Peter Young (British Army officer)
Encyclopedia
Major General
Peter George Francis Young CB CBE (15 July 1912–4 November 1976) was a senior British Army
officer who was General Officer Commanding
Cyprus
District from 1962 to 1964.
in 1932. He served with the Royal West African Frontier Force
from 1935 to 1939. During the Second World War he served with Airborne Forces in the UK, Italy and India. He was a General Staff Officer Grade 2 (Airborne) between 1944 and 1945.
He was Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster General, Divisional Headquarters between 1947 and 1948. He was an Instructor at the Staff College, Camberley from 1948 to 1950. He was a General Staff Officer Grade 1 in Operations and Training, Allied Land Forces Central Europe between 1951 and 1952. Young commanded the 1st Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
43rd and 52nd in the Suez Canal Zone and at Osnabrück
from 1952 to 1955. The Regimental Sergeant Major was RSM, later Major John Stevenson MBE DCM. He commanded 44 Parachute Brigade TA from 1955 to 1958. He commanded 1st Bde Royal Nigeria Regiment from 1958 to 1961. He served at the War Office between 1961 and 1962. He was promoted to Major General in 1962. Young was GOC Cyprus District from 1962 to 1964. At the original ceasefire in 1964 Young drew a line on a map with a blunt green chinagraph pencil identifying the truce line between the Greek and Turkish communities. It became known internationally as the Green Line. He was Director of Infantry at the Ministry of Defence from 1965 to 1967. He retired from the Army in 1968.
in 1949.
, Wiltshire
.
Major-General (United Kingdom)
Major general is a senior rank in the British Army. Since 1996 the highest position within the Royal Marines is the Commandant General Royal Marines who holds the rank of major general...
Peter George Francis Young CB CBE (15 July 1912–4 November 1976) was a senior 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...
officer who was 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...
Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
District from 1962 to 1964.
Military career
Upon completion of training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Young was commissioned into the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light InfantryOxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Army.The regiment was formed as a consequence of Childers reforms, a continuation of the Cardwell reforms, by the amalgamation of the 43rd Regiment of Foot and the 52nd Regiment of Foot , forming the 1st...
in 1932. He served with the Royal West African Frontier Force
Royal West African Frontier Force
The West African Frontier Force was a multi-battalion field force, formed by the British Colonial Office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia. The decision to raise this force was taken in 1897 because of concern at French colonial...
from 1935 to 1939. During the Second World War he served with Airborne Forces in the UK, Italy and India. He was a General Staff Officer Grade 2 (Airborne) between 1944 and 1945.
He was Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster General, Divisional Headquarters between 1947 and 1948. He was an Instructor at the Staff College, Camberley from 1948 to 1950. He was a General Staff Officer Grade 1 in Operations and Training, Allied Land Forces Central Europe between 1951 and 1952. Young commanded the 1st Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Army.The regiment was formed as a consequence of Childers reforms, a continuation of the Cardwell reforms, by the amalgamation of the 43rd Regiment of Foot and the 52nd Regiment of Foot , forming the 1st...
43rd and 52nd in the Suez Canal Zone and at Osnabrück
Osnabrück
Osnabrück is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, some 80 km NNE of Dortmund, 45 km NE of Münster, and some 100 km due west of Hanover. It lies in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest...
from 1952 to 1955. The Regimental Sergeant Major was RSM, later Major John Stevenson MBE DCM. He commanded 44 Parachute Brigade TA from 1955 to 1958. He commanded 1st Bde Royal Nigeria Regiment from 1958 to 1961. He served at the War Office between 1961 and 1962. He was promoted to Major General in 1962. Young was GOC Cyprus District from 1962 to 1964. At the original ceasefire in 1964 Young drew a line on a map with a blunt green chinagraph pencil identifying the truce line between the Greek and Turkish communities. It became known internationally as the Green Line. He was Director of Infantry at the Ministry of Defence from 1965 to 1967. He retired from the Army in 1968.
Decorations and awards
He was appointed CB in 1965, CBE in 1958 and OBEOrder 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...
in 1949.
Personal life
He married Patricia FitzGerald in 1949 and had two children, Susan Elizabeth (1951) and James Peter Gerald (1954). He lived in PewseyPewsey
Pewsey is a large village, often considered a small town, at the centre of the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire about west of London. It is well connected to London, the West Country and Wales being close to the M4 motorway and the A303. Also, the village is served by Pewsey railway station on the...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
.