George Erskine

Sir George Erskine
George "Bobby" Erskine
Nickname(s)	Bobby
Born	23 August 1899
Died	29 August 1965 (aged 66)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service / branch	British Army
Rank	General
Unit	King's Royal Rifle Corps
Commands	2nd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps 7th Armoured Division 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong British Troops in Egypt Eastern Command East Africa Command Southern Command
Battles / wars	World War I World War II Mau Mau Uprising
Awards	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Distinguished Service Order

General Sir George Watkin Eben James Erskine GCB KBE DSO (23 August 1899–29 August 1965) was a senior British Army officer who commanded the 7th Armoured Division during World War II.

Background

Erskine was the son of Major General George Elphinstone Erskine by his second wife Eva Constance Sarah, daughter of Canon Ebenezer Wood Edwards. He was a descendant of the noted 18th-century jurist John Erskine of Carnock.

Military career

Erskine was commissioned into the King's Royal Rifle Corps. He served during the First World War in France and Belgium. During the 1930s he served in India but returned to Britain in 1937 to become Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General at Eastern Command. In 1939 he became a General Staff Officer for 1st London Division of the Territorial Army. In 1941 he was appointed Commander of 2nd Bn King's Royal Rifle Corps who were then part of 69th Infantry Brigade and deployed to North Africa, where he earned his Distinguished Service Order in 1942. He was then appointed General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7th Armoured Division and served in North Africa, Italy and Normandy between 1943 and 1944.

During the Battle of Normandy, however, Second Army commander Miles Dempsey was unimpressed with 7th Armoured Division's performance and VIII Corps commander, Richard O'Connor, considered his direction of the division during Operation Goodwood as excessively cautious. Shortly afterwards, in the difficult bocage country during Operation Bluecoat, the division failed to gain its objectives and Erskine was replaced. In spite of his indifferent performance as a field commander Erskine had qualities which suited him to other roles so that this episode proved only a temporary setback to his career. He became Head of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Mission to Belgium in 1944 and then GOC 43rd Wessex Division in 1945.

After the war Erskine was Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong in 1946, Director General of the Territorial Army in 1948 to 1949 and GOC British Troops in Egypt in 1949. Returning to the United Kingdom, he became GOC-in-Chief, Eastern Command in 1952. In 1953 he was appointed GOC-in-Chief, East Africa Command where he was responsible for managing the response to the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya and led Operation Anvil in Nairobi in April 1954. He was GOC-in-Chief, Southern Command from 1955 to 1958 when he retired. He was an Aide-de-Camp General to the Queen from 1955 to 1965.

Erskine was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1950, a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in 1952 and a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in 1955. From 1958 to 1963 he was Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Jersey.

Family

Erskine married Ruby de la Rue, daughter of Sir Evelyn de la Rue, 2nd Baronet, in 1930. They had two sons and one daughter.

See also

• Chuka massacre

References

• Mead, Richard (2007). Churchill's Lions: A biographical guide to the key British generals of World War II. Stroud (UK): Spellmount. ISBN 978-1-86227-431-0.

External links

• Portraits of Sir George Watkin Eben James Erskine at the National Portrait Gallery, London