Bernard Freyberg, 1st Baron Freyberg
Lord Temporal | |
---|---|
In office 19 October 1951 – 4 July 1963 | |
Preceded by | Peerage created |
Succeeded by | The 2nd Lord Freyberg |
Personal details | |
Born | Second World War
| 21 March 1889
Awards | War Cross (Greece)[9] |
Freyberg served as an officer in the
During the
In Italy, he was defeated again at the
Early life
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Bernard_Freyberg_diving_board.jpg/200px-Bernard_Freyberg_diving_board.jpg)
The Freyberg Pool
The youngest of five children, all boys, Freyberg was born at 8 Dynevor Road,
He attended
On 22 May 1911, Freyberg gained formal registration as a dentist. He worked as an assistant dentist in
Freyberg left New Zealand in March 1914. A 1942 Life magazine article claims that Freyberg went to San Francisco and Mexico around this time, and was a captain under Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution.[18]
Upon hearing of the outbreak of the
First World War
Immediately on the outbreak of the First World War Freyberg went to England and volunteered for service. G. S. Richardson arranged for him to join the 7th "Hood" Battalion of the Royal Naval Brigade, and he was on the Belgian front in September 1914. In late 1914 Freyberg met
In April 1915 Freyberg became involved in the
Victoria Cross
In May 1916 Freyberg was transferred to the British Army as a captain in the Queen's (Royal West Surrey) Regiment.[20] However, he remained with the 'Hood' Battalion as a seconded temporary major[20] and went with them to France.[21]
During the final stages of the Battle of the Somme, when commanding a battalion as a temporary lieutenant-colonel, he so distinguished himself in the capture of Beaucourt village that he was awarded the Victoria Cross (VC).[22][19] On 13 November 1916[23] at Beaucourt-sur-Ancre, France, after Freyberg's battalion had carried the initial attack through the enemy's front system of trenches, he rallied and re-formed his own much disorganised men and some others, and led them on a successful assault of the second objective, during which he suffered two wounds, but remained in command and held his ground throughout the day and the following night. When reinforced the next morning, he attacked and captured a strongly fortified village, taking 500 prisoners. Although wounded twice more, the second time severely, Freyberg refused to leave the line until he had issued final instructions. The full citation for the award, published in The London Gazette in December 1916,[22] describes the events as follows:
For most conspicuous bravery and brilliant leading as a Battalion Commander.
By his splendid personal gallantry he carried the initial attack straight through the enemy's front system of trenches. Owing to mist and heavy fire of all descriptions, Lieutenant-Colonel Freyberg's command was much disorganised after the capture of the first objective. He personally rallied and re-formed his men, including men from other units who had become intermixed.
He inspired all with his own contempt of danger. At the appointed time he led his men to the successful assault of the second objective--many prisoners being captured.
During this advance he was twice wounded. He again rallied and re-formed all who were with him, and although unsupported in a very advanced position, he held his ground for the remainder of the day, and throughout the night, under heavy artillery and machine gun fire. When reinforced on the following morning, he organised the attack on a strongly fortified village and showed a fine example of dash in personally leading the assault, capturing the village and five hundred prisoners. In this operation he was again wounded.
Later in the afternoon, he was again wounded severely, but refused to leave the line till he had issued final instructions.
The personality, valour and utter contempt of danger on the part of this single Officer enabled the lodgment in the most advanced objective of the Corps to be permanently held, and on this point d'appui the line was eventually formed.[22][24]
During his time on the Western Front Freyberg continued to lead by example. His bold leadership had a cost: Freyberg received nine wounds during his service in France, and men who served with him later in his career said hardly a part of his body did not have scars.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/bb/1919_Bernard_Freyberg.jpg/200px-1919_Bernard_Freyberg.jpg)
Freyberg gained promotion to the rank of temporary
Freyberg ended the war by leading a cavalry squadron detached from
Interbellum
Early in 1919 Freyberg was granted a Regular Army commission in the Grenadier Guards and settled into peacetime soldiering, as well as attempts to swim the English Channel.[19] He attended the Staff College, Camberley from 1920 to 1921.[30] From 1921 to 1925 he was a staff officer in the headquarters of the 44th (Home Counties) Division.[30] He suffered health problems arising from his many wounds, and as part of his convalescence he visited New Zealand in 1921.
On 14 June 1922 he married
In the general election of 1922 he stood unsuccessfully (coming second) as a Liberal candidate for Cardiff South.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist
|
Sir James Herbert Cory
|
7,929 | 36.4 | -12.0 | |
Liberal | Bernard Cyril Freyberg | 6,996 | 32.2 | +7.0 | |
Labour | David Graham Pole
|
6,831 | 31.9 | +5.6 | |
Majority | 933 | 4.2 | -17.9 | ||
Turnout | 21,756 | 74.9 | +17.1 | ||
Unionist hold
|
Swing | -9.5 |
He represented New Zealand on the International Olympic Committee in 1928–30. Promoted to the permanent rank of major in 1927 (having been a substantive captain since 1916),[32] he held a GSO2 staff appointment at Headquarters, Eastern Command until February 1929 when he was transferred to the Manchester Regiment[30] and promoted to lieutenant-colonel upon being appointed to command the 1st Battalion, Manchester Regiment.[33]
In March 1931 he was promoted colonel (with seniority backdated to 1922)[34] and was appointed Assistant Quartermaster General of Southern Command.[30] In 1933 he wrote A Study of Unit Administration, which became a staff college textbook on quarter-masters' logistics;[35] it went into a second edition in 1940.
In September 1933 he moved to a GSO1 posting at the War Office
Second World War
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Lieutenant_General_Freyberg_gazes_over_the_parapet.jpg/220px-Lieutenant_General_Freyberg_gazes_over_the_parapet.jpg)
The British Army classified Freyberg as unfit for active service in 1937. After the outbreak of war in September 1939, he returned to its active list in December as a specially employed major-general.[41] On being approached by the New Zealand Government, Freyberg, by then commanding the Salisbury Plain Area in the United Kingdom, offered his services and was appointed commander of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force and of the 2nd New Zealand Division.[19][42]
Under Freyberg's charter he was ultimately responsible only to the Government of New Zealand and as such was allowed to make decisions to protect the New Zealanders under his command. This enabled him to, at times, bypass his superior commanders and confer directly with Peter Fraser, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, on certain issues.[42] He was also insistent that his division would fight as a complete formation and not be split up into brigade groups or smaller. This brought him into conflict with his senior commanders in the war's early years, most notably with General Sir Archibald Wavell, then the Commander-in-Chief in the Middle East, where the division, which began to leave home in early 1940, began to concentrate.[42]
In the chaos of the retreat from the
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/War_Office_Second_World_War_Official_Collection_E19874.jpg/220px-War_Office_Second_World_War_Official_Collection_E19874.jpg)
Promoted to lieutenant-general in March 1942,[47][30][48] and knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1942 New Year Honours, Freyberg continued to command the 2nd New Zealand Division through the North African and Italian campaigns as part of the British Eighth Army.[49] He had an excellent reputation as a divisional-level tactician. Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister, described Freyberg as his "salamander" due to his love of fire and wanting to be always in the middle of the action.[50] An exploding German shell wounded Freyberg at the Battle of Mersa Matruh in June 1942 but he soon returned to the battlefield.[19][47] Freyberg disagreed strongly with his superior, General Claude Auchinleck, the Eighth Army commander and insisted that as a commander of a national contingent he had the right to refuse orders if those orders ran counter to the New Zealand national interest. Freyberg enjoyed a good relationship with General Bernard Montgomery, the Eighth Army commander from August 1942, who thought highly of the experienced New Zealand commander. [47]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/59/The_Campaign_in_Italy%2C_September-december_1943-_the_Allied_Advance_To_the_Gustav_Line-_Personalities_NA10338.jpg/220px-The_Campaign_in_Italy%2C_September-december_1943-_the_Allied_Advance_To_the_Gustav_Line-_Personalities_NA10338.jpg)
In the climactic Second Battle of El Alamein (October–November 1942) the 2nd New Zealand Division played a vital part in the breakthrough by the Eighth Army; for his leadership, Freyberg was immediately promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.[51] During the pursuit of the Axis forces to Tunisia, where they surrendered in May 1943, he led the New Zealanders on a series of well-executed left hooks to outflank Axis defence lines. In April and May 1943 Freyberg briefly commanded X Corps.[52]
Freyberg was injured in an aircraft accident in September 1944.[53] After six weeks in hospital he returned to command the New Zealand Division in its final operations, the Spring 1945 offensive in Italy, which involved a series of river crossings and an advance of 250 mi (400 km) in three weeks. By the time of the German surrender, the New Zealanders had reached Trieste, having liberated both Padua and Venice, where there was a brief standoff with Yugoslav partisans.[53] This success earned him a third bar to his DSO in July 1945 and he was made a Commander of the United States Legion of Merit.[54][7]
Freyberg had excelled in planning set-piece attacks, such as at
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Major_General_Sir_Bernard_Cyril_Freyberg_VC_%2816160704063%29.jpg/220px-Major_General_Sir_Bernard_Cyril_Freyberg_VC_%2816160704063%29.jpg)
Freyberg is closely associated with the controversial decision to bomb the ancient monastery at Monte Cassino in February 1944. Freyberg, commanding the troops which fought what later became known as the Second and Third Battles of Monte Cassino, became convinced the abbey, founded in 529 AD, was being used as a military stronghold. The analysis of one of Freyberg's divisional commanders, Major-General Francis Tuker of the 4th Indian Infantry Division, concluded in a memo to Freyberg that, regardless of whether the monastery was occupied by the Germans, it should be demolished to prevent its occupation. He pointed out that with 150 ft (46 m)-high walls made of masonry at least 10 ft (3.0 m) thick, it was impossible for engineers to break in and that bombing with "blockbuster" bombs would be the only solution since 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs would be "next to useless".[55] General Sir Harold Alexander, commander of the 15th Army Group (later the Allied Armies in Italy), agreed to the bombing (which did not employ blockbuster bombs).[56] After the monastery's destruction, the ruins were occupied by German forces, which held the position until 18 May. Following the war, the abbot of the monastery and other monks said that German troops had not occupied the inside of the abbey and it was not being used for military purposes.[57]
Post-war
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Bernard_Freyberg_Lett.jpg/220px-Bernard_Freyberg_Lett.jpg)
Freyberg relinquished command of the New Zealand division, on 22 November 1945 having accepted an invitation to become
Freyberg served as Governor-General of New Zealand from 1946 until 1952. In this post he played a very active role, visiting all parts of New Zealand and its dependencies.
On 1 January 1946 Freyberg was appointed a
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c8/Bernard_freyberg_marker.jpg/220px-Bernard_freyberg_marker.jpg)
King George VI raised Freyberg to the peerage as Baron Freyberg of Wellington in New Zealand and of Munstead in the county of Surrey in 1951.[59]
After his term as New Zealand governor-general had finished, Freyberg returned to England, where he sat frequently in the House of Lords. On 1 March 1953 he became the Deputy Constable and Lieutenant-Governor of Windsor Castle;[60] he took up residence in the Norman Gateway the following year.
Freyberg died at Windsor on 4 July 1963 following the rupture of one of his war wounds, and was buried in the churchyard of St Martha on the Hill near Guildford, Surrey.[61] His wife is buried at his side, and their son, who had been awarded the MC, at the end of their graves.
Tributes
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Mount_Freyberg_NZ.jpg/220px-Mount_Freyberg_NZ.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Lieutenant_Colonel_Bernard_Freyberg_commemorative_paving_stone_outside_Richmond_Station.jpg/220px-Lieutenant_Colonel_Bernard_Freyberg_commemorative_paving_stone_outside_Richmond_Station.jpg)
An athlete as well as a soldier, he is memorialised in the name of the Ministry of Defence's headquarters, a stadium in Auckland and Wellington's swimming pool on the site of his early victories. A number of streets are named after him including Freyberg Place in front of the Metropolis tower in central Auckland where there is a statue of him.[62]
Auckland's Freyberg Place (also known as Freyberg Square) was opened in 1946; Wellington's Freyberg Pool in Oriental Bay opened in 1963; and Auckland's Freyberg Field opened in 1965. The 15-storey Freyberg Building in Aitken Street, Thorndon, Wellington, was built in 1979. The adjacent Freyberg House built in about 2007 was demolished in 2018 after being damaged by the 2016 Kaikoura earthquake. Freyberg High School in Palmerston North opened in 1955.
The Sir Bernard Freyberg Cup is awarded to the winner in single sculls at the New Zealand Rowing Championship.[63][64]
In November 2016 a blue plaque was unveiled at 8 Dynevor Road, Richmond, where he was born and a VC commemorative paving stone was unveiled to him outside Richmond Station by the Mayor of Richmond and the present Lord Freyberg.[65]
Styles
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes a Bar to the DSO.
- 1889–1914: Bernard Cyril Freyberg
- 1914 – 3 June 1915: RNVR
- 3 June 1915 – May 1916: Commander (temp.) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, DSO, RNVR
- May–June 1916: CaptainBernard Cyril Freyberg, DSO
- June–July 1916: Captain (Temp. Major) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, DSO
- July – 12 December 1916: Captain (Temp. Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, DSO
- 12 December 1916 – 1917: Captain (Temp. Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, DSO
- 1917 – 1 February 1919: Captain (Temp. Brigadier-General) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, DSO
- 1 February – 7 March 1919: Captain (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel; Temp. Brigadier) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, DSO*
- 7 March – June 1919: Captain (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, DSO*
- June 1919 – 1920: Captain (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, DSO**
- 1920–1927: Captain (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CMG, DSO**
- 1927–1929: Major (Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel) Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CMG, DSO**
- 1929–1931: Lieutenant-Colonel Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CMG, DSO**
- 1931–1934: Colonel Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CMG, DSO**
- 1934–1935: Major-GeneralBernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CMG, DSO**
- 1935–1941: Major-General Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, CB, CMG, DSO**
- 1941–1942: KBE, CB, CMG, DSO**
- 1942–1945: Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, KCB, KBE, CMG, DSO**
- 1945–1946: Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, KCB, KBE, CMG, DSO***
- 1946–1951: Lieutenant-General GCMG, KCB, KBE, DSO***
- 1951–1952: Lieutenant-General His Excellency The Right Honourable The Lord Freyberg, VC, GCMG, KCB, KBE, DSO***
- 1952–1963: Lieutenant-General The Right Honourable The Lord Freyberg, VC, GCMG, KCB, KBE, DSO***
Arms
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Citations
- ^ Freyberg 1991, p. 14.
- ^ "No. 29664". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 September 1916. pp. 6941–6952.
- ^ "No. 35821". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 December 1942. p. 5446.
- ^ "No. 36065". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 June 1943. p. 2866.
- ^ "No. 37368". The London Gazette (Supplement). 27 November 1945. p. 5835.
- ^ a b "No. 37417". The London Gazette. 1 January 1946. p. 203.
- ^ a b "No. 37204". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 July 1945. p. 3962.
- ^ a b c McGibbon, Ian. "Freyberg, VC". diggerhistory. Archived from the original on 9 January 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
- ^ "No. 35519". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 April 1942. p. 1595.
- ^ "Youngest General WW1". Mindef.gov.sg. Archived from the original on 15 October 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ a b Kay, p. 549 Archived 4 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Freyberg 1991, p. 9.
- ISBN 9781921372759. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013.in 1812.
By distant ancestry, Freyberg was related to Austrian mercenaries who had fought for the Russian tsar against Napoleon at the Battle of Borodino
- ^ Stephen Levine: New Zealand As It Might Have Been 2, Victoria University Press, 2011
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 10–11.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 16–19.
- ^ McLintock, A.H., ed. (1966). "Swimming – national championships". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Wellington: Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 27–34.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Nazi Shell in Egypt Wounds One of British Empire's Most Fabulous Soldiers". Life. 17 August 1942. p. 28. Archived from the original on 22 June 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
- ^ a b "No. 29626". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 1916. p. 6042.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 76–78.
- ^ a b c "No. 29866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 December 1916. p. 12307.
- ^ "No. 31259". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 March 1919. p. 4157.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 94–95.
- ^ "No. 30106". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 1917. p. 5400.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, p. 102.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, p. 118.
- ^ "No. 31219". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 March 1919. p. 3224.
- ^ "No. 31583". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 October 1919. p. 12214.
- ^ a b c d e f g "New Zealand Army officer histories". Unit Histories. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949, FWS Craig
- ^ "No. 33281". The London Gazette. 3 June 1927. p. 3629.
- ^ "No. 33463". The London Gazette. 4 February 1929. p. 867.
- ^ "No. 33699". The London Gazette. 17 March 1931. p. 1802.
- ^ "FREYBERG, Bernard Cyril". The Pro Patria Project. Archived from the original on 6 May 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "No. 33978". The London Gazette. 15 September 1933. p. 6014.
- ^ "No. 34070". The London Gazette. 17 July 1934. p. 4591.
- ^ "No. 34238". The London Gazette. 31 December 1935. p. 767.
- ^ "No. 34444". The London Gazette. 15 October 1937. p. 6372.
- ^ Mead 2007, p. 146.
- ^ "No. 34758". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 December 1939. p. 8531.
- ^ a b c d Mead 2007, p. 147.
- ^ "The controversies – The Battle for Crete". New Zealand History online. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Archived from the original on 16 December 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
- ^ James Holland, 2015. The War in the West vol.1, Bantam Press – Transworld Publishers, London
- ISBN 978-1-7802-2564-7. See pp. 201–217
- ^ John Keegan, Intelligence in War, pp. 193–195
- ^ a b c Mead 2007, p. 148.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, p. 369.
- ^ Mead 2007, pp. 148–151.
- ^ Stevens (1962), p. 121. Archived 23 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine Ancient superstition had it that the lizard-like salamander could live in fire.
- ^ "No. 35794". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 November 1942. p. 3.
- ^ "BC Freyburg". www.ordersofbattle.com. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ a b c Mead 2007, p. 151.
- ^ "No. 37161". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 July 1945. p. 3490.
- ^ Majdalany, pp. 114–115.
- ^ Mead 2007, pp. 150–151.
- ^ Hapgood, D., & Richardson, D., 1987. Monte Cassino, Gordon and Weed, Inc, New York.
- ^ "No. 37453". The London Gazette. 1 February 1946. p. 767.
- ^ "No. 39362". The London Gazette. 19 October 1951. p. 5437.
- ^ "No. 39791". The London Gazette. 3 March 1953. p. 1243.
- ^ Freyberg 1991, pp. 572–574.
- ^ "Noted Revamp 20 September 2017". Archived from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
- ^ Stu Piddington (20 February 2011). "Mahe Drysdale offers no excuses for loss". Stuff.co.nz. Archived from the original on 1 November 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "Haigh's back where she belongs". Stuff.co.nz. Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "Follow the Drum: Bernard Freyberg VC". Richmond upon Thames Library Services. 3 November 2016. Archived from the original on 17 October 2019.
- ISBN 9781999767051.
- ^ "New Zealand elements". gg.govt.nz. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
Notes
- ^ "The name 'Tiny' was given to Bernard as a boy, no doubt because he was the youngest – and at one stage the smallest – of a tall family; it stuck to him as he became a tall youth of six foot one and a half; and he continued to be referred to as 'Tiny' by New Zealanders, even as a General on the battlefields of the Second World War".[1]
References
- Barber, Laurie; Tonkin-Covell, John (1989). Freyberg: Churchill's Salamander. Auckland: Century Hutchinson. ISBN 978-1-86941-052-0.
- Ewer, Peter (2008). Forgotten Anzacs: The Campaign in Greece, 1941. Carlton North, Vic.: Scribe Publications. OCLC 457093199.
- ISBN 978-0-340-39693-3.
- Gliddon, Gerald (1994). ISBN 978-0-7509-0567-1.
- ISBN 978-0-906324-27-1.
- Harvey, David (1999). OCLC 45224322.
- Kay, Robin (1967). Italy Volume II : From Cassino to Trieste. The Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–1945. Wellington, N.Z.: Historical Publications Branch.
- Majdalany, Fred (1957). Cassino: Portrait of a Battle. London: Longmans, Green. OCLC 536746.
- Mead, Richard (2007). Churchill's Lions: A biographical guide to the key British generals of World War II. Stroud (UK): Spellmount. ISBN 978-1-86227-431-0.
- Stevens, Major-General W.G. (1962). Bardia to Enfidaville. The Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–1945. Wellington: Historical Publications Branch.
- Wright, Matthew (2005). Freyberg's War: The Man, the Legend, and Reality. Auckland: Penguin.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- NZ Official Governor General biography. Accessed 20 August 2020.
- First World War.com – Who's Who – Bernard Freyberg. Accessed 14 February 2006.
- Bernard Cyril Freyberg biography from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography
- "New Zealand Troops who have won the Victoria Cross". Archived from the original on 26 October 2009. Retrieved 26 October 2009. . Accessed 14 February 2006.
- Location of grave and VC medal (Surrey). Accessed 14 February 2006.
- Photo of Generals Freyberg and Leslie Morshead conferring in a shell hole in North Africa
- New Zealand Army Officers 1939–1945
- Smith, Mike; Subritzky, Mike. "Freyberg, Bernard Cyril". Pro Patria Project. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- "Brigadier-General Freyburg – V.C., D.S.O. (online photo)". Archives Archway. 5 July 2015.
- Newspaper clippings about Bernard Freyberg, 1st Baron Freyberg in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
- Generals of World War II