Gwilym Ivor Thomas
Encyclopedia
General
Sir (Gwilym) Ivor Thomas GCB KBE DSO
MC
(1893–1972) was a British Army
General during World War II
.
in 1912 and served in World War I
.
He was appointed Deputy Director for Recruiting and Organisation at the War Office
in 1939 and then Director of Organisation at the War Office in 1940.
He became General Officer Commanding
43rd (Wessex) Division in 1942 and served in North West Europe
. He was closely involved in Operation Berlin
to rescue 1st Airborne Division once Allied Forces had been overwhelmed at the Battle of Arnhem
in September 1944.
After the War he was appointed GOC I Corps District within British Army of the Rhine
in 1945 and then Administrator for the Polish
Forces under British Command in 1947. He became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Anti-Aircraft Command
in 1948 and Quartermaster-General to the Forces
in 1950; he retired in 1952.
General (United Kingdom)
General is currently the highest peace-time rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. It is subordinate to the Army rank of Field Marshal, has a NATO-code of OF-9, and is a four-star rank....
Sir (Gwilym) Ivor Thomas GCB KBE DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
(1893–1972) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
General during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Military career
Thomas was commissioned into the Royal ArtilleryRoyal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
in 1912 and served in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
He was appointed Deputy Director for Recruiting and Organisation at the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
in 1939 and then Director of Organisation at the War Office in 1940.
He became General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
43rd (Wessex) Division in 1942 and served in North West Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He was closely involved in Operation Berlin
Operation Berlin (Arnhem rescue)
Operation Berlin was a night-time evacuation of paratroopers of the British 1st Airborne Division trapped in German occupied territory north of the Lower Rhine in the Netherlands. The aim of the operation was to safely withdraw the remnants of the division who were surrounded on three sides by...
to rescue 1st Airborne Division once Allied Forces had been overwhelmed at the Battle of Arnhem
Battle of Arnhem
The Battle of Arnhem was a famous Second World War military engagement fought in and around the Dutch towns of Arnhem, Oosterbeek, Wolfheze, Driel and the surrounding countryside from 17–26 September 1944....
in September 1944.
After the War he was appointed GOC I Corps District within British Army of the Rhine
British Army of the Rhine
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine . Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.-1919–1929:...
in 1945 and then Administrator for the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Forces under British Command in 1947. He became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Anti-Aircraft Command
Anti-Aircraft Command
Anti-Aircraft Command was a British Army command of the Second World War that controlled the anti-aircraft artillery units of the British Isles.-History:...
in 1948 and Quartermaster-General to the Forces
Quartermaster-General to the Forces
In the United Kingdom, the Quartermaster-General to the Forces is a senior general in the British Army.From 1904 the Quartermaster-General to the Forces was the Third Military Member of the Army Board.-Responsibilities:...
in 1950; he retired in 1952.