Robert Hinde (British Army officer)
Sir William Hinde | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | "Looney" |
Born | Cupar, Fife, Scotland | 25 June 1900
Died | 13 July 1981 Salisbury, Wiltshire, England | (aged 81)
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service | British Army |
Years of service | 1919–1958 |
Rank | Major General |
Service number | 10830 |
Unit | 15th Hussars 15th/19th Hussars |
Commands | 22nd Armoured Brigade (1943–44) 20th Armoured Brigade (1942) 15th/19th Hussars (1940–42) |
Battles / wars | Second World War Mau Mau Uprising |
Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order & Two Bars |
Spouse(s) | Evelyn Muriel Wright |
Major General Sir William Robert Norris "Looney" Hinde, KBE, CB, DSO & Two Bars (25 June 1900 – 13 July 1981) was a senior British Army officer who served in the Second World War and in the Mau Mau Uprising in colonial Kenya.[1]
Biography
[edit]Hinde was born in Cupar, Fife, and was educated at Wellington College,[2] before training as a "Gentlemen Cadet" at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 15th Hussars on 16 July 1919,[3] and promoted to lieutenant in the combined 15th/19th Hussars on 16 July 1921.[4]
Hinde was a keen polo player and was selected as a member of the British polo team to compete in the 1936 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal. He played both matches in the tournament, the first against Mexico and the final against Argentina.[2]
He was promoted to captain, and then on 10 January 1938 to major.[5] From 1940 to 1942 he served as commander of the 15th/19th Hussars,[6] receiving promotion to lieutenant colonel on 10 January 1941.[7]
From 26 August 1942 until 7 December 1942 he commanded the 20th Armoured Brigade,[6][8]: 283 with the temporary rank of brigadier, and then from 23 January 1943 to 7 August 1944 was commander of the 22nd Armoured Brigade, seeing active service in North Africa, Italy and North-West Europe; particularly in Normandy and in the Battle of Villers-Bocage.[6][8]: 284 On 27 May 1944 he was promoted to the substantive rank of colonel, with seniority from 10 January.[9]
From 1945 to 1948 he was Deputy Military Governor of the British Sector of Berlin.[6] He was promoted to brigadier on 12 October 1948,[10] and from October 1948 to July 1949 was Deputy Commander of the North-West District.[8]: 228 He returned to Germany to serve as Deputy Commanding Officer, Lower Saxony, from 1949 to 1951.[6] Hinde was appointed an Aide-de-Camp to the King on 24 November 1950.[11] From 1952 to 1953 he served as District Officer Commanding Cyrenaica District, North Africa.[6]
In January 1953, Hinde was appointed Director of Operations, Kenya,[12] with the temporary rank of major-general,[13] to lead an offensive against the Mau Mau rebels.[6][14] He relinquished his appointment on 31 March 1956,[15] and his temporary rank on 18 June 1956.[16]
On 1 January 1957 Hinde was appointed Colonel of the 15/19th Hussars.[17] On 11 April 1957 he retired from active duty, with the honorary rank of major-general,[18] and serving in the Army Reserve of Officers until reaching mandatory retirement age on 25 June 1958.[19] He continued to serve as Colonel of the 15th/19th Hussars until 1 January 1964.[20]
Awards and decorations
[edit]Olympic medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Men's polo | ||
1936 Berlin | Team competition |
- Distinguished Service Order and two bars
On 22 July 1943 he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the Middle East",[21][22] and on 19 August 1943 received a Bar to his DSO.[23][24] On 14 February 1946 "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the field" he received a second Bar.[25]
In the King's Birthday Honours of 10 June 1948, Hinde was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE),[26] and in the Queen's Birthday Honours of 31 May 1956, he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE).[27]
On 19 July 1955 he was appointed a Companion of the Bath (CB) "in recognition of distinguished service in Kenya during the period 21st October 1954, to 20th April 1955".[28]
On 1 January 1955 he received a mention in despatches "in recognition of distinguished services in Kenya during the period 21st April to 20th October 1954."[29]
Personal life
[edit]He married Evelyn Muriel Wright, daughter of Captain Henry FitzHerbert Wright and Muriel Harriet Fletcher on 22 July 1926. The couple had one son, William (Bill), and three daughters, Elizabeth, Cathryn and Victoria.[1] Hinde's nickname "Looney" was a tribute to both his courage and eccentricity; on one occasion while briefing his senior officers in Normandy in mid-June 1944 he was distracted by a rare caterpillar, which he promptly collected.[30] In May 1947 he was detained by a Russian patrol while wandering along the border of the British and Soviet sectors of Berlin with a pair of binoculars. After explaining that he was simply birdwatching he was released with an apology.[31] Hinde died on 13 July 1981, aged 81, at Salisbury, Wiltshire.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage. Vol. 2 (107th ed.). Wilmington, Delaware: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd. p. 1592. Retrieved 16 January 2015 – via Peerage.com.
- ^ a b c "William Robert Norris Hinde". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "No. 31505". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 12 August 1919. p. 10342.
- ^ "No. 32736". The London Gazette. 8 August 1922. p. 5865.
- ^ "No. 34473". The London Gazette. 14 January 1938. p. 290.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Hinde, Sir William Robert Norris". Generals.dk. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "No. 35129". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 4 April 1941. p. 2028.
- ^ a b c Mackie, Colin. "Senior Army Appointments" (PDF). Gulabin.com. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "No. 36600". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 7 July 1944. p. 3225.
- ^ "No. 38486". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 21 December 1948. p. 6657.
- ^ "No. 39074". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 24 November 1950. p. 5877.
- ^ Smith, Jamie. "British Military Strategy in Kenya". Britain's Small Wars. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "No. 39789". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 27 February 1953. p. 1221.
- ^ Boddy-Evans, Alistair. "Mau Mau Rebellion Timeline: 1951–1963". ThoughtCo. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "No. 40763". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 24 April 1956. p. 2455.
- ^ "No. 40811". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 19 June 1956. p. 3649.
- ^ "No. 40965". The London Gazette (6th supplement). 28 December 1956. p. 77.
- ^ "No. 41079". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 24 May 1957. p. 3157.
- ^ "No. 41432". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 27 June 1958. p. 4127.
- ^ "No. 43209". The London Gazette (10th supplement). 31 December 1963. p. 73.
- ^ "No. 36102". The London Gazette. 20 July 1943. p. 3313.
- ^ "Recommendation for Award for Hinde, William Robert Morris". National Archives. 1943. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "No. 36138". The London Gazette. 17 August 1943. p. 3721.
- ^ "Recommendation for Award for Hinde, William Robert Norris". National Archives. 1943. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ "No. 37466". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 12 February 1946. p. 947.
- ^ "No. 38311". The London Gazette. 4 June 1948. p. 3370.
- ^ "No. 40787". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 25 May 1956. p. 3107.
- ^ "No. 40538". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 15 July 1955. p. 4153.
- ^ "No. 40372". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 December 1954. p. 54.
- ^ Hastings, Max (2010) [1984]. Overlord: D-Day and the Battle for Normandy 1944. London, UK: Pan Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-44728-873-2.
- ^ Christopher Mayhew, Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (19 May 1947). "Brigadier W. R. N. Hinde (Arrest and Release)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Commons. col. 1983–1984.
External links
[edit]- "William Hinde". DatabaseOlympics. Archived from the original on 10 February 2007.
- Keystone Press Agency. "Major-General Sir William Robert Norris Hinde, 24 April 1953". Getty Images.
- Generals of World War II
- 1900 births
- 1981 deaths
- Military personnel from Fife
- People from Cupar
- People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire
- Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
- British polo players
- Olympic polo players for Great Britain
- Polo players at the 1936 Summer Olympics
- Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain
- Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics
- Scottish Olympic competitors
- English Olympic competitors
- 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars officers
- British Army major generals
- British Army brigadiers of World War II
- British military personnel of the Mau Mau Uprising
- Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
- Companions of the Order of the Bath
- Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
- Olympic medalists in polo