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Sir Philip Balfour
Born (1898-03-10)March 10, 1898
Died February 4, 1977(1977-02-04) (aged 78)
Allegiance Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom
Service/branch Flag of the British Army British Army
Years of service 1915−1953
Rank Lieutenant-General
Service number 11645
Unit Royal Artillery
Commands held 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division
2nd Division
Northern Command
Battles/wars World War I
World War II
Awards Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Companion of the Order of the Bath
Military Cross

Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Maxwell Balfour KBE CB MC* (10 March 1898 – 4 February 1977) was a senior British Army officer who achieved high office in the 1950s.

Military career[]

Philip Balfour was born on 10 March 1898 and was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire, and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the Royal Artillery on 28 July 1915, alongside Cameron Nicholson and John Kennedy of the Royal Garrison Artillery.[1][2] He served in World War I being deployed to France and Belgium.[2] He attended the Staff College, Camberley from 1929 to 1930, alongside Neil Ritchie, Herbert Lumsden, George Erskine, John Edwards, John Winterton, Hugh Russell, Ivor Hughes and several other future brigadiers and general officers.[3]

He also served in World War II, initially as a GSO2 before being made Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) of the 55th (West Lancashire) Infantry Division. From 1944 he was serving as Brigadier General Staff (BGS) of John Crocker's I Corps throughout the North West Europe Campaign, and was awarded the CBE for 'gallant and distinguished services in Normandy' as a temporary brigadier.[4]

After the War he joined the Control Commission in Germany in 1945 and then became Director of Civil Affairs for the Military Government, British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) in 1946.[2] He was appointed General Officer Commanding 53rd Division later in 1946 and then GOC 2nd Division in 1947.[2] Finally he became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command in 1949; in that role he was critical of the standard of shooting in the British Army.[5] He retired in 1953.[2]

References[]

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Military offices
Preceded by
George Richards
GOC 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division
1946−1947
Succeeded by
Christopher Woolner
Preceded by
Robert Arkwright
GOC 2nd Division
1947−1949
Succeeded by
Colin Callander
Preceded by
Sir Montagu Stopford
GOC-in-C Northern Command
1949−1953
Succeeded by
Sir Geoffrey Evans
All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Philip Balfour and the edit history here.
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