted at Green Hill, but Brigadier-General

Lord Longford Francis Aungier Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford (5 December 1905 – 3 August 2001), known to his family as Frank Longford and styled Lord Pakenham from 1945 to 1961, was a British politician and social reformer. A member of the Labour Party, ...

led his 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade (including the Royal Bucks Hussars) in a charge over Green Hill and up to the summit of Scimitar Hill. Longford was killed, and his men were finally driven from the summit. The casualties at Scimitar Hill had been so severe, and manpower wastage through the summer was so heavy, that the 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade had to be temporarily reorganised as a single regiment, and was evacuated to Egypt in November for rest and recuperation, where it was reunited with its horses. After service in the Senussi Campaign with the

Western Frontier Force The Western Frontier Force was raised from British Empire troops during the Senussi campaign from November 1915 to February 1917, under the command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF). Orders for the formation of the force were issued on ...

, the Royal Bucks Hussars went to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

to join the

Imperial Mounted Division The Australian Mounted Division originally formed as the Imperial Mounted Division in January 1917, was a mounted infantry, light horse and yeomanry division. The division was formed in Egypt, and along with the Anzac Mounted Division formed p ...

, with which it served in the

First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and Second Battles of Gaza. The regiment then transferred to the Yeomanry Mounted Division and fought with it in the

Third Battle of Gaza The Third Battle of Gaza was fought on the night of 1–2 November 1917 between British and Ottoman forces during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I and came after the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) victory at the Ba ...

and at the

Battle of Mughar Ridge The Battle of Mughar Ridge, officially known by the British as the action of El Mughar, took place on 13 November 1917 during the Pursuit phase of the Southern Palestine Offensive of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the First World War. Fig ...

, where it participated in a notable mounted charge.Becke, pp. 31–4. It was involved in Allenby's entry into Jerusalem. In April 1918 the Royal Bucks Hussars went to France to serve on the Western Front, but Lawson was not with them: he had been appointed at age 26 acting Lieutenant-Colonel to command the 1st County of London (Middlesex) Yeomanry, which continued to serve with the

Desert Mounted Corps The Desert Mounted Corps was an army corps of the British Army during the First World War, of three mounted divisions renamed in August 1917 by General Edmund Allenby, from Desert Column. These divisions which served in the Sinai and Palestine ...

in Palestine for the rest of the war, including the Battle of Megiddo. During the final pursuit towards

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, Lawson's regiment was lent to

T. E. Lawrence Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British Army officer, archaeologist, diplomat and writer known for his role during the Arab Revolt and Sinai and Palestine campaign against the Ottoman Empire in the First W ...

, under whose orders it charged the enemy rear and drove them into a trap, completing the destruction of the Turkish Fourth Army. During the war Lawson was awarded a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

and three

mentions in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) 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 of t ...

. The citation for his MC,

gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

in July 1918, reads:

Newspaperman

After the war, Lawson returned to the ''Daily Telegraph'', where he was known as 'The Colonel', and served as effective second-in-command to his uncle Harry Levy-Lawson, 2nd Baron Burnham, who had inherited the newspaper and been created Viscount Burnham. On 28 January 1920 he married Marie Enid Robson, only daughter of Hugh Scott Robson. The ''Daily Telegraph'' was losing circulation, and to Lawson's disappointment his uncle decided to sell it to the Berry Brothers in 1927. Sir William Berry (soon to be created Lord Camrose) was impressed by Lawson's ability and made him general manager of the business. Lawson joked that this was because he was the only person capable of finding his way around the labyrinthine ''Telegraph'' offices. Lawson was a moderniser and skilful negotiator, supervising the installation of new printing plant, the takeover of ''

The Morning Post ''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''. History The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning ...

'' in 1937, and chairing the labour committee of the Newspaper Publishers' Association for 25 years. After his father succeeded as 3rd Baron Burnham in 1933, he was styled the Hon. Edward Lawson.

Territorial officer

Lawson maintained his links to the Territorial Army between the wars, helping the Royal Bucks Hussars to convert to

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 ...

and then to merge with the

Berkshire Yeomanry The Berkshire Yeomanry was a part time regiment of the British Army formed in 1794 to counter the threat of invasion during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was the Royal County of Berkshire's senior volunteer unit with over 200 years of volunt ...

to form the 99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) Field Brigade, Royal Artillery, which he commanded from 1929 until 1933 (his uncle, Viscount Burnham, was also the regiment's Honorary Colonel). Unusually for a Territorial officer, he was appointed Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA), of

48th (South Midland) Division The 48th (South Midland) Division was an infantry Division (military), division of the British Army. Part of the Territorial Force (TF) and raised in 1908, the division was originally called the South Midland Division, and was redesignated as th ...

in 1938, with the rank of Brigadier.

Second World War

On the outbreak of war, 48th Division was mobilised, and it landed in France as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in January 1940. When the Germans invaded France and the Low Countries in May, the BEF moved forward to occupy pre-planned positions in Belgium, but the rapid German breakthrough into France caused it to retreat towards Dunkirk. On 23 May, 48th Division was pulled out to form a new defence line along the canal between

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; ; Picard: ''Saint-Onmé'') is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Sa ...

and the coast. Lawson was sent with 'X Force' of artillery, machine guns and infantry ahead of the division to occupy the chosen positions. However, the unexpected surrender of Belgian forces on 27 May 1940 led to a gap appearing between 48th Division in action around Saint-Omer and the coast at Nieuwpoort. Until II Corps could arrive to plug this gap, Lawson was responsible for what the ''Official History'' calls 'the most dangerously exposed part of the bridgehead'.Ellis, ''France & Flanders'', Ch. I

He was ordered by the commander of the Dunkirk perimeter, Lt-Gen Ronald Forbes Adam, Ronald Adam to improvise a defence line along the canal and prevent the Germans breaking through to the vital beaches east of Dunkirk where much of the BEF was waiting to be evacuated. At 11.00 on 28 May, advanced German troops reached the canal line, but Lawson seized on the Territorial gunners of 53rd (London) Medium Regiment, Royal Artillery, who were marching towards Dunkirk having fired off all their ammunition and destroyed their guns. Together with detachments of Regular gunners from 2nd Medium Regiment and 1st Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, and sappers from 7th Field Company

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

, they fought as infantry to hold the line. They came under heavy mortar and machine-gun fire, and the Germans seized a bridgehead at Nieuwpoort, but all subsequent attacks that day were repulsed. Lawson's scratch force was relieved next day and then evacuated to Britain.Chronology at 53rd Regt website.
/ref> Lawson was appointed 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 caregi ...

for distinguished service in this campaign. In February 1941 he was promoted to the acting rank of major-general and appointed General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the new

Yorkshire County Division The Yorkshire County Division was a formation of the British Army in the Second World War, its headquarters were formed on 24 February 1941, and became operation on 19 March. It was commanded by three officers, Major-General the Hon E. F. Laws ...

, responsible for three independent infantry brigades that had been organised for home defence from newly raised battalions of

conscripts Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

. On the death of his father on 14 June 1943, Edward Lawson succeeded as 4th Baron Burnham of Hall Barn, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, and as the 4th Baronet. With his newspaper background, Lawson became Senior Military Adviser to the Ministry of Information and was Director of Public Relations at the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

from 1943 to 1945. His rank of major general was made temporary in February 1942 and permanent in 1945.

Postwar

Lord Burnham returned to the ''Daily Telegraph'' as managing director in 1945, remaining in the post until his retirement in 1961. He died in the

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

on 4 July 1963, and was succeeded as 5th Baron by his eldest son.

Family

Lord and Lady Burnham had three children: * William Edward Harley Lawson, 5th Baron Burnham, (1920–1993) * Lucia Edith Lawson (1922–2011), married

Roger Marquis, 2nd Earl of Woolton Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...

, divorced 1953. * Hugh John Frederick Lawson, 6th Baron Burnham, (1931–2005)

Publications

* ''Peterborough Court: The Story of the Daily Telegraph'', 1955.

Honours

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer O ...

* Three

Notes

References

* C. F. Aspinall-Oglander, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations Gallipoli, May 1915 to the Evacuation'', London: Heinemann, 1932/Imperial War Museum & Battery Press, 1992, ISBN, 0-89839-175-X. * Maj A. F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2a: The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1935/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Sir Arthur Bryant, ''The Turn of the Tide, 1939–1943'', London: Collins, 1957. * David L. Bullock, ''Allenby's War: The Palestine-Arabian Campaigns 1916–1918'', London: Blandford Press, 1988, . * ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953. * Lt-Col Ewan Butler and Maj J.S. Bradford, ''The Story of Dunkirk'', London: Hutchinson/Arrow, nd. * Major L. F. Ellis, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War in France and Flanders 1939–1940'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1954. (Online a

) * * T. E. Lawrence, ''Seven Pillars of Wisdom'', London: Jonathan Cape, 1935/Penguin Classics, 1962, .. * Norman E. H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * John North, ''Gallipoli: The Fading Vision'', London: Faber & Faber, 1936. * F. W. Perry, ''Order of Battle of Divisions Part 5A. The Divisions of Australia, Canada and New Zealand and those in East Africa'', Newport: Ray Westlake Military Books, 1992, . * F. W. Perry, ''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 5b: Indian Army Divisions'', Newport: Ray Westlake, 1993, . * Huw Richards, 'Lawson, Edward Frederick, fourth Baron Burnham (1890–1963)', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford: University Press, 2004–15. *

External sources

53rd London Medium Regiment website
* ttps://generals.dk/general/Lawson/Edward_Frederick/Great_Britain.html Generals of World War II , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Burnham, Edward Lawson, 4th Baron People educated at Eton College Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford The Daily Telegraph people 4 Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry officers Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Military Cross British Army personnel of World War I Royal Artillery officers British Army major generals British Army generals of World War II 1890 births Military personnel from the City of Westminster 1963 deaths 20th-century English businesspeople People from Mayfair War Office personnel in World War II Territorial Force officers Nobility from London