Frederick Browning

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For the English cricketer and British Army officer, see Frederick Browning (cricketer).

Sir

Frederick Browning
First World War

Second World War

Awards
Croix de Guerre (France)
Commander's Cross with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta (Poland)
Commander of the Legion of Merit
(United States)
Spouse(s)
Treasurer to the Duke of Edinburgh

Comptroller to Princess Elizabeth

CB, DSO (20 December 1896 – 14 March 1965) was a senior officer of the British Army who has been called the "father of the British airborne forces".[1] He was also an Olympic bobsleigh competitor, and the husband of author Daphne du Maurier
.

Educated at

aide de camp to General Sir Henry Rawlinson
.

During the

Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten's South East Asia Command. From September 1946 to January 1948, he was Military Secretary of the War Office
.

In January 1948, Browning became

nervous breakdown in 1957 and retired in 1959. He died at Menabilly, the mansion that inspired his wife's novel Rebecca
, on 14 March 1965.

Early life

Frederick Arthur Montague Browning was born on 20 December 1896 at his family home in

Officer Training Corps.[6]

First World War

Browning sat the entrance examinations for the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, on 24 November 1914. Although he did not achieve the necessary scores in all the required subjects, the headmasters of some schools, including Eton, were in a position to recommend students for nomination by the Army Council. The headmaster of Eton, Edward Lyttelton, put Browning's name forward and in this way he entered Sandhurst on 27 December 1914.[7] He graduated on 16 June 1915, and was commissioned a second lieutenant into the Grenadier Guards.[8] Joining such an exclusive regiment, even in wartime, required a personal introduction and an interview by the regimental commander, Colonel Sir Henry Streatfeild.[9]

Initially, Browning joined the 4th Battalion, Grenadier Guards, which was training at Bovington Camp. When it departed for the Western Front in August 1915, he was transferred to the 5th (Reserve) Battalion. In October 1915 he left it to join the 2nd Battalion at the front. The battalion formed part of the 1st Guards Brigade of the Guards Division. Around this time he acquired the nickname "Boy".[10] For a time he served in the same company of 2nd Battalion as Major Winston Churchill. Upon Churchill's arrival, Browning was given the job of showing him the company's trenches. When Browning discovered that Churchill had no greatcoat, Browning gave Churchill his own.[11]

Browning was invalided back to England with trench fever in January 1916, and, although only hospitalised for four weeks, did not rejoin the 2nd Battalion at the front until 6 October 1916. After being released from hospital, he went on leave for two months. In April he was posted to the 5th (Reserve) Battalion, and then to the Guards Depot at Caterham Barracks. He was assessed each month by a medical board at Caxton Hall, and was not passed as fit for service at the front until 20 September.[11] Browning fought in the

captain. When a junior officer like Browning, who was still only a lieutenant, was awarded the DSO, this was often regarded as an acknowledgement that the officer had only just missed out on being awarded the Victoria Cross.[14]
His citation read:

For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. He took command of three companies whose officers had all become casualties, reorganised them, and proceeded to consolidate. Exposing himself to very heavy machine-gun and rifle fire, in two hours he had placed the front line in a strong state of defence. The conduct of this officer, both in the assault and more especially afterwards, was beyond all praise, and the successful handing over of the front to the relieving unit as an entrenched and strongly fortified position was entirely due to his energy and skill.[15]

He was awarded the French

aide de camp to General Sir Henry Rawlinson, commander of the British Fourth Army. The appointment only lasted a few weeks, however, before Browning returned to his regiment in early November. He was promoted to the temporary rank of captain, and appointed adjutant of the 1st Grenadier Guards, then part of the 3rd Guards Brigade of the Guards Division, in November 1918.[18]

Inter-war period

Head and shoulders of attractive woman with short bob haircut, wearing a long string of pearls
Daphne du Maurier. Browning was inspired by the graphic depictions of the Cornish coastline in her novel The Loving Spirit.

Browning was granted the substantive rank of captain on 24 November 1920.

Second World War this became an enduring tradition, but since horses have great difficulty going down steps, a ramp is now provided for the horse to return.[22]

Other members of staff at Sandhurst at the time included Richard O'Connor, Miles Dempsey, Douglas Gracey, Ronald Brittain and Eric Dorman-Smith. Dorman-Smith and Browning became close friends.[23] Browning relinquished the appointment of adjutant at Sandhurst on 28 April 1928,[24] and was promoted to major on 22 May 1928.[25] Following a pattern whereby tours of duty away from the regiment alternated with those in it, he was sent for a refresher course at the Small Arms School before being posted to the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards, at Pirbright.[26]

His workload was very light, allowing plenty of time for sport. Browning competed in the Amateur Athletic Association of England championships in hurdling but failed to make Olympic selection. He did however make the Olympic five-man bobsleigh team as brake-man. An injury incurred during a training accident prevented his participation in the bobsleigh at the 1924 Winter Olympics, but he competed in the bobsleigh at the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland, in which his team finished tenth.[27] Browning was also a keen sailor, competing in the Household Cavalry Sailing Regatta at Chichester Harbour in 1930. He purchased his own motor boat, a 20-foot (6.1 m) cabin cruiser that he named Ygdrasil.[28][29]

In 1931, Browning read

Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery) and Flavia [31] (later wife of General Sir Peter Leng), and a son, Christian, known as Kits.[32]

Browning was promoted to lieutenant-colonel on 1 February 1936,[33] and was appointed commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards. The battalion was deployed to Egypt in 1936 and returned in December 1937.[34] His term as commander ended on 1 August 1939; he was removed from the Grenadier Guards' regimental list but remained on full pay.[35] On 1 September, he was promoted to colonel, with his seniority backdated to 1 February 1939,[36] and became Commandant of the Small Arms School.[37]

Second World War

Airborne troops

Establishment

refer to caption
King George VI inspects an airborne jeep fitted with a Vickers machine gun during a visit to the airborne forces in Southern Command, 21 May 1942, with Browning

In mid-May 1940, eight months after the outbreak of the

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Command, although all three believed that Browning needed more time and experience.[40]

In late February 1941, after handing over the brigade to Brigadier Manley James, Browning succeeded Brigadier The Hon. William Fraser, a fellow Grenadier Guardsman and an old friend, in command of the 24th Guards Brigade Group. Such was his popularity by now within the 128th Brigade, that when Browning left his old command many members of the brigade turned out to cheer him on and wish him well.[40] While the 24th Brigade was not a division, it was perhaps the next best thing to one. The brigade group's objective was to defend London from an attack from the south.[41]

On 3 November 1941, Browning was promoted to the acting rank of major-general,[42] and appointed as the first General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the newly created 1st Airborne Division. The division initially comprised the 1st Parachute Brigade, under Brigadier Richard Gale, and the 1st Airlanding Brigade, under Brigadier George Hopkinson. In this new role he was instrumental in parachutists adopting the maroon beret, and assigned an artist, Major Edward Seago, to design the Parachute Regiment's emblem of the warrior Bellerophon riding Pegasus, the winged horse.[43] Because of this he has been called the "father of the British airborne forces".[44][45] Browning designed his own uniform.[43] He qualified as a pilot in 1942, and henceforth wore the Army Air Corps wings, which he also designed.[46]

Training

Browning supervised the newly formed division as it underwent a prolonged period of expansion and intensive training, with new brigades raised and assigned to the division, and new equipment tested.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, in particular, felt that the 1st Airborne Division was not worth the drain on RAF Bomber Command's resources.[49]

When Churchill, who was now the

Halifax bombers to tow the new, larger General Aircraft Hamilcar gliders.[51]

In July 1942, Browning travelled to the United States, where he toured airborne training facilities with his American counterpart, Major-General William C. Lee, who soon took command of the US 101st Airborne Division. Browning's tendency to lecture the Americans on airborne warfare made him few friends among the Americans, who felt that the British were still novices themselves. Browning was envious of the Americans' equipment, particularly the Dakota transports. On returning to the United Kingdom in early August, he arranged for a joint exercise to be conducted with the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment (2/503) and the 1st Airlanding Brigade, with the 1st Parachute Brigade and the 2nd (Armoured) Battalion of the Irish Guards.[52]

Operation Torch

RAF Netheravon
in October 1942.

In mid–September, as the 1st Airborne Division was coming close to reaching full strength, Browning was informed that Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of French North Africa, would take place in November. When he found that the 2/503 was to take part, Browning argued that a larger airborne force should be utilised, as the vast distances and comparatively light opposition would provide opportunities for airborne operations.[53] The War Office and the Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces, General Sir Bernard Paget, were won over by Browning's arguments, and agreed to detach the 1st Parachute Brigade, now under Brigadier Edwin Flavell, from 1st Airborne Division and place it under the command of US Lieutenant-General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who would command all Allied troops participating in the invasion.[54] After it had been brought to full operational strength, partly by cross-posting personnel from the newly formed 2nd Parachute Brigade, under Brigadier Ernest Down, and had been provided with sufficient equipment and resources, the brigade departed for North Africa at the beginning of November.[55]

The results of

Harold Alexander, commander of the Allied 18th Army Group, and henceforth it applied to all British airborne troops.[58]

Allied Force Headquarters posting

RAF Netheravon
in October 1942.

On 1 January 1943, Browning was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath.[59] He relinquished command of the 1st Airborne Division to Hopkinson in March 1943 to take up a new post as Major-General, Airborne Forces at Eisenhower's AFHQ.[60] He soon clashed with the commander of the American 82nd Airborne Division, Major-General Matthew Ridgway. When Browning asked to see the plans for Operation Husky, the Allied invasion of Sicily, Ridgway replied that they would not be available for scrutiny until after they had been approved by the US Seventh Army commander, Lieutenant-General George S. Patton. When Browning protested, Patton backed Ridgway, but Eisenhower and his chief of staff, Major-General Walter Bedell Smith, supported Browning and forced them to back down.[61]

Browning's dealings with the British Army were no smoother. Hopkinson sold the British

Syracuse. Browning's objections to the operation were ignored, and attempts to discuss airborne operations with the corps commanders elicited a directive from Montgomery that all such discussion had to go through him. The operation was a disaster, as Browning had predicted. Inexperienced aircrew released the gliders too early, and many crashed into the sea; 252 soldiers were drowned. Those that made it to land were scattered over a wide area. The troops captured their objective, but were driven off by an Italian counterattack. Browning concluded that to be effective, the airborne advisor had to have equal rank with the army commanders.[61]

In September 1943, Browning travelled to India, where he inspected the 50th Parachute Brigade, and met with Major-General Orde Wingate, the commander of the Chindits. Browning held a series of meetings with General Sir Claude Auchinleck, the Commander-in-Chief, India; Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Peirse, the Air Officer Commander-in-Chief; and Lieutenant-General Sir George Giffard, the GOC Eastern Army. They discussed plans for improving the airborne establishment in India and expanding the airborne force there to a division.[62] As a result of these discussions, and Browning's subsequent report to the War Office, the 44th Indian Airborne Division was formed in October 1944.[63] Browning sent his most experienced airborne commander, Major-General Ernest Down, to India as GOC of the 44th Division. Formerly the commander of the 2nd Parachute Brigade, Down had succeeded Hopkinson as GOC 1st Airborne Division after Hopkinson had been killed in Italy. Down's replacement as GOC 1st Airborne Division was Montgomery's selection, Major-General Roy Urquhart, an officer with no airborne experience, rather than Browning's choice, Brigadier Gerald Lathbury of the 1st Parachute Brigade. The decision was to become controversial.[64]

US Brigadier-General James M. Gavin, recalled that when he travelled to England in November 1943 to assume command of the 82nd Airborne Division, Ridgway "cautioned me against the machinations and scheming of General F. M. Browning, who was the senior British airborne officer, and well he should have."[65] Gavin was taken aback by Browning's criticism of Ridgway on the grounds that he had not parachuted into Sicily with his troops. US Major-General Ray Barker, who worked in Eisenhower's Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF), warned him that Browning was "an empire builder",[66] an assessment with which Gavin came to agree.[67]

Operation Market Garden

While on a visit to the 1st Airborne Division in March 1944, H.M. The King George VI inspects lightweight compact rations, designed to provide a balanced diet for airborne troops. Stood to his right is Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Haddon, while Lieutenant-General Frederick Browning stands two away from him while Brigadier Phillip Hicks is to Browning's left.

Browning assumed a new command on 4 December 1943. His Directive No. 1 announced that "the title of the force is Headquarters, Airborne Troops (21st Army Group). All correspondence will bear the official title, but verbally it will be known as the Airborne Corps and I will be referred to as the Corps Commander."[68] He was promoted to lieutenant-general on 7 January 1944, with his seniority backdated to 9 December 1943.[69] He officially became commander of I Airborne Corps on 16 April 1944.[70]

I Airborne Corps became part of the First Allied Airborne Army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Lewis H. Brereton, in August 1944. While retaining command of the corps, Browning also became Deputy Commander of the First Allied Airborne Army, despite a poor relationship with Brereton and being disliked by many American officers. During preparations for one of many cancelled operations, Linnete II, his disagreement with Brereton over a risky operation caused him to threaten resignation, which, due to differences in military culture, Brereton regarded as tantamount to disobeying an order. Browning was forced to back down.[71]

When I Airborne Corps was committed to action in

Leslie Hollinghurst of No. 38 Group, which he felt were too distant from the bridge at Arnhem, but Browning felt unable to challenge the airmen.[72]

Douglas Dakota of RAF Transport Command at RAF Lyneham
, Wiltshire, after being flown back from the Normandy battlefields

Browning downplayed Ultra evidence brought to him by his intelligence officer, Major Brian Urquhart, that the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen and the 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg were in the Arnhem area,[73] but was not as confident as he led his subordinates to believe. According to Major-General Roy Urquhart, when informed that his airborne troops would have to hold the bridge for two days, Browning responded that they could hold it for four, but later claimed that he had added: "But I think we might be going a bridge too far."[2][3][4]

Browning landed by

The Praying Hands.[77] After the war, Gavin was criticised for the decision to secure the high ground around Groesbeek before attempting the capture of the road and the railway bridges at Nijmegen. Browning took responsibility for this, noting that he "personally gave an order to Jim Gavin that, although every effort should be made to effect the capture of the Grave and Nijmegen bridges as soon as possible, it was essential that he should capture the Groesbeek Ridge and hold it".[78] Gavin's opinion of Browning was uncomplimentary: "There is no doubt that in our system he would have been summarily relieved and sent home in disgrace."[79]

Browning was awarded the

Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), the professional head of the British Army, that he would like Browning to take over VIII Corps in the event that Sir Richard O'Connor, the GOC, was transferred to another theatre.[82]

South East Asia Command

Browning addresses a parade
Browning in Ceylon, 1945

Events took a different course.

United States government.[85]

Chiang Kai-Shek (left) and T. V. Soong (right). In the background are Captain Ronald Brockman, Browning, and Lieutenant-General Adrian Carton de Wiart
.

Browning served in South East Asia from December 1944 until July 1946; Mountbatten soon came to regard him as indispensable.

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire on 1 January 1946.[88] His last major military post was as Military Secretary of the War Office from 16 September 1946 to January 1948, although he did not formally retire from the Army until 5 April 1948.[89]

Later life

In January 1948, Browning became

Philip Mountbatten was the Duke of Edinburgh. As such, Browning became the head of the Princess' personal staff.[91] Browning also juggled other duties. In 1948 he was involved with the 1948 Summer Olympics as Deputy Chairman of the British Olympic Association, and commandant of the British team.[92] From 1944 to 1962 he was Commodore of the Royal Fowey Yacht Club; on stepping down in 1962, he was elected its first admiral.[93]

Upon the death of

Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.[94]

Browning had been drinking since the war, but it now became

heart attack at Menabilly on 14 March 1965.[101]

Legacy

Browning was portrayed by

Browning Barracks at Aldershot, which had been built in 1964 and named after him. It remained the depot of the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces until 1993.[103] The museum moved to the Imperial War Museum Duxford in 2008,[104] and Browning Barracks was sold for housing development.[105]

Notes

  1. ^ Mead 2010, p. 66
  2. ^ a b Ryan 1974, p. 67
  3. ^ a b Beevor 2019, p. 31: "Browning had strenuously supported Comet, which included Arnhem. Now, he was to command three and a half airborne divisions to do the same job, not just one and a half, so he was unlikely to oppose the field marshal on the subject. And the suggestion that on 10 September Browning had said to Montgomery that Arnhem might be going 'a bridge too far' is highly improbable, since they do not appear to have met that day."
  4. ^ a b Buckingham 2002, p. 209: "[Roy] Urquhart's biographer also casts doubt on whether Browning expressed such a reservation and suggests that the bridge too far comment came from Montgomery."
  5. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 3–6.
  6. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 7–9.
  7. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 10–11.
  8. ^ "No. 29193". The London Gazette. 15 June 1915. p. 5759.
  9. ^ Mead 2010, p. 12.
  10. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 13–14
  11. ^ a b Mead 2010, pp. 16–17, 242 When Churchill died in 1965, the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards provided his guard of honour.
  12. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 21–22
  13. ^ "No. 30507". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 February 1918. p. 1600.
  14. ^ "Orders and Decorations — Distinguished Service Order". Veterans Affairs Canada. Archived from the original on 11 November 2009. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  15. ^ "No. 30780". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 July 1918. p. 7885.
  16. ^ "No. 30431". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 December 1917. p. 13207.
  17. ^ "No. 30698". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 July 1918. p. 6061.
  18. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 26–27
  19. ^ "No. 32151". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 December 1920. p. 12026.
  20. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 30–31.
  21. ^ Pugsley & Holdsworth 2005, p. 180.
  22. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 38–39.
  23. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 35–37.
  24. ^ "No. 33385". The London Gazette. 18 May 1928. p. 3505.
  25. ^ "No. 33389". The London Gazette. 1 June 1928. p. 3783.
  26. ^ Mead 2010, p. 41.
  27. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 32–34.
  28. ^ Mead 2010, p. 44.
  29. ^ Forster 1993, p. 87.
  30. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 46–50
  31. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 54–55.
  32. ^ Mead 2010, p. 60.
  33. ^ "No. 34256". The London Gazette. 18 February 1936. p. 1058.
  34. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 53–55
  35. ^ "No. 34650". The London Gazette. 1 August 1939. p. 5313.
  36. ^ "No. 34725". The London Gazette. 3 November 1939. p. 7473.
  37. ^ Mead 2010, p. 57
  38. ^ a b Mead 2010, p. 58.
  39. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 59–60.
  40. ^ a b Mead 2010, p. 61.
  41. ^ Mead 2010, p. 62.
  42. ^ "No. 35352". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 November 1941. p. 6693.
  43. ^ a b c Waddy 1977, p. 16.
  44. ^ Mead 2010, p. 66.
  45. ^ Greenacre 2010, p. 155.
  46. ^ Mead 2010, p. 72.
  47. ^ Otway 1990, pp. 46–47
  48. ^ Greenacre 2010, pp. 156–157.
  49. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 81–82
  50. ^ Otway 1990, p. 51
  51. ^ Mead 2010, p. 74
  52. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 79–80
  53. ^ Thompson 1990, p. 53
  54. ^ Harclerode 2005, p. 209.
  55. ^ Otway 1990, p. 62.
  56. ^ Otway 1990, pp. 81–82
  57. ^ Thompson 1990, p. 90
  58. ^ Otway 1990, p. 88
  59. ^ "No. 35841". The London Gazette. 29 December 1942. p. 3.
  60. ^ Mead 2010, p. 87.
  61. ^ a b Mead 2010, pp. 91–95.
  62. ^ Mead 2010, p. 94.
  63. ^ Otway 1990, pp. 341–343.
  64. ^ Buckingham 2002, pp. 23–26.
  65. ^ Gavin 1978, p. 82.
  66. ^ Gavin 1978, p. 83.
  67. ^ Gavin 1978, p. 84.
  68. ^ Mead 2010, p. 96.
  69. ^ "No. 36318". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 December 1944. p. 155.
  70. ^ Mead 2010, p. 98.
  71. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 108–111.
  72. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 154–155.
  73. ^ Buckingham 2002, pp. 61–62.
  74. ^ Neillands 2005, pp. 102, 105–107.
  75. ^ Murray & Millett 2000, p. 440.
  76. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 156–157.
  77. ^ Mead 2010, p. 125.
  78. ^ MacDonald 1963, p. 157.
  79. ^ Olson 2017, pp. 396–397.
  80. ^ "No. 36828". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 December 1944. p. 5616. Order of Polonia Restituta (II class)
  81. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 164–166.
  82. ^ Mead 2010, p. 166.
  83. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 166–167.
  84. ^ "No. 36994". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 March 1945. p. 1548.
  85. ^ "No. 38018". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 July 1947. p. 3319.
  86. ^ Mead 2010, p. 174.
  87. ^ Mead 2010, p. 171.
  88. ^ "No. 37407". The London Gazette. 1 January 1946. p. 17.
  89. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 193, 198.
  90. ^ "No. 38167". The London Gazette. 2 January 1948. p. 83.
  91. ^ Mead 2010, p. 198
  92. ^ Mead 2010, p. 200
  93. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 187, 193, 222
  94. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 207–208
  95. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 215–217
  96. ^ "No. 39863". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 1953. p. 2946.
  97. ^ "No. 41714". The London Gazette. 22 May 1959. p. 3319.
  98. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 98–99
  99. ^ "No. 41970". The London Gazette. 1 March 1960. p. 1551.
  100. ^ Mead 2010, pp. 223–224
  101. ^ Mead 2010, p. 225
  102. ^ Forster 1993, pp. 397–398.
  103. ^ "Browning Barracks Aldershot". Hampshire City Council. Archived from the original on 18 September 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  104. ^ "The New Museum". Airborne Assault. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  105. ^ "Browning Barracks" (PDF). Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom). Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 14 May 2011.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Boy Browning.
Military offices
Preceded by Commandant of the Small Arms School
1939–1940 		Succeeded by
??
New command GOC 1st Airborne Division
1941–1943 		Succeeded by
GOC I Airborne Corps
1943–1944 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Military Secretary
1946–1948 		Succeeded by
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