General
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
Sir Gordon Holmes Alexander MacMillan of MacMillan and Knap, (7 January 1897 – 21 January 1986) was a professional soldier who rose to become a general in 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 ...
. As a young officer during 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 displayed outstanding bravery and was awarded a
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 ...
and two
Bars. At the age of 19 and while still a
second lieutenant, he was appointed
acting adjutant of the 2nd Battalion,
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. Between the World Wars, MacMillan remained in the army, occupying posts of increasing seniority. He married Marian Blakiston Houston in 1929, and they had one daughter and four sons.
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 opposi ...
, MacMillan served initially in England, putting in place defensive strategies against a
possible invasion by the Germans. He was appointed Brigadier General Staff
IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to:
France
* 9th Army Corps (France)
* IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
Germany
* IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial Germ ...
in December 1941, remaining in this post during the
Operation Torch landings 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 ...
and through to the
fall of Tunis in May 1943. He was given command of the
152nd Brigade in June 1943 and led it during the successful
Sicily campaign
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 ...
. Upon return to Britain, he was assigned command of the
15th (Scottish) Division
The 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that served in the First World War. The 15th (Scottish) Division was formed from men volunteering for Kitchener's Army, and served from 1915 to 1918 on the West ...
and led the formation during the
Battle of Normandy
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...
,
Operation Epsom
Operation Epsom, also known as the First Battle of the Odon, was a British offensive in the Second World War between 26 and 30 June 1944, during the Battle of Normandy. The offensive was intended to outflank and seize the German-occupied city ...
and
Operation Bluecoat
Operation Bluecoat was a British offensive in the Battle of Normandy, from 30 July until 7 August 1944, during the Second World War. The geographical objectives of the attack, undertaken by VIII Corps and XXX Corps of the British Second Army ...
, towards the end of which he was wounded. Once recovered, in November 1944, he returned to mainland Europe as
GOC 49th (West Riding) Division
The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division fought in the First World War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During the Second World War, the divis ...
near
Nijmegen. Upon the death of Major-General
Thomas Rennie, he assumed command of the
51st (Highland) Division
The 51st (Highland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought on the Western Front in France during the First World War from 1915 to 1918. The division was raised in 1908, upon the creation of the Territorial Force, as ...
immediately following the
crossing of the Rhine on 23 March 1945.
After the war, MacMillan served as the army's Director of Weapons and Development. In February 1947 he was appointed GOC
British Forces in Palestine and Trans-Jordan. Soon after his arrival, the British Government decided to bring to an end its
Mandate in Palestine. This decision triggered an escalation of violence in the territory, leading to the withdrawal of all British forces by 30 June 1948. He then served as GOC
Scottish Command
Scottish Command or Army Headquarters Scotland (from 1972) is a command of the British Army.
History Early history
Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793. The Scottish District was comman ...
(1949–52). His final army posting was as Governor and Commander-in-Chief
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 ...
(1952–55).
Gordon MacMillan was hereditary Chief of the
Clan MacMillan
Clan MacMillan is a Highland Scottish clan. The Clan was originally located in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands during the 12th century. The clan supported Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence, but later supported ...
. After retirement, he remained Colonel of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders until 1958. Following his retirement, he immersed himself in Scottish life and society, being appointed chairman of several institutions. Much of his time was devoted to the upkeep of the house, gardens and woodlands at
Finlaystone
Finlaystone House is a mansion and estate in the Inverclyde council area and historic county of Renfrewshire. It lies near the southern bank of the Firth of Clyde, beside the village of Langbank, in the west central Lowlands of Scotland.
Finl ...
, the family house in the West of Scotland.
Early life and First World War
Gordon Holmes Alexander MacMillan was born near
Bangalore
Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...
, Kingdom of Mysore,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, on 7 January 1897. His father, Dugald MacMillan, was a coffee plantation owner. However, when he was three years old, his parents, both of Scottish origin, decided to return to Britain to bring up their only son. At the age of ten, he joined
St Edmund's School, Canterbury, from where he won a Prize Cadetship to attend a shortened course at the
Royal Military College, Sandhurst
The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...
, in April 1915, several months after the outbreak of the
Great 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 ...
.
MacMillan was
commissioned as a
second lieutenant into the
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders on 11 August 1915.
Due to not having reached the age of 19, he was posted to the 3rd Battalion, Argylls, a training unit, stationed near
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
. In April 1916 he was sent to the
Western Front where he joined the 2nd Battalion (the 93rd), a
Regular Army
A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following:
* a standin ...
unit which was then serving as part of the
98th Brigade of the
33rd Division, in Northeast France, and immediately became involved in fierce
trench warfare
Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising military trenches, in which troops are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. Trench warfare became ar ...
at Brickstacks.
This was followed by engagements, as part of the battles of the
Somme and
Passchendaele, at
Cuinchy
Cuinchy is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France.
Geography
A farming village some east of Béthune and southwest of Lille, at the junction of the D166 and the D166E3 roads, by the banks of the Ca ...
, Bazentin-le-Petit,
High Wood
The Attacks on High Wood, near Bazentin le Petit in the Somme ''département'' of northern France, took place between the British Fourth Army and the German 1st Army during the Battle of the Somme. After the Battle of Bazentin Ridge on 14 July ...
, Mametz Wood,
Arras, Le Cateau and the
Selle.
While still only 19 years old and a second lieutenant, he was appointed
acting adjutant of the battalion in November 1916. He was promoted to
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations.
The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...
in April 1917, and formally confirmed as adjutant in June.
He remained in this post for the rest of the war, serving seven different
commanding officers (CO). The casualties were immense and, at one time, while a second lieutenant, he found himself by default commanding the battalion. MacMillan wrote "I would say that I was fortunate to belong to the best battalion in the Army, with an unbreakable spirit. You can see this from the record of their operations – and then look at the casualty list: 63 officers and 1175 men killed, and ready for anything at the end of it all".
MacMillan was one of only 168 soldiers to receive 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 ...
(MC) and two
Bars in the First World War. His MCs were awarded for exceptional gallantry in the battles of High Wood (July 1916), Arras (April 1917) and Le Cateau (October 1918)
Between the wars
After the war, MacMillan, having gained a Regular commission in 1915, remained in the army, continuing to serve as his battalion's adjutant until December 1920, when the battalion was stationed in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
during "
the troubles
The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...
". He was promoted to
captain on 28 August 1924,
serving periodically as a
company commander
A company commander is the commanding officer of a company, a military unit which typically consists of 100 to 250 soldiers, often organized into three or four smaller units called platoons. The exact organization of a company varies by countr ...
before entering the
Staff College, Camberley from 1928 to 1929, where among his fellow students there in his year included several future high-ranking officers, such as
Alexander Galloway
Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Galloway, (3 November 1895 – 28 January 1977) was a senior British Army officer. During the Second World War, he was particularly highly regarded as a staff officer and, as such, had an influential role in the ...
,
Gerard Bucknall
Lieutenant General Gerard Corfield Bucknall, (14 September 1894 – 7 December 1980) was a senior British Army officer who served in both the First and Second World Wars. He is most notable for being the commander of XXX Corps during the Norman ...
,
John Harding,
Richard McCreery
General Sir Richard Loudon McCreery, (1 February 1898 – 18 October 1967) was a career soldier of the British Army, who was decorated for leading one of the last cavalry actions in the First World War. During the Second World War, he was chief ...
,
Philip Gregson-Ellis,
William Holmes
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
,
Claude Nicholson,
Charles Murison,
Alexander Cameron,
Gerald Templer
Field Marshal Sir Gerald Walter Robert Templer, (11 September 1898 – 25 October 1979) was a senior British Army officer. He fought in both the world wars and took part in the crushing of the Arab Revolt in Palestine. As Chief of the Imperi ...
,
Thomas Wilson,
I. S. O. Playfair
Major-General Ian Stanley Ord Playfair, (10 April 1894 – 21 March 1972) was a British Army officer.
Military career
Born the son of Colonel F.H.G. Playfair of the Hampshire Regiment and educated at Cheltenham College, Playfair joined the Roy ...
and
Leslie Beavis. His instructors included
Henry Pownall
Lieutenant General Sir Henry Royds Pownall, (19 November 1887 – 10 June 1961) was a senior British Army officer who held several important command and staff appointments during the Second World War. In particular, he was chief of staff to the ...
,
Wilfrid Lindsell,
Richard O'Connor
General Sir Richard Nugent O'Connor, (21 August 1889 – 17 June 1981) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both the First and Second World Wars, and commanded the Western Desert Force in the early years of the Second World War. ...
,
Harold Franklyn
General Sir Harold Edmund Franklyn, (28 November 1885 − 31 March 1963) was a British Army officer who fought in both the First and the Second World Wars. He is most notable for his command of the 5th Infantry Division during the Battle of F ...
,
Bernard Paget
General Sir Bernard Charles Tolver Paget, (15 September 1887 – 16 February 1961) was a senior British Army officer who served with distinction in the First World War, and then later during the Second World War. During the latter, he command ...
,
George Giffard
General Sir George James Giffard (27 September 1886 – 17 November 1964) was a British military officer, who had a distinguished career in command of African troops in World War I, rising to command an Army Group in South East Asia in World Wa ...
and
Bernard Montgomery. On 10 August 1929, MacMillan married Marian Blakiston Houston; they had three children. He went on to serve successively as captain,
staff captain
Staff captain is the English translation of a number of military ranks:
Historical use of the rank
Czechoslovakia
In the Czechoslovak Army, until 1953, Staff Captain ( cs, štábní kapitán, sk, štábny kapitán) was a senior captain ran ...
and
General Staff Officer Grade 3 (GSO3) in 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 ...
in the early 1930s.
Having rejoined his regiment, from August to October 1934 (with the rank of
brevet major
In many of the world's military establishments, a brevet ( or ) was a warrant giving a commissioned officer a higher rank title as a reward for gallantry or meritorious conduct but may not confer the authority, precedence, or pay of real rank. ...
), he commanded the Guard for the Royal Family at
Balmoral. His next appointment, in 1935, was as an instructor (GSO 2) at the
Royal Military College of Canada
'')
, established = 1876
, type = Military academy
, chancellor = Anita Anand ('' la, ex officio, label=none'' as Defence Minister)
, principal = Harry Kowal
, head_label ...
in Kingston, Ontario, where he served for two years before rejoining his regiment and then returning to the War Office as a GSO 2 in the Training Branch. He was promoted to major on 1 August 1938, and, from 10 January 1939, served as a GSO2 to the staff of HQ
Eastern Command.
Second World War
On 10 April 1940, seven months after the outbreak 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 opposi ...
, MacMillan was promoted to acting lieutenant-colonel and appointed as GSO1 in HQ
55th (West Lancashire) Motor Division, a first line
Territorial Army (TA) formation. The division was commanded by
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 ...
Vivian Majendie
Major General Vivian Henry Bruce Majendie, (20 April 1886 – 13 January 1960) was a British Army officer and amateur cricketer for Somerset County Cricket Club.
Military career
The son of The Reverend Henry Majendie, Vivian Majendie was educ ...
, who was some eleven years MacMillan's senior, and was serving in
Northern Command (soon moving to Eastern Command). The division was a
motorised infantry
Motorized infantry is infantry that is transported by trucks or other motor vehicles. It is distinguished from mechanized infantry, which is carried in armoured personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles, and from light infantry, whic ...
formation composed of only two, rather than three, brigades, and was amongst several responsible for coastal defence and for engaging any possible enemy airborne landings in the event of a
German invasion German invasion may refer to:
Pre-1900s
* German invasion of Hungary (1063)
World War I
* German invasion of Belgium (1914)
* German invasion of Luxembourg (1914)
World War II
* Invasion of Poland
* German invasion of Belgium (1940)
* G ...
. In late June, after the
British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was
evacuated from Dunkirk and the
fall of France, the division – composed initially of the
164th and
165th Infantry Brigades with supporting divisional troops – was reorganised as a standard infantry division with the addition of the
199th Infantry Brigade from the disbanded
66th Infantry Division.
In May the following year, with the division, now under Major-General
William Morgan and serving in
East Anglia under
Lieutenant-General Hugh Massy's
XI Corps 11 Corps, 11th Corps, Eleventh Corps, or XI Corps may refer to:
* 11th Army Corps (France)
* XI Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
* XI Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army
* ...
, being still concerned mainly with home defence, MacMillan was promoted, on 1 May 1941, to the acting rank of
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. I ...
(and acting
colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...
on the same date) and took up command of the 55th Division's 199th Brigade. He trained the brigade very hard over the next few months in numerous large-scale
exercises until, in late December 1941, he was chosen to be
Brigadier General Staff (BGS) in the HQ of
IX Corps District. Initially the corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General
Francis Nosworthy, was involved in coastal defences, supporting Eastern Command, but was soon to become engaged in preparing itself for the
Allied invasion of
French North Africa
French North Africa (french: Afrique du Nord française, sometimes abbreviated to ANF) is the term often applied to the territories controlled by France in the North African Maghreb during the colonial era, namely Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. I ...
, codenamed
Operation Torch.
North Africa and Sicily
The corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General
John Crocker
General Sir John Tredinnick Crocker, (4 January 1896 – 9 March 1963) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both world wars. He served as both a private soldier and a junior officer in the First World War, and as a distinguished br ...
(nine years younger than Nosworthy) from September 1942, embarked from the
Tail of the Bank
The Tail of the Bank is the name given to the anchorage in the upper Firth of Clyde immediately North of Greenock, between Inverclyde and Argyll and Bute. This area of the Firth gets its name from the deep water immediately to the west of t ...
in February 1943 and set themselves up near
Algiers in
French North Africa
French North Africa (french: Afrique du Nord française, sometimes abbreviated to ANF) is the term often applied to the territories controlled by France in the North African Maghreb during the colonial era, namely Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. I ...
on 24 March as part of the
18th Army Group reserve. The corps, serving as part of Lieutenant-General
Kenneth Anderson's
British First Army
The First Army was a formation of the British Army that existed during the First and Second World Wars. The First Army included Indian and Portuguese forces during the First World War and American and French units during the Second World War.
F ...
, fought three major battles (Fondouk,
Goubellat and Kournine) during the final stages of the
Tunisian campaign
The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...
against
German troops and travelled 470 miles over six weeks before entering
Tunis
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
, population_note =
, population_urban =
, population_metro = 2658816
, population_density_km2 =
, timezone1 = CET
, utc_offset1 ...
on 7 May, just days before the campaign ended, with almost 250,000
Axis
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
* Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
soldiers surrendering. On 27 April Crocker, the corps commander, was badly injured and unable to continue in command. He was replaced temporarily by Lieutenant-General
Brian Horrocks
Lieutenant-General Sir Brian Gwynne Horrocks, (7 September 1895 – 4 January 1985) was a British Army officer, chiefly remembered as the commander of XXX Corps in Operation Market Garden and other operations during the Second World W ...
. MacMillan was later appointed a
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 ...
(CBE) for what Crocker described in his citation as his "very high order" of service in the command structure of IX Corps during the campaign. The CBE was awarded on 5 August 1943.
With IX Corps HQ disbanded, MacMillan was transferred briefly as BGS to the First Army headquarters, whose responsibilities included arranging for the victory parade on 20 May 1943 which involved some 26,000
Allied troops of various nationalities. Following the parade, on 17 June, he was posted to command the
12th Infantry Brigade, taking over from Brigadier
Richard Hull
Field Marshal Sir Richard Amyatt Hull, (7 May 1907 – 17 September 1989) was a senior British Army officer. He was the last Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), holding the post from 1961 to 1964, and the first Chief of the General Sta ...
, part of the
4th Mixed Division, then commanded by Major-General
John Hawkesworth. The division had come under IX Corps command for the final stages of the campaign and so MacMillan was familiar with it. However, just eight days later, he was given command of the
152nd Infantry Brigade, one of three brigades – the others being the
153rd under Brigadier
Horatius Murray
General Sir Horatius Murray, (18 April 1903 – 1989) was a senior British Army officer who served with distinction during the Second World War and later in the Korean War.
Early life and military career
Educated at Peter Symonds School and th ...
and the
154th under Brigadier
Thomas Rennie – making up the veteran
51st (Highland) Infantry Division
The 51st (Highland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought on the Western Front in France during the First World War from 1915 to 1918. The division was raised in 1908, upon the creation of the Territorial Force, as ...
, which was then commanded by Major-General
Douglas Wimberley
Major-General Douglas Neil Wimberley, (15 August 1896 – 26 August 1983) was a British Army officer who, during the Second World War, commanded the 51st (Highland) Division for two years, from 1941 to 1943, notably at the Second Battle of El ...
Under Wimberley's command the division had fought during the
Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa had prevented th ...
and throughout North Africa, notably in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
,
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...
and
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
, as an integral part of the
British Eighth Army
The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Forces ...
, commanded by
General
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
Sir Bernard Montgomery, who had been one of MacMillan's instructors at the Staff College, Camberley in the late 1920s, and had formed a good opinion of him.
The 51st Division was selected by Montgomery to take part in 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 b ...
, codenamed Operation Husky, where it came under Lieutenant-General
Sir Oliver Leese's
XXX Corps. Just 19 days after his appointment, MacMillan led the brigade in the Allied landings in Sicily at Portopalo Bay on 10 July. Initially facing little resistance, the brigade's first major action was on 13 July at the village of
Francoforte against
German paratroopers of the
Hermann Göring Division Hermann or Herrmann may refer to:
* Hermann (name), list of people with this name
* Arminius, chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe in the 1st century, known as Hermann in the German language
* Éditions Hermann, French publisher
* Hermann, Miss ...
and, although the village was eventually taken after very difficult fighting, the brigade suffered very heavy casualties.
[Mead, p. 278] The 152nd Brigade then, having suffered less casualties than the 153rd and 154th Brigades, led the division's drive forward to
Paternò
Paternò ( scn, Patennò) is a southern Italian town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Catania, Sicily. With a population (2016) of 48,009, it is the third municipality of the province after Catania and Acireale.
Geography
Paternò ...
on 31 July, part of an attempt to break out towards
Mount Etna.
The following day it was clear that the Germans were on the retreat and later abandoned Sicily, with little major combat being seen afterwards and the campaign ending on 17 August.
He was also awarded the
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, ty ...
(DSO) for his performance in this campaign, awarded on 18 November 1943. The award was recommended by General Montgomery and General
The Hon. Sir Harold Alexander, commanding the Allied
15th Army Group
The 15th Army Group was an Army Group in World War II, composed of the British Eighth and the U.S. Fifth Armies, which apart from troops from the British Empire and U.S.A., also had whole units from other allied countries/regions; like two of ...
.
Northwest Europe
Soon after returning to the United Kingdom from Sicily, MacMillan received a promotion to acting major-general on 27 August 1943 and received his first divisional command of the war when he succeeded Major-General
Charles Bullen-Smith as the
General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the
15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, a second line TA formation. The division was created in September 1939 as a second line TA duplicate of the first line
52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division
The 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was originally formed as the Lowland Division, in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force. It later became the 52nd (Lowland) Division in 1915. The 52nd (Lowland ...
, initially composed of the
44th,
45th and
46th Infantry Brigades and supporting divisional troops.
However, in November 1941, the division had been placed on the Lower Establishment, meaning the division received a low priority for equipment and supplies and, throughout 1942, had had to supply drafts for British forces in the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...
and the
Far East
The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.
The ter ...
.
In January 1943 the
6th Guards Tank Brigade replaced the 45th Brigade and the division, raised in March to the Higher Establishment, was then converted into a mixed division, of one armoured and two infantry brigades.
A month after MacMillan's assumption of command, the division was reconstituted as a standard infantry division of three brigades, composed now of the 44th, 46th and
227th Infantry Brigades, and containing battalions from eight of the ten Scottish infantry regiments.
Slated for participation in
Operation Overlord, codename for the Allied
invasion of Normandy, the 15th Division, under MacMillan, was engaged in highly intensive training in
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...
, before moving to
Sussex in April 1944 in preparation for the invasion.
The division formed part of
VIII Corps 8th Corps, Eighth Corps, or VIII Corps may refer to:
* VIII Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VIII Army Corps (German Confederation)
* VIII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Ar ...
, then commanded by Lieutenant-General
John Harding, a fellow student at the Staff College in the late 1920s, itself forming part of the
British Second Army
The British Second Army was a field army active during the First and Second World Wars. During the First World War the army was active on the Western Front throughout most of the war and later active in Italy. During the Second World War the army ...
, under Lieutenant-General Sir Kenneth Anderson. Both VIII Corps and the Second Army formed part of the
21st Army Group, initially commanded by General
Sir Bernard Paget, who had been an instructor at the Staff College. However, in January 1944, Harding, Anderson and Paget were all replaced.
Harding was succeeded by Lieutenant-General
Sir Richard O'Connor, another ex-Staff College instructor who greatly admired MacMillan, Anderson by Lieutenant-General
Miles Dempsey
General Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey, (15 December 1896 – 5 June 1969) was a senior British Army officer who served in both world wars. During the Second World War he commanded the Second Army in north west Europe. A highly professional an ...
, and Paget by General Sir Bernard Montgomery. MacMillan was briefly appointed as acting GOC of VIII Corps while O'Connor arrived to replace Harding.
The division landed in
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
, near the city of
Caen, on 13 June 1944, just a week after the
D-Day landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
(delayed by six days due to storms in the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
), and deployed west of Caen in preparation for Montgomery's upcoming offensive,
Operation Epsom
Operation Epsom, also known as the First Battle of the Odon, was a British offensive in the Second World War between 26 and 30 June 1944, during the Battle of Normandy. The offensive was intended to outflank and seize the German-occupied city ...
.
O'Connor's VIII Corps, with the
11th Armoured and
43rd (Wessex) Division
The 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division was an infantry division of Britain's Territorial Army (TA). The division was first formed in 1908, as the Wessex Division. During the First World War, it was broken-up and never served as a complete formatio ...
s, in addition to the 15th Division, under command, was given the role of attacking between Caen and
Tilly-sur-Seulles
Tilly-sur-Seulles (, literally ''Tilly on Seulles'') is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.
Population
Events
Each year, the international motocross takes place.
See also
*Communes of the Cal ...
, crossing the
river Odon
The Odon () is a river in the Calvados department, in Normandy, northwestern France. It is 47 km long and is a left tributary of the Orne. The river passes through Jurques, Aunay-sur-Odon, Baron-sur-Odon, Bretteville-sur-Odon, Épinay-sur-O ...
and advance to the
river Orne
The Orne () is a river in Normandy, within northwestern France. It is long. It discharges into the English Channel at the port of Ouistreham. Its source is in Aunou-sur-Orne, east of Sées. Its main tributaries are the Odon and the Rouvre.
The ...
.
MacMillan's division, with each of his brigades being supported by a
Churchill tank
The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, its ability to climb steep slopes, a ...
equipped regiment of the
31st Tank Brigade, was to play a major role and his plan was for the 46th and 44th Brigades to capture the villages of
Cheux
Cheux () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas r ...
on the right and Saint-Mauvieux on the left.
This would allow the 227th Brigade to pass through and seize the bridges across the Odon at
Gavrus
Gavrus () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.
Population
See also
* Gavros (disambiguation)
*Operation Epsom
Operation Epsom, also known as the First Battle of the Odon, was a British ...
and Tourmaville. However, the Normandy
bocage
Bocage (, ) is a terrain of mixed woodland and pasture characteristic of parts of Northern France, Southern England, Ireland, the Netherlands and Northern Germany, in regions where pastoral farming is the dominant land use.
''Bocage'' may als ...
countryside was ideal for defence, and, despite strong artillery support, the 44th and 46th Brigades encountered heavy resistance on 26 June, the first day of the operation.
On the evening of the following day, the 2nd Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (of 227th Brigade), ignoring the threat to their flanks, dashed to the Tourmaville bridge, which the battalion captured intact.
[MacMillan 2013, p. 78] The battalion had created a small
bridgehead
In military strategy, a bridgehead (or bridge-head) is the strategically important area of ground around the end of a bridge or other place of possible crossing over a body of water which at time of conflict is sought to be defended or taken over ...
, allowing elements of the 11th Armoured Division to pass through and seize Hill 112, beyond the Odon river.
The battalion then captured the Gavrus bridge but immediately came under heavy attack. The "Scottish Corridor", which the Argylls' bridgehead across the river Odon marked the end, and which was now 2,500 yards wide, forced O'Connor, the corps commander, to send in reinforcements to hold it.
The operation, although unsuccessful in its objective of penetrating as far as the Orne, it had drawn in the Germans' armoured reserves.
MacMillan's division was relieved and sent to a more peaceful area, where the division, which had sustained some 2,300 casualties, including 288 killed, began to re-equip and absorb battle casualty replacements.
[MacMillan 2013, p. 80] Despite the very heavy losses, the division was believed by MacMillan's superiors to have performed very well, with Montgomery on 3 July sending him a message stating "I would like to congratulate you personally, and the 15th Division as a whole on the very fine performance put up during the past week's fighting. The Division went into battle for the first time in this war, but it fought with great gallantry and displayed a fine offensive spirit. Scotland can feel pride in the 15th (Scottish) Division and the whole Division can be proud of itself".
Dempsey, the army commander, and O'Connor, MacMillan's corps commander, gave similar praise.
The next two weeks the division supported the 43rd Division during its attempts to capture Hill 112 in
Operation Jupiter, which was followed by its participation in Operation Greenline, part of the
Second Battle of the Odon
The Second Battle of the Odon comprised operations fought by the British Second Army during the Second World War. Attacks took place in mid-July 1944 against Panzergruppe West, as part of the Battle of Normandy. Operations Greenline and Pomegran ...
.
Like Epsom, it again attracted German armour but did not succeed.
After a brief rest the division, on 23 July, transferred to XXX Corps, under Lieutenant-General
Gerard Bucknall
Lieutenant General Gerard Corfield Bucknall, (14 September 1894 – 7 December 1980) was a senior British Army officer who served in both the First and Second World Wars. He is most notable for being the commander of XXX Corps during the Norman ...
, another fellow student at the Staff College in the late 1920s, and saw further very tough action to secure the Bois du Homme as part of
Operation Bluecoat
Operation Bluecoat was a British offensive in the Battle of Normandy, from 30 July until 7 August 1944, during the Second World War. The geographical objectives of the attack, undertaken by VIII Corps and XXX Corps of the British Second Army ...
at the end of July/beginning of August. On 3 August, MacMillan was wounded in the knee by shrapnel and evacuated to England, later Broadstone Hospital, Port Glasgow.
[MacMillan, p. 86] That evening, Lieutenant-General O'Connor, GOC VIII Corps, who greatly admired MacMillan wrote in the following words to his wife: "''Babe'' is slightly wounded. It is a tragedy as he has been the mainstay of this party, and stands out head and shoulders above everyone else. He is one of the best, if not
the best, and commands the best lot out here. This is beyond dispute. I shall miss him as a friend, collaborator and adviser. Most of the success out here has been the result of his initial efforts." Command of the division passed to Brigadier
Colin Barber, formerly commander of the 46th Brigade.
MacMillan was appointed a
Companion of the Order of the Bath for "his excellent example and untiring efforts" during the period following the landings.
Once pronounced fit in November, MacMillan, whose rank of major-general was made temporary on 27 August 1944, became GOC of the
49th (West Riding) Infantry Division
The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division fought in the First World War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During the Second World War, the divis ...
, succeeding Major-General
Evelyn Barker
General Sir Evelyn Hugh Barker (22 May 1894 – 23 November 1983) was a British Army officer who saw service in both the First World War and the Second World War. During the latter, he commanded the 10th Brigade during the Battle of France in ...
, another fellow Staff College student who was promoted to become GOC of VIII Corps in place of O'Connor, who was being sent to India.
Like MacMillan's former command, the 49th Division (nicknamed "The Polar Bears" due to its divisional insignia), with Major
Christopher Welby-Everard
Major general Sir Christopher Earle Welby-Everard (9 August 1909 – 10 May 1996) was a senior British Army officer and the last British commander of the Nigerian Army.
Early life
Christopher Welby-Everard was born on 9 August 1909 in Spaldin ...
(later a lieutenant-general) as its GSO1, was another TA formation, composed of the
56th,
146th and
147th Infantry Brigades and supporting divisional troops. The division, serving as part of
Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds
Lieutenant-General Guy Granville Simonds, (April 23, 1903 – May 15, 1974) was a senior Canadian Army officer who served with distinction during World War II. Acknowledged by many military historians and senior commanders, among them Sir Max Ha ...
's
II Canadian Corps
II Canadian Corps was a corps-level formation that, along with I (British) Corps (August 1, 1944 to April 1, 1945) and I Canadian Corps (April 6, 1943 to November 1943, and April 1, 1945 until the end of hostilities), comprised the First Canad ...
, part of
General
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
Harry Crerar
General Henry Duncan Graham Crerar (28 April 1888 – 1 April 1965) was a senior officer of the Canadian Army who became the country's senior field commander in the Second World War as commander of the First Canadian Army in the campaign in N ...
's
First Canadian Army, was assigned to hold an area known as "the Island", near
Nijmegen in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, against German advances in the aftermath of
Operation Market Garden. Several minor skirmishes took place during the wet and bitterly cold winter. The division had just launched an offensive to drive the Germans out of their remaining positions when MacMillan was ordered to become GOC of the 51st (Highland) Division in place of his friend, Major-General Tom Rennie, who had commanded the 154th Brigade in Sicily when MacMillan commanded the 152nd Brigade. Rennie had been killed by mortar fire during the
crossing of the Rhine on 23 March.
Assuming command the day after, the division, serving as part of Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks's XXX Corps, itself part of Dempsey's British Second Army, was engaged in a number of hard-fought battles as it
moved swiftly north-eastwards into Germany until the German surrender on 8 May 1945 and the
end of World War II in Europe. MacMillan then led his troops in the victory parade in
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven (, , Low German: ''Bremerhoben'') is a city at the seaport of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany.
It forms a semi-enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the Riv ...
on 12 May. He was subsequently made a Grand Officer of the Dutch
Order of Orange-Nassau
The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands.
The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...
for his "exceptional valour, leadership, loyalty and outstanding devotion to duty and great perseverance" during the liberation of the Netherlands. He was also
mentioned in despatches for "gallant and distinguished service" on two occasions, on 9 August 1945 and 4 April 1946.
After the war
As soon as the war ended, MacMillan was ordered to return to the United Kingdom and, handing over the 51st Division to Major-General
James Cassels, was appointed Director of Weapons and Development on the General Staff at the War Office in London. He was also made
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...
of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders on 1 October 1945.
MacMillan was promoted to the acting rank of lieutenant-general on 10 February 1947,
and, three days later, took up his duties as GOC
British Forces in Palestine and Trans-Jordan, replacing Lieutenant-General
Sir Evelyn Barker, who he had succeeded as GOC of the 49th Division in November 1944, and who was then being sent home amid allegations of having had an affair and his
antisemitic order following the
King David Hotel Bombing
The British administrative headquarters for Mandatory Palestine, housed in the southern wing of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, were bombed in a terrorist attack on 22 July 1946 by the militant right-wing Zionist underground organization the ...
in July 1946. While there, MacMillan was promoted to lieutenant-general on 17 November 1947. One unnamed journalist described this as "perhaps the most unpleasant job that has ever fallen to the lot of a British general" but went on to observe that the newly promoted Lieutenant-General MacMillan is "quiet, efficient, yet capable of divine wrath when the need arises: he is a great leader and is both loved and respected by his subordinates."
Just five days after his arrival, the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
was informed that the
British government had decided to place the question of the future of Palestine before the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
. This meant that MacMillan would be the last GOC. It set the stage for the end of the
British Mandate in Palestine in May 1948 and for an increasingly violent struggle between the
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and the
Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
.
The head of the civilian government in Palestine was the
High Commissioner,
Sir Alan Cunningham, while the GOC was responsible for maintaining law and order with a force of over 100,000 troops, an army of more or less the same size as the whole British Army at the beginning of the 21st century. His period in Palestine was marked by increasingly divergent views between the local administration and the British Cabinet in London on the role of the army. MacMillan recognised the increasing futility of trying to keep the peace between two parties committed to war rather than to cohabitation, and the need to prioritise arrangements for the safe, orderly and timely evacuation of all troops and other British residents as well as 270,000 tons of military equipment and stores. He was the target of three assassination attempts by Palestinian Jews, and he was criticised fiercely by Arabs and Jews respectively for his failure to intervene in time to stop the
Deir Yassin
Deir Yassin ( ar, دير ياسين, Dayr Yāsīn) was a Palestinian Arab village of around 600 inhabitants about west of Jerusalem. Deir Yassin declared its neutrality during the 1948 Palestine war between Arabs and Jews. The village was razed ...
massacre and the attack on the
Hadassah convoy.
Following the end of the British Mandate and the
Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel
The Israeli Declaration of Independence, formally the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel ( he, הכרזה על הקמת מדינת ישראל), was proclaimed on 14 May 1948 ( 5 Iyar 5708) by David Ben-Gurion, the Executive ...
(both on 14 May 1948), the pace of British withdrawal increased. MacMillan boarded a naval launch in
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
that would take him to on 30 June 1948, "the last man of the British Forces to leave Palestine".
In January 1949 MacMillan 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 on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...
and appointed GOC-in-C of
Scottish Command
Scottish Command or Army Headquarters Scotland (from 1972) is a command of the British Army.
History Early history
Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793. The Scottish District was comman ...
and
Governor of Edinburgh Castle, where his office was located. This came at a time when the army was adjusting to peacetime conditions.
From 1952 until his retirement from the army in 1955, he served as
Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the City and Garrison of Gibraltar. On 1 January 1954 MacMillan was promoted to the rank of
general
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
.
This was a period of rising tension between
Spain under Franco and Britain over the sovereignty of Gibraltar, which was not eased by the visit in 1954 of the
Queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
and the
Duke of Edinburgh on the last leg of their tour of the
Commonwealth. During this visit, the Queen invested MacMillan on the
Royal Yacht Britannia
Her Majesty's Yacht ''Britannia'', also known as the Royal Yacht ''Britannia'', is the former royal yacht of the British monarchy. She was in service from 1954 until 1997. She was the 83rd such vessel since King Charles II acceded to the th ...
as a
Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO) on 25 May 1954.
Retirement
From 1955 MacMillan lived at
Finlaystone
Finlaystone House is a mansion and estate in the Inverclyde council area and historic county of Renfrewshire. It lies near the southern bank of the Firth of Clyde, beside the village of Langbank, in the west central Lowlands of Scotland.
Finl ...
, his wife's family home on the southern bank of the
River Clyde, near the village of
Langbank
Langbank is a village on the south bank of the River Clyde in Renfrewshire, Scotland. It is 9.3 miles/15 km northwest from Paisley (Renfrewshire) and 3.4 miles/5.5 km east from Port Glasgow (Inverclyde) on the A8.
History
Langbank ev ...
in Scotland. His family, consisting of his wife Marian, daughter Judy and four sons, George,
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
, David and Andrew, had been based here during the Second World War and the Palestine assignment. Apart from doing much, including a lot of manual work, to maintain and improve the house, its garden and the surrounding estate, he immersed himself in Scottish affairs. He continued as Colonel of the A&SH until 1958, and subsequently led a successful campaign to save the regiment from disbandment in 1968. He also served for many years as one of the Commissioners of the
Queen Victoria School
Queen Victoria School (QVS) is a non-selective, co-educational, boarding school predominantly for children of Scottish Servicemen/women (but see full admissions criteria, below) aged 10/11 to 18. It occupies a Scottish Baronial-style building on ...
, Dunblane, of which he had been ex-officio Chairman when GOC Scotland.
Relieved of his military duties, MacMillan was able to devote more time to
Clan MacMillan
Clan MacMillan is a Highland Scottish clan. The Clan was originally located in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands during the 12th century. The clan supported Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence, but later supported ...
matters, arranging gatherings at Finlaystone and frequently visiting Clan members in North America. He was appointed Her Majesty's
Vice-Lieutenant for the
County of Renfrew
Renfrewshire or the County of Renfrew is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It contains the local government council areas of Inverclyde, Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire, as ...
in 1955.
MacMillan also served as Chairman of the
Greenock Harbour Trust and of the Firth of Clyde Drydock at the time of its establishment. He was appointed the first Chairman of the
Cumbernauld
Cumbernauld (; gd, Comar nan Allt, meeting of the streams) is a large town in the historic county of Dunbartonshire and council area of North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is the tenth most-populous locality in Scotland and the most populated t ...
Development Corporation, responsible for building a "
new town" between
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
and
Stirling
Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...
. From 1955 to 1980, he also chaired the executive committee of Erskine Hospital which had been created as a hospital and care home for ex-service men and women in the First World War. Other voluntary work involved him as chairman of the Scottish Police Dependants' Fund and the City of Glasgow Council of Social Service. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in law (
LLD) by the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
in 1969.
MacMillan died in a car accident on 21 January 1986, just two weeks after his eighty-ninth birthday.
He is buried against the north wall in the highly overgrown section of
Newington Cemetery
Newington Cemetery is a cemetery in Edinburgh, Scotland. Technically it lies beyond Newington itself, standing on an awkward elongated kite-shaped site between a railway line and Dalkeith Road, between Prestonfield and Peffermill.
History ...
in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
but a path has been created to his grave.
[As shown in the image of his grave]
References
Bibliography
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*
*
External links
British Army Officers 1939–1945
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{{DEFAULTSORT:MacMillan, Gordon
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