Roderic Petre
Roderic Petre | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 November 1887 Indore, British India |
| Died | 21 July 1971 (aged 83) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army |
| Years of service | 1908–1944 |
| Rank | Major-General |
| Service number | 4150 |
| Unit | South Wales Borderers Dorsetshire Regiment |
| Commands held | 2nd Battalion, Dorset Regiment Senior Officers' School, Sheerness 12th (Eastern) Infantry Division 48th (South Midland) Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | First World War Second World War |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Order Military Cross |
Major-General Roderic Loraine Petre DSO, MC (28 November 1887 – 21 July 1971) was a senior British Army officer.
Military career[]
Born the son of Francis Loraine Petre and Maud Ellen Rawlinson, Petre attended Downside School near Midsomer Norton and Stratton-on-the-Fosse,[1] where he sang treble in the boys choir.[2] He served in the South Wales Borderers in the Gallipoli campaign of the First World War,[3] and was awarded the Military Cross.[4] He was also appointed a companion of the Distinguished Service Order for his service in Mesopotamia.[5]
Petre became commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion the Dorset Regiment in 1932.[6] He went on to be Commandant of the Senior Officers' School in May 1938 and General Officer Commanding 12th (Eastern) Infantry Division in France in October 1939 at the beginning of the Second World War.[6] In April 1940 the division landed in France and in May 1940 he took command of 'Petreforce', a grouping of the 12th (Eastern) Infantry Division, the 23rd (Northumbrian) Division, and other nearby units formed to defend allied positions near Arras. In the fighting the "12th and 23rd Divisions ... had practically ceased to exist" as a result of the fighting that saw the "whole tract of country between the Scarpe and the Somme" fall into German hands.[7]
After being evacuated through Dunkirk, Petre then became General Officer Commanding 48th (South Midland) Division in June 1940 and initiated training to repel Operation Sea Lion, the German invasion of England, which proved abortive, remaining in that role until October 1941.[6] He retired in 1944.[6]
References[]
- ^ Francis Philip Whiteside. Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901. Kew, Surrey, England: The National Archives, 1901
- ^ St. Gregory's School (Downside, England). Downside Review. 1902, vol. 22, p. 312.
- ^ Army Medal Office.WWI Medal Index Cards. British Army WWI Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914–1920 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry Operations Inc, 2008. Accessed 27 June 2010.
- ^ "No. 29460". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 February 1916. p. 1337.
- ^ "No. 30252". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 August 1917. p. 8854.
- ^ a b c d "Petre, Roderic Loraine". Generals.dk. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ^ Ellis, Lionel F. (1954). Butler, J. R. M. (ed.). The War in France and Flanders 1939–1940. History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. p. 65-81. OCLC 1087882503.
Bibliography[]
- Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.
External links[]
- 1887 births
- 1971 deaths
- Dorset Regiment officers
- Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
- Recipients of the Military Cross
- People educated at Downside School
- British Army generals of World War II
- Petre family
- People from Indore
- Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley
- Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
- South Wales Borderers officers
- British Army generals
- Military personnel of British India
- British Army personnel of World War I
- Commandants of the Senior Officers' School, Sheerness