Ian Freeland

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Sir Ian Freeland
Northern Ireland Command
Battles/warsWorld War II
Zanzibar Revolution
Cyprus Emergency
Northern Ireland
AwardsKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Chevalier of the Order of the Crown with Palm (Belgium)
Croix de Guerre 1940 with Palm (Belgium)

rioting in 1969, and the beginning of the Troubles.[1]

Early military career and Second World War

Born in Milton, Hampshire, England on 14 September 1912, the son of Major-General Sir Francis Edward Freeland, a British Army officer, Ian Henry Freeland was initially educated at Wellington College, Berkshire.[2][3] Then, after attending the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Freeland was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Norfolk Regiment (Royal Norfolk Regiment from 3 June 1935) on 1 September 1932,[4] and, after being posted to India to join the regiment's 1st Battalion, was promoted to lieutenant on 1 September 1935.[5]

Shortly after the outbreak of

General Staff Officer Grade 2 (GSO2) at the War Office in 1943[2] and gained a variety of wartime promotions, culminating on 22 April 1944 in temporary promotion to lieutenant colonel and he became Commanding Officer (CO) of the 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolks, a second-line Territorial Army (TA) unit. The battalion formed part of the 176th Infantry Brigade of the 59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division, commanded by Major General Lewis Lyne, and, in late June, was sent overseas to Normandy, France, a few weeks after the D-Day landings. The battalion was involved in the Battle of Normandy, including the capture of Caen during Operation Charnwood, where the battalion suffered over 150 casualties, which was followed by the Second Battle of the Odon, and for his leadership Freeland was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) on 21 December 1944.[7]

The citation for this award describes how his battalion was the forward unit of a

271st Volksgrenadier Division and 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend). Despite heavy German fire, Freeland constantly moved around the battlefield to encourage his forward companies, and find the moment to launch his own offensive.[8] Around the same time Captain David Jamieson of Freeland's battalion was awarded the Victoria Cross
(VC). Just a few days later, however, the battalion, along with the rest of the 59th Division, was, due to a critical manpower shortage in the British Army at this stage of the war, broken up and the remaining men were sent to other British infantry units to bring them to strength.

After his battalion's disbandment, Freeland was posted to command the 1/5th Battalion of the Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey), part of the 131st Infantry Brigade of Major General Gerald Lloyd-Verney's 7th Armoured Division, through Belgium, and was awarded the Belgian decorations of Chevalier of the Order of the Crown with Palm and the Croix de Guerre 1940 with Palm. The citation for these awards emphasised his command of the battalion during the liberation of Ghent, when the battalion was the leading element of the 7th Armoured Division.[9][10] Freeland continued to lead the 1/5th Queens throughout the rest of the Northwestern Europe Campaign, until the end of World War II in Europe in May 1945, which saw the battalion in Hamburg, Germany.

Postwar

Freeland held the temporary rank of

4th Armoured Brigade and further staff duties followed at HQ British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) in 1946–1947. This was followed by duty as commandant, All Arms Training Centre from 1948 to 1949; staff duty at the War Office from 1949 to 1950; and instructing at the Staff College, Camberley from 1951 to 1953.[2][3]

While, at the end of the war, he held war temporary rank as a lieutenant-colonel, he was still only a substantive captain and was promoted to substantive major on 1 July 1946,[11] and granted a brevet promotion to lieutenant-colonel on 1 July 1951.[12] On 15 February 1954, he was promoted substantive lieutenant-colonel, and given command of 2nd Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers.[2][13] The battalion served in Cyprus in 1954.[2]

Freeland was promoted to substantive colonel on 2 April 1956 (with seniority from 10 June 1954),

Queen's Birthday Honours.[25] He stepped down as deputy chief of staff on 31 December 1968, as the position was abolished, along with its equivalents in the Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force.[3][26]

Freeland held the honorary appointment of Deputy Colonel of the Royal Anglian Regiment (successor to the Royal Norfolk Regiment) with specific responsibility for the Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire components of the regiment from 1968,[27] and was appointed colonel of the regiment on 4 October 1971,[28] relinquishing the appointment on 1 October 1976.[29]

Northern Ireland

In the middle of August 1969, the decision was made to reinforce the

major rioting. Troop levels had reached about 6,000, and Freeland was warning that there was a danger that soldiers would become targets.[32]

Freeland argued strongly for the abolition of the

B Specials.[3] Support from the Irish Nationalist population also waned after the shooting of Daniel O'Hagan on 31 July 1970. He received criticism for a television interview he gave, in which he said, "that the Army's patience was not inexhaustible, and that force might have to be met by force".[3] He fully expected to be dismissed from his post, but he was supported by the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, and the Home Secretary, James Callaghan.[3][33] By June 1970, troop numbers reached 7,000, largely to meet expected trouble arising from the climax of the "marching season", and the release of Bernadette Devlin
from jail.

In the event, no major trouble materialised, perhaps thanks to the precautions put in effect.

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in the 1971 Queen's Birthday Honours,[37] and retired from the army on 21 June 1971.[38]

He correctly predicted a "honeymoon period" after British soldiers were placed on patrol on the streets, though he incorrectly predicted that the peace lines in Belfast were to be temporary.

The peace line will be a very, very temporary affair. We will not have a Berlin Wall or anything like that in this city.

— Lieutenant-General Sir Ian Freeland, 1969[39]

Retirement

After his retirement from the army in 1971, Freeland lived in

Deputy Lieutenant of Norfolk in 1972,[40] and Vice Lieutenant in 1978.[41]

Personal life

In the late 1930s, while stationed in India, Freeland met Mary Armitage, daughter of General Sir Charles Armitage.[1] During the early stages of World War II, he returned to England with her and, on 2 January 1940, they were married at St. Andrews Church, Kilverstone; they had three children, Charles, born in 1941, Sue, born in 1943, and Henry, born in 1948.[1]

Bibliography

  • Bew, Paul; Gillespie, Gordon (1993). Northern Ireland: A Chronology of the Troubles, 1968–1993.
    ISBN 0-7171-2081-3
    .

References

  1. ^ a b c "British Army officer histories". Unit Histories. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "FREELAND, Sir Ian (Henry) (1912–1979), Lieutenant General". Liddell-Hart Centre for Military Archives. King's College London. Retrieved 26 June 2008.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Sir Ian Freeland—Testing time in Ulster". Obituaries. The Times. No. 60482. London. 23 November 1979. col F, p. p. IV.
  4. ^ "No. 33860". The London Gazette. 2 September 1932. pp. 5622–5623.
  5. ^ "No. 34195". The London Gazette. 3 September 1935. pp. 5622–5623.
  6. ^ "No. 34936". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 August 1940. p. 5328.
  7. ^ "No. 36850". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 December 1944. p. 5853.
  8. ^ "Recommendations for Honours and Awards (Army)—Image details—Freeland, Ian Henry". Documents Online. The National Archives.
  9. ^ a b "No. 37853". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 January 1947. p. 325.
  10. ^ "Recommendations for Honours and Awards (Army)—Image details—Freeland, Ian Henry". Documents Online. The National Archives.
  11. ^ "No. 37635". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1946. p. 3371.
  12. ^ "No. 39397". The London Gazette (Supplement). 27 November 1951. p. 6239.
  13. ^ "No. 40197". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 June 1954. p. 3398.
  14. ^ "No. 40796". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 1956. p. 3295.
  15. ^ "No. 41929". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 January 1960. p. 435.
  16. ^ "No. 42417". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 July 1961. p. 5395.
  17. ^ "No. 42303". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 March 1961. p. 2045.
  18. ^ "No. 43057". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 July 1963. p. 6067.
  19. ^ "No. 43173". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 November 1963. p. 9901.
  20. ^ "No. 43598". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 March 1965. p. 2619.
  21. ^ "No. 43200". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1963. p. 3.
  22. ^ "No. 43514". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 December 1964. p. 10649.
  23. ^ "No. 44517". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 March 1968. p. 1475.
  24. ^ "No. 44558". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 March 1968. p. 3863.
  25. ^ "No. 44600". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 May 1968. p. 6300.
  26. ^ "No. 44854". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 May 1969. p. 5480.
  27. ^ "No. 44625". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1968. p. 7349.
  28. ^ "No. 45487". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 October 1971. p. 10678.
  29. ^ "No. 47030". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 October 1976. p. 13442.
  30. ^ "No. 44895". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 July 1969. p. 7284.
  31. ^ Bew & Gillespie 1993, p. 18.
  32. ^ Douglas-Home, Charles (19 August 1969). "British troops may become targets, GOC says". News. The Times. No. 57642. London. col B, p. 8.
  33. ^ "Home Secretary defends General Freeland: Unionist MP wants commander replaced". Politics and Parliament. The Times. No. 57838. London. 8 April 1970. col D, p. 13.
  34. ^ Stanhope, Henry & John Chartres (24 September 1970). "Two new security chiefs for Northern Ireland". News. The Times. No. 57979. London. col E, p. 2.
  35. ^ "No. 45299". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 February 1971. p. 1214.
  36. ^ "No. 45322". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 March 1971. p. 2269.
  37. ^ "No. 45384". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 June 1971. p. 5961.
  38. ^ "No. 45422". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 July 1971. p. 7491.
  39. ^ Harding, Thomas (25 February 2004). "The security wall on our doorstep". Telegraph.co.uk. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
  40. ^ "No. 45720". The London Gazette. 12 July 1971. p. 8076.
  41. ^ "No. 47510". The London Gazette. 11 April 1978. p. 4428.

External links

Military offices
Preceded by GOC 54th (East Anglian) Division/District
1961–1963 		Succeeded by
Preceded by GOC East Africa Command
1963–1964 		Succeeded by
Post redesignated British Land Forces Kenya and Kenya Army
Preceded by Deputy Chief of the Imperial General Staff
April – December 1968 		Succeeded by
Post disbanded
Preceded by
GOC Northern Ireland Command

1969–1971 		Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Colonel of the Royal Anglian Regiment
1971–1976 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ian_Freeland&oldid=1180255579"