Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Robert Frederick Edward Whittaker, CB,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, TD, (18 June 1894 – 17 February 1967) was a

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

banker and a senior officer in Britain's part-time Territorial Army (TA). He rose to the position of chief of staff at

Anti-Aircraft Command Anti-Aircraft Command (AA Command, or "Ack-Ack Command") was a British Army command of the Second World War that controlled the Territorial Army anti-aircraft artillery and searchlight formations and units defending the United Kingdom. Origin ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

.WHITTAKER, Maj.-Gen. Robert Frederick Edward', ''Who was Who 1961–1970''.

Early life and business career

Whittaker was educated at Ardingly College. On leaving school in 1911, Whittaker began a career in banking. He became a Fellow of the Institute of Bankers in 1940, and was general manager (Administration) of

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a British retail and commercial bank with branches across England and Wales. It has traditionally been considered one of the " Big Four" clearing banks. Lloyds Bank is the largest retail bank in Britain, and has an exte ...

from 1952 until his retirement in 1957.

Military career

World War I

While at Ardingly Whittaker had been a member of the

Officers' Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...

1909–11. He joined the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

(RGA) after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

broke out in 1914, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 13 March 1915 in No 1 Company of the Kent RGA (

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry ...

) based at

Fort Clarence 300px, The archway by the fort's drawbridge was demolished in the 1930s. The fort, on the left, is now converted into flats. Fort Clarence is a now defunct fortification that was located in Rochester, Kent, England. History The fort was built b ...

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

. He was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

on 1 June 1916 and saw active service in France and Belgium. With the war over in November 1918, he married the following year.

Territorial Army

When the Territorial Force was reformed as the Territorial Army (TA) in the early 1920s, Whittaker was one of the first officers appointed to a new RGA unit, the 53rd (City of London) Anti-Aircraft Brigade. The regiment was drawn mainly from those working in the financial sector in the

, one whole battery being recruited from the

Lloyd's of London Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gove ...

insurance market. Whittaker was re-commissioned, in the rank of major on 22 November 1922 and became Officer Commanding of 158th (City of London) Battery. Whittaker was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 1 January 1931 and appointed Commanding Officer of 53rd (CoL) AA Bde on 31 October 1933. He was awarded the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Te ...

(TD). On 30 October 1936 he was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

and in 1938 he was awarded the OBE. 206 Brompton Road

The threat of air raids on the United Kingdom, in the event of war with

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, led to an expansion of the TA's Anti-Aircraft (AA) units in the 1930, which accelerated after the

Munich Crisis The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...

of 1938, when the TA had been briefly mobilised for war. Whittaker was promoted to

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. I ...

and appointed commander of

26th (London) Anti-Aircraft Brigade 26th (London) Anti-Aircraft Brigade (26 AA Bde) was an Air Defence formation of the British Army during the Second World War. It defended London during the Blitz. Origin German air raids by Zeppelin airships and Gotha bombers on London and othe ...

(including his old regiment) on 18 January 1939. 26th AA Bde, controlling several regiments of heavy anti-aircraft (HAA) guns, was a critical part of the air defences of London. Just before the outbreak of war, the brigade moved its headquarters to

Brompton Road Brompton Road is a street located in the southern part from Knightsbridge and in the eastern part from Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and partly the City of Westminster in London. It starts from Knightsbridge U ...

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

, where a Piccadilly line underground railway station had been disused since 1934. The tunnels, subways and lift-shafts of the station were adapted to provide bomb-proof accommodation, and it became the control centre for the whole of the London Inner Artillery Zone (IAZ) under 1st AA Division.

World War II

Whittaker commanded his brigade from this HQ during the training period of the

Phoney War The Phoney War (french: Drôle de guerre; german: Sitzkrieg) was an eight-month period at the start of World War II, during which there was only one limited military land operation on the Western Front, when French troops invaded Germa ...

, through the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

and into the early part of

The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. On 12 November 1940 he was promoted Acting

to command 1st AA Division, making him the most senior TA officer in

(and the third most senior active TA officer during the war).Robert Palmer, ''A Concise History of Anti-Aircraft Command (History and Personnel)'' at British Military History.
/ref>
/ref> British generals Whittaker, Wason and Pile at A

British generals Whittaker, Wason and Pile at A

In January 1941, improved gun control radar was beginning to be introduced to HAA units. To make best use of this equipment, the commander-in-chief of AA Command, Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick ('Tim') Pile, ordered the operators to send their plots to the Gun Operations Rooms (GORs) where the data could be integrated. The system proved no better than the old methods and was opposed by Whittaker, who carried out his own experiments in 1st AA Division and developed new methods for 'unseen' fire. He convinced Pile to restore fire control to the gun sites themselves, using their own radar plotters.Pile's despatch
/ref> On 1 January 1942, Whittaker became Major-General, General Staff (chief of staff) to Pile, with the rank of Temporary Major-General. This was a period of intense organisational pressure on AA Command and its staff: already short of manpower, its best men were drained away for active service overseas and had to be replaced by women of the

Auxiliary Territorial Service The Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS; often pronounced as an acronym) was the women's branch of the British Army during the Second World War. It was formed on 9 September 1938, initially as a women's voluntary service, and existed until 1 Februa ...

and part-timers of the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting w ...

, who had to be integrated. A new streamlined command structure was introduced, with divisions and

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

reduced to a single layer of Group headquarters more closely matching those of

RAF Fighter Command RAF Fighter Command was one of the commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It served throughout the Second World War. It earned near-immortal fame during the Battle of Brita ...

. New rocketry and radar technologies had to be introduced, and defences repositioned to meet new threats, such as the

Baedeker raids The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of aerial attacks in April and May 1942 by the German ''Luftwaffe'' on English cities during the Second World War. The name derives from Baedeker, a series of German tourist guide books, includ ...

, and the ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

s 'hit and run' attacks on the South Coast of England. In February 1944, after more than two years in the post, Whittaker was moved to command 2 AA Group, which was responsible for defending South East England. At the time the group was dealing with small-scale night raids coming over the coast heading towards London (the '

Baby Blitz Operation Steinbock (german: Unternehmen Steinbock), sometimes called the Baby Blitz, was a strategic bombing campaign by the German Air Force (the Luftwaffe) during the Second World War. It targeted southern England and lasted from January to M ...

') and with reorganising the defences of Southern England to cover the build-up of troops, shipping and equipment for the forthcoming invasion of Normandy ( Operation Overlord). Shortly after the

Normandy landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...

, the anticipated attacks by

V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany), Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buz ...

s (codenamed 'Divers') began, and the AA defences had to be reshuffled once more: guns were moved from the London IAZ and elsewhere to the South Coast to try to destroy the V-1s as they came inland ( Operation Diver). Within 24 jours of the start of Operation Diver, 2 AA Group had placed four rows of eight-gun HAA positions in a belt 12,000 yards deep just in front of the

North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs): the Surrey Hills a ...

, extending from East Grinstead to Chatham, backed by light AA (LAA) guns and radar-controlled searchlights. The belt was divided into for sectors, each with a GOR. After a fortnight, the 'Diver Belt' was reorganised, with the mobile HAA guns being replaced by static guns with better equipment, and the guns deployed nearer the coast. Moving the static guns required 2 AA Group to hire hundreds of civilian lorries, and rapidly to construct the temporary platforms required. Once 21st Army Group had broken out of the Normandy beachhead and overrun the launching sites in Northern France, the ''Luftwaffe'' switched to air-launching V-1s over the North Sea, and 2 AA Group had to reposition its defences once again, this time down the South East Coast. This offensive petered out in January 1945. Whittaker was awarded a CB in 1943, and a

in 1945. He was made a substantive major-general on 11 April 1945 near the end of the war.''Quarterly Army List'' July 1945.

Recreation

Whittaker listed his recreation as

Rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...

. He served as honorary treasurer and president of the Kent County Rugby Football Union, as present of the London RFU, and was a member of the Rugby Football Union committee.

Family life

Whittaker married Minnie B. Miles in 1919 and they had one daughter. His wife died in 1953 and in 1956 he married Brenda L. Johansen. Whittaker died in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

after a long illness on 17 February 1967.

Notes

References

* Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * Mike Osborne, ''20th century defences in the London area'', Market Deeping: Concrete Publications, 2006, .
Sir Frederick Pile's despatch: "The Anti-Aircraft Defence of the United Kingdom from 28th July, 1939, to 15th April, 1945" ''London Gazette'' 18 December 1947
* Brig N.W. Routledge, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Anti-Aircraft Artillery 1914–55'', London: Royal Artillery Institution/Brassey's, 1994, * ''Who Was Who'', A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014. *

External sources

British Military History
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whittaker, Robert Frederick Edward 1894 births 1967 deaths British Army major generals People educated at Ardingly College Royal Artillery officers Anti-Aircraft Command officers British Army generals of World War II Companions of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire British Army personnel of World War I Royal Garrison Artillery officers Royal Garrison Artillery soldiers