Brigadier General

Brigadier General

Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

 Herbert Cecil Duncan OBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 (19 August 1895 – 16 January 1942) commanded the 45th Indian Infantry Brigade during the Battle of Malaya

Battle of Malaya

The Malayan Campaign was a campaign fought by Allied and Japanese forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 31 January 1942 during the Second World War. The campaign was dominated by land battles between British Commonwealth army units, and the Imperial Japanese Army...

. Duncan was killed whilst mounting a counter-attack on the Japanese during the retreat from the Muar River (see Battle of Muar

Battle of Muar

The Battle of Muar was the last major battle of the Malayan campaign. It took place from 14–22 January 1942 around Gemensah Bridge and on the Muar River...

). Brig. Gen. Duncan is buried in the Commonwealth War Cemetery at Kranji in Singapore.

Commissioned a Temporary 2nd Lieutenant in 1914, he got his permanent commission in the Indian Army

British Indian Army

The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...

 as a Lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 in 1918. 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...

 service earned him a Mention in Despatches. Having the 13th Frontier Force Rifles

13th Frontier Force Rifles

The 13th Frontier Force Rifles was part of the British Indian Army, and after 1947, Pakistan Army. It was formed in 1922 by amalgamation of five existing regiments and consisted of five regular battalions.-History:...

 as his maternal unit, he eventually served from 1931 onwards as a General Staff Officer in various gradations. He took command of the 45th Indian Infantry Brigade

45th Indian Infantry Brigade

The 45th Indian Infantry Brigade was an Infantry formation of the Indian Army during World War II. The brigade was formed in June 1941, at Ahmednagar in India and assigned to the 17th Indian Infantry Division. It was transferred to Malaya Command in January 1942 where it was virtually destroyed in...

in 1941.