Algernon Ransome
Major-General Algernon Lee Ransome CB, DSO, MC (29 August 1883 – 1969) was a British Army officer.
Algernon Ransome | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 August 1883 United States |
| Died | 1969 (aged 85–86) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army |
| Years of service | 1903–1939 |
| Rank | Major-General |
| Service number | 12623 |
| Unit | Dorsetshire Regiment |
| Commands held | 7th (Service) Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment) 170th (2/1st North Lancashire) Brigade 2nd Indian Infantry Brigade 46th Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | First World War Second World War |
| Awards | Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order with bar Military Cross Mentioned in dispatches (6) |
Military career
Algernon Lee Ransome was born in the United States and was privately educated before going to the United Kingdom where, after attending and later graduating from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, he was commissioned into the Dorsetshire Regiment on 19 December 1903.[1][2] He spent the first few years of his military career serving his regiment's first battalion.[3]
He went on to serve with distinction during the First World War. He became commanding officer of the 7th (Service) Battalion, Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) in 1916 and commanded it during the German spring offensive in March 1918.[4] He went on to command the 170th (2/1st North Lancashire) Brigade from September 1918 until the Armistice of 11 November 1918, which ended the war.[4] During the war he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) with bar and, in 1915, the Military Cross. He was also mentioned in dispatches six times, and rose from the rank of captain to brigadier-general.[2][3]
As a Regular Army officer, Ransome remained in the army during the interwar period, attending the Staff College, Camberley in the first post-war course in 1919.[2] He then served as a staff officer with Aldershot Command and then at the War Office from 1920 to 1925. After marrying in 1927 he served in Australia at the Royal Military College, Duntroon as an instructor from 1927 to 1928 before returning to England and Aldershot Command, this time as an Assistant Adjutant General, holding this post from 1931 until 1933.[2]
After that, he became commander of the 2nd Indian Infantry Brigade from 1933 to 1935 and retired from the army in 1938.[2] He was recalled to service to become General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the newly raised 46th Infantry Division in October 1939, a month after the beginning of the Second World War, before retiring again in December 1939.[5] He later commanded the 10th (Romsey) Battalion of the Hampshire Home Guard from 1942 to 1944. Romsey was where he spent his final years.[6]
References
- "No. 27627". The London Gazette. 18 December 1903. p. 8338.
- Smart 2005, p. 262.
- "Algernon Lee Ransome". Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
- Hodgkinson, Peter E (2015). British Infantry Battalion Commanders in the First World War. Ashgate. ISBN 978-1472438256.
- "Army Commands" (PDF). Retrieved 13 June 2020.
- "Braishfield War Memorial" (PDF). Retrieved 2 January 2022.
Bibliography
- Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.