Harry Grimshaw

Major-General Ewing Henry Wrigley Grimshaw CB CBE DSO (30 June 1911 – 1 November 2007) was a senior British Indian Army and British Army officer who fought in World War II and the Cold War.

For the jockey, see Harry Grimshaw (jockey).
Harry Grimshaw
Born(1911-06-30)30 June 1911
India
Died1 November 2007(2007-11-01) (aged 96)
Amesbury Abbey
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch British Indian Army
 British Army
Years of service1931–1965
RankMajor-General
Unit1st Punjab Regiment
Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
Commands held1st Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment
1st Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
161st Indian Infantry Brigade
19th Infantry Brigade
44th (Home Counties) Division
Battles/warsWorld War II
Battle of Kohima
Malayan Emergency
Mau Mau uprising
Suez Crisis
AwardsCompanion of the Order of the Bath, Distinguished Service Order, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, Mentioned in dispatches

Early life

Grimshaw was born in India, the son of an army officer.[1] He was educated at Brighton College before attending the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.[2]

Military career

On 29 January 1931 he commissioned into the 1st Punjab Regiment, garrisoned in India.[3] He first saw active service in the Waziristan campaign (1936–39) and against terrorists in Bengal. In 1939 Grimshaw was serving with the 1st Battalion, 1st Punjab Regiment, and was posted with it to Iraq and Libya. He fought in the Western Desert Campaign, during which he was mentioned in dispatches, before his unit was transferred to Burma in early 1943.[4]

By April 1944 Grimshaw was commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the 1st Punjab Regiment. On 18 April 1944 he was one of the first soldiers to enter Kohima Garrison breaking the siege during the Battle of Kohima. [5] He was mentioned in dispatches for a second time during the Burma Campaign. In March 1945 he was promoted to brigadier and took command of the 161st Indian Infantry Brigade, holding the position for a year. In June 1945 he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for services in Burma.[6][7]

In October 1947 Grimshaw transferred to the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, and in 1948 he served with the regiment during the early stages of the Malayan Emergency. In 1952 he commanded the 1st Battalion of the regiment in the Canal Zone before leading the battalion during operations in the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya. At the conclusion of this tour, his battalion was awarded the Freedom of Nairobi, and as Commanding Officer he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.[8]

Grimshaw's next posting was to HQ Northern Ireland as Chief of Staff, but this posting was shortened by his appointment to command 19 Infantry Brigade at four days notice. Grimshaw was deployed with the brigade to Egypt during the Suez Crisis of 1956, and he was the last British soldier to leave Port Said, having handed over to the United Nations Force Commander.[9] In 1957 he was advanced to CBE.[10] Grimshaw commanded the brigade in Cyprus in operations against EOKA in 1958. This was followed by a staff appointment in the War Office, after which he was promoted to major general. His final commanded was of the 44th (Home Counties) Division in 1962, which carried with it the appointment of Deputy Constable of Dover Castle. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1965, when he retired.[11]

Appointed on 1 September,[12] between 1966 and 1968 he was Colonel of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers.[13]

Personal life

In 1943 he married Hilda Allison, who died in 1993. They had two sons and a daughter; his elder son, Colonel Ewing Grimshaw, died in 1996.[14]

References
  1. "Major-General Harry Grimshaw". The Telegraph. London. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  2. 'Grimshaw, Ewing Henry Wrigley 'Harry in Indian Army Officers 1939–1945 at unithistories.com. Retrieved 19 August 2015
  3. "No. 33685". The London Gazette. 30 January 1931. p. 676.
  4. 'Grimshaw, Ewing Henry Wrigley 'Harry in Indian Army Officers 1939–1945 at unithistories.com. Retrieved 19 August 2015
  5. Edwards, Leslie (2009), Kohima: The Furthest Battle - The Story of the Japanese Invasion of India in 1944 and the Battle of Kohima, Stroud: The History Press, p. 191, ISBN 978-1-86227-488-4
  6. "No. 37151". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1945. p. 3381.
  7. 'Grimshaw, Ewing Henry Wrigley 'Harry in Indian Army Officers 1939–1945 at unithistories.com. Retrieved 19 August 2015
  8. 'Grimshaw, Ewing Henry Wrigley 'Harry in Indian Army Officers 1939–1945 at unithistories.com. Retrieved 19 August 2015
  9. "Major-General Harry Grimshaw". The Telegraph. London. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  10. "No. 41092". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 June 1957. p. 3416.
  11. "No. 44103". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 September 1966. p. 9750.
  12. "No. 44103". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 September 1966. p. 9750.
  13. 'Grimshaw, Ewing Henry Wrigley 'Harry in Indian Army Officers 1939–1945 at unithistories.com. Retrieved 19 August 2015
  14. "Major-General Harry Grimshaw". The Telegraph. London. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
Military offices
Preceded by
Paul Gleadell		 GOC 44th (Home Counties) Division
1962–1965		 Succeeded by
Brian Wyldbore-Smith
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