C/O Sir Desmond Fitzpatrick

I'm sure many of you will remember Sir Desmond Fitzpatrick who was our C/O. I came across this obituary in the Daily Telegraph recently and thought you might like to know. It was dated 18 Oct 2002.

General Sir Desmond Fitzpatrick, who has died aged 89, was that rare combination, an outstanding front-line commander and a highly successful staff officer; after winning an MC in Palestine in 1939 and a DSO in Germany during the Second World War he became C-in-C, BAOR, and Commander, Northern Army Group, in 1968. In April 1945, the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars, equipped with Grant tanks and scout cars, were ordered to capture Tostedt and advance north to cut the Hamburg-Bremen autobahn. The town was defended by infantry armed with bazookas, anti-tank and self-propelled guns, and there was at least one Tiger tank in the area. The obvious approaches to the town were blocked by demolitions, and alternative routes were extremely difficult for the tanks. Fitzpatrick, the commanding officer, made several reconnaissance missions, in person, under heavy fire, and by the time the daylight failed the 8th Hussars had driven back the enemy and captured the town. With the assistance of an infantry battalion, Fitzpatrick mopped up the remaining resistance during the night and consolidated his position. The next morning, on arrival at the autobahn near Hollenstedt, the regiment came under fire from 88 mm guns and took a number of casualties. By skilful manoeuvring, Fitzpatrick by-passed the opposition at Hollenstedt and pushed down the autobahn towards Hamburg, destroying eight 88s on the way. Halting only for nightfall, Fitzpatrick drove relentlessly on towards the river Elbe. After a stiff action in which many infantry positions and anti-tank guns were overrun and 200 of the enemy taken prisoner or killed, he finally reached the river. The 8th Hussars subsequently captured the concentration camps at Belsen and Fallingbostel, and liberated thousands of Allied prisoners of war and internees. Fitzpatrick's leadership was recognised by an immediate DSO.

Geoffrey Richard Desmond Fitzpatrick was born at Ashvale, Aldershot, on December 14 1912, the son of Brigadier-General Sir Richard Fitzpatrick, DSO. He was educated at Eton and RMC Sandhurst before being commissioned into the Royal Dragoons (1st Dragoons) in 1932. The regiment was ordered to Palestine in 1938, and Fitzpatrick won his MC in operations against Arab terrorists. In 1940, the regiment was mechanised and Fitzpatrick, then adjutant, moved with his unit to Syria in 1941 to take part in operations against the Vichy French. Fitzpatrick saw action in the Western Desert, where the Royals were equipped with armoured cars and deployed as a reconnaissance regiment. He attended Staff College at Haifa, and in June 1942 was appointed brigade major of 2nd Armoured Brigade, playing a key role in the planning for the battle of Alamein. It was entirely due to his work over many weeks that the brigade's move forward to the assembly area, and subsequently to battle, on the nights of October 23 and November 1, went without a hitch. During the battle, Fitzpatrick was constantly at Tactical HQ and often under heavy fire. As a result of his efforts much valuable information was passed back which enabled divisional, corps and army commanders to make plans that led to the Germans' defeat. He was appointed MBE. After a spell as GSO1 at 1st US Corps and a period at the War Office, Fitzpatrick re-joined the Royals at Hilvarenbeek in Holland in October 1944 to take command of A Squadron. The town was the centre of a salient into the enemy positions, and its tall church tower was a valuable observation point. The verger was resigned to most of the problems associated with the church's position on the front line, but he called on Fitzpatrick to remonstrate about the gunners attached to the squadron, who were doing their ranging during his choir practice. The Germans regretted the capture of the church tower and attacked A Squadron's positions every night. Fitzpatrick decided that the only way to keep them quiet was to be aggressive throughout the day. In one of several successful sorties, he dismounted part of his squadron and led his men in an infantry attack. Early in 1945, Fitzpatrick was posted to command the 8th Hussars, joining the unit in Holland and finishing the war at Hamburg. After a number of staff appointments, he went to Camberley as an instructor, before taking command of the Royals in the Canal Zone in 1951. Six years later, he was appointed Chief of Staff 1st (British) Corps in BAOR and, in 1959, he was selected by Lord Mountbatten to become Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff at the Ministry of Defence, during the formation of the unified MoD and the Defence Staff. An appointment as Director of Military Operations at the War Office followed in 1962.

Fitzpatrick's colleagues at the time credit him with the possession of a photographic memory; however complex his brief, once assimilated, he could recall it at will. In successive years, from 1964, he was made Chief of Staff BAOR, GOC-in-Chief Northern Ireland and Vice Chief of the General Staff. On his promotion to general in 1968, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief BAOR and Commander Northern Army Group. In 1970, his final Army appointment was Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe. After retiring from the Army in 1973, Fitzpatrick was appointed Lieutenant-Governor and commander-in-chief of Jersey where he made many friends during his five-year tour of duty and became a highly proficient sailor. Retiring to Suffolk, Fitzpatrick devoted many hours to regimental work, but found time to enjoy fishing and shooting. A perfectionist in everything he did, his somewhat formidable presence was lightened by a sardonic sense of humour. In 1969, when the Royal Horse Guards and the Royal Dragoons were amalgamated to form the Blues and Royals, Fitzpatrick, as Colonel of the Royal Dragoons, handled the many problems involved. He was appointed ADC to the Queen in 1959. He was Colonel of The Royal Dragoons (1964-69), ADC General to the Queen (1970-73), Colonel Commandant, RAC (1971-74), Colonel of the Blues and Royals and Gold Stick in Waiting to the Queen (1979-98). He was appointed KCB in 1965, GCB in 1971 and GCVO in 1997.

Desmond Fitzpatrick died on October 12. Mary Sara Campbell whom he married in 1944, died in 1996. He married secondly, in 1998, Lettice Errington (nee Stafford-King-Harman), the widow of Major George Errington. She survives him together with a son and a daughter of his first marriage.

re: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1410496/General-Sir-Desmond-Fitzpatrick.html