John Swayne

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sir John Swayne
Sir John George des Reaux Swayne.jpg
Lieutenant General Swayne in 1942.
Nickname(s)"Jack"[1]
Born3 July 1890
Warminster, Wiltshire, England
Died16 December 1964 (aged 74)
London, England
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
Years of service1911−1946
RankLieutenant-general
Service number17966
UnitSomerset Light Infantry
Royal Northumberland Fusiliers
Commands held1st Battalion, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers
4th Infantry Division
South-Eastern Command
Chief of the General Staff (India)
Battles/warsWorld War I
World War II
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Commander of the Order of the British Empire

Lieutenant-General Sir John George des Reaux Swayne KCB CBE (3 July 1890 – 16 December 1964) was a senior British Army officer who became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of South-Eastern Command during World War II.

Military career[]

Born the son of William Swayne, the Bishop of Lincoln,[2] Swayne, after being educated at Charterhouse School and the University of Oxford, was commissioned into the Somerset Light Infantry in 1911.[3][4] He served in World War I spending most of it as a prisoner of war.[3]

After the war he was appointed aide-de-camp to the general officer commanding Western Command in India before becoming adjutant of his regiment in 1924.[3] He became a general staff officer at the War Office in 1927 and brigade major for 7th Infantry Brigade in 1929.[3] He was made military assistant to the Chief of the Imperial General Staff in 1930 and chief of staff for the International Force for the Saar Plebiscite in Germany in 1934.[3] He was selected to be Commanding Officer (CO) of the 1st Battalion, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers in 1935 and chief instructor at the Staff College, Camberley in 1937.[3]

He served in World War II, initially as head of the British Military Mission to the French General Headquarters and then as general officer commanding 4th Division from 1941.[3] He was appointed chief of the general staff for Home Forces in 1942 and general officer commanding-in-chief of South Eastern Command in 1942.[3] His final appointment was as chief of the General Staff in India in 1944; he retired in 1946.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ Smart 2005, p. 303.
  2. ^ Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, Armorial Families: a directory of gentlemen of coat of armour - volume 2
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
  4. ^ Smart 2005, p. 302.

Bibliography[]

  • Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.

External links[]

Military offices
Preceded by GOC 4th Infantry Division
1940−1942 		Succeeded by
Preceded by GOC-in-C South-Eastern Command
1942−1944 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief of the General Staff (India)
1944−1946 		Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Colonel of the Somerset Light Infantry
1947−1953 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from ""