Sir George Lea
Born28 December 1912
Franche, Worcestershire
Died27 December 1990 (aged 77)
Saint Brélade, Jersey
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
Years of service1925–1965
RankLieutenant-General
Service number58226
UnitLancashire Fusiliers
Parachute Regiment
Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
Commands held11th Battalion, Parachute Regiment
2nd Infantry Brigade
42nd (Lancashire) Division/District
Battles/warsSecond World War
Malayan Emergency
Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Distinguished Service Order
Member of the Order of the British Empire
Mentioned in dispatches

Lieutenant-General Sir George Harris Lea (28 December 1912 – 27 December 1990) KCB, DSO, MBE was a British Army officer who fought in the Second World War, notably at the Battle of Arnhem, and later became Head of the British Defence Staff in Washington, D.C.

Military career

Officers of the 151st Parachute Battalion in India, 1942. Major Lea is sat in the front row, third from the left.

Educated at Charterhouse School and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Lea was commissioned into the Lancashire Fusiliers in 1933.[1][2]

He served in the Second World War as brigade major of the 4th Parachute Brigade and then as commanding officer of 11th Battalion, Parachute Regiment.[1] In this role he saw action during Operation Market Garden and became a prisoner of war.[3][2]

After attending the Staff College, Camberley,[2] Lea became commanding officer of the Special Air Service in 1955 and saw action again in Malaya. He went on to be commander of 2nd Infantry Brigade in 1957, deputy military secretary in 1960 and General Office Commanding 42nd (Lancashire) Division/District of the Territorial Army in 1962.[1] He was given command of the armed forces in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland in 1963 and became director of operations in Borneo in the spring of 1965, just before a pivotal battle with Indonesia at Plaman Mapu during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation.[1] His last appointment was as head of the British Defence Staff in Washington, D.C. in 1967 before retiring in 1970.[4]

In retirement Lea was Lieutenant of the Tower of London.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Lieutenant General Sir George Lea KCB DSO MBE". Lancashire Fusiliers. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "British Army officer histories". Unit Histories. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  3. "Geerge Lea". Pegassus Archive. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  4. "Ministry of Defence and Senior Tri-Service Appointments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  5. "Army Commands" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2015. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
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