- Charles Hamilton Boucher
-
Charles Hamilton Boucher Born 1898 Died 1951 (aged 52 or 53) Allegiance 
United KingdomService/branch British Indian Army Rank Major-General Commands held 10th Indian Infantry Brigade 1942)
17th Indian Infantry Brigade 1944 to 1945))
Indian 4th Infantry Division (1945)
Indian 2nd Airborne Division (1946 to 1947)
Malaya Command (1948 to 1950)Battles/wars Anglo-Soviet invasion of Persia
Western Desert Campaign
Italian CampaignAwards Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1949)[1]
Companion of the Order of the Bath (1945)[2]
Distinguished Service Order (1936)[3]
Bar to the DSO (1945)[4]Major-General Sir Charles Boucher KBE CB DSO and bar (1898–1951) was an officer in the British Indian Army during World War II.
Military career
Boucher was commissioned into the 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) in 1916.[5]
He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1917[6] and subsequently transferred to the 3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles.[3] He was appointed an Instructor at the Staff College, Camberley in 1938.[7]
He served in World War II, initially as a General Staff Officer,[7] before being made a Brigadier on the General Staff of Paiforce in Iraq in 1941.[7]
In 1942 he was appointed Commander of 10th Indian Infantry Brigade in North Africa. Whilst commanding Indian 10th Infantry Brigade he was captured on 6 June 1942 during the fighting in the Knightsbridge Cauldron when his headquarters were overrun. He was held as a POW in Italy[7] until the Italian Armistice with Italy in 1943[7] when he made his way back to the Allied lines in southern Italy.
In February 1944 he assumed command of 17th Infantry Brigade,[7] leading them through the final Battle of Monte Cassino, the advance north of Rome and the fighting on the Gothic Line.
In January 1945 Boucher took command of Indian 4th Infantry Division[7] which had been sent to Greece in November 1944 to help stabilise the country after the Axis withdrawal.
In 1946 he became General Officer Commanding Indian 2nd Airborne Division[7] and in 1948 he became General Officer Commanding Malaya District[7] as well as Major-General Commanding the Brigade of Gurkhas in Malaya.[7] He retired in 1950.[7]
References
- Anon (1946). One More River: The Story of The Eighth Indian Division. Bombay: H.W. Smith, Times of India Press.
- Mackenzie, Compton (1951). Eastern Epic. London: Chatto & Windus. OCLC 1412578.
- "Orders of Battle.com". http://www.ordersofbattle.com/OOBDefault.aspx. Retrieved 28 July 2007.
- Houterman, Hans; Koppes, Jeroen. "World War II unit histories and officers". http://www.unithistories.com/default.asp. Retrieved 28 July 2007.
Footnotes
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 38782. p. 5905. 9 December 1949.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 37386. p. 6055. 11 December 1945.
- ^ a b London Gazette: no. 34282. p. 2978. 8 May 1936.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36928. p. 795. 8 February 1945.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 30017. p. 3512. 13 April 1917.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 30655. p. 5071. 26 April 1918.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Generals.dk
Military offices Preceded by
Ashton WadeGOC Malaya District
1948–1950Succeeded by
Roy UrquhartCategories:- 1898 births
- 1951 deaths
- Indian Army World War II generals
- Indian Army personnel of World War I
- Companions of the Order of the Bath
- Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
- World War II prisoners of war held by Italy
- British prisoners of war
- Companions of the Distinguished Service Order and Bar
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