Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Sir Dudley Russell KBE, CB, DSO, MC (1 December 18964 February 1978) was a senior

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of both the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

and the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

, and served during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, where he commanded the 8th Indian Infantry Division during the Italian Campaign from late 1943 until the end of the war in 1945.

Early career

Russell received a temporary

commission In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

in 1914 and in 1915 joined the 7th (Service) Battalion, Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment) with whom he served during

. In October 1917 he transferred to the

and in November was commissioned as a lieutenant into the 97th Deccan Infantry serving in Egypt. In March 1919, as an acting captain he was awarded the MC, the citation for which read Russell's promotion to substantive captain did not come until 1923 but was antedated to June 1919. In the 1922 reorganisation of the Indian Army his regiment became the 3rd Battalion of the 19th Hyderabad Regiment. During the period between the world wars he attended the

Staff College, Quetta The Command and Staff College Quetta is a staff college for the Pakistan Armed Forces and military officers from allied countries. Established in 1905 as Staff College, Deolali, it was later shifted to its present location in 1907 and has been a ...

. In 1935 he transferred to the 6th Royal (Scinde) battalion 13th Frontier Force Rifles. In 1936 he qualified as a higher standard interpreter in

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

which resulted in his widely used nickname of "Pasha". He was promoted lieutenant colonel in April 1938 and commanded the 6th Battalion from 1938 to 1940.

World War II

East Africa

In August 1940 his battalion joined 9th Indian Infantry Brigade, part of the newly formed 5th Indian Infantry Division and was shipped to the

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

. Here he was appointed the division's GSO1 (senior headquarters staff officer), replacing Frank Messervy who took command of ''Gazelle Force'' which was being formed as a mobile strike force to operate against the Italians along the border with

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

. From October 1940 to August 1941 during the East African Campaign Colonel Russell continued in this role performing a key function in the campaign fought by 4th and 5th Indian Infantry Division in Eritrea. He negotiated the surrender of the Italian forces commanded by Amadeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta at Amba Alagi. For his services in East Africa Russell was awarded the OBE.

North Africa

The 5th Indian Division moved to

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

in June 1941 and then

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in August, returning to Egypt in October more or less coincidental with Russell's promotion 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 (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

and assuming command of the 4th Indian Infantry Division's 5th Indian Infantry Brigade, part of XIII Corps in the newly created

British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was a field army of the British Army during the Second World War. It was formed as the Western Army on 10 September 1941, in Egypt, before being renamed the Army of the Nile and then the Eighth Army on 26 September. It was cr ...

. On 18 November 1941 Eighth Army launched

Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert campaign during World War II by the British Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) against the Axis forces (German and ...

. Initially Russell's brigade, short of transport, was delegated to protect lines of communication. By 26 November it was moving to the front. By mid December the brigade was involved in intense fighting against the armour of

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

's ''

Afrika Korps The German Africa Corps (, ; DAK), commonly known as Afrika Korps, was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its Africa ...

'' at Alem Hamsa where the 1st Battalion,

Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment), formerly the 3rd Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army traditionally raised in the English county of Kent and garrisoned at Canterbury. It had a history dating back to 1572 and ...

were destroyed as a fighting unit and were temporarily replaced by 1st Battalion,

6th Rajputana Rifles The 6th Rajputana Rifles was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. Formed in 1921, it initially consisted of five active battalions and one training battalion. History Formation and class composition In 1921, the British Indian Army ...

. In March 1942 4th Indian Division was dispersed and the brigade was sent to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

but hastily summoned back to the western desert after Rommel's breakthrough at the

Battle of Gazala The Battle of Gazala, also the Gazala Offensive (Italian language, Italian: ''Battaglia di Ain el-Gazala'') was fought near the village of Gazala during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, west of the port of Tobruk in Libya, f ...

. Initially attached to 5th Indian Division, the brigade was transferred to 10th Indian Infantry Division as it withdrew from Libya to the defensive position at

Mersa Matruh Mersa Matruh (), also transliterated as Marsa Matruh ( Standard Arabic ''Marsā Maṭrūḥ'', ), is a port in Egypt and the capital of Matrouh Governorate. It is located west of Alexandria and east of Sallum on the main highway from the Nile ...

in Egypt. On 28 June the brigade found its line of withdrawal from Metrsa Matruh cut and was forced to break out southwards into the desert in small parties before turning east and reforming behind the defensive position at El Alamein. For his leadership of the brigade in the period from November 1941 to April 1942 Russell was awarded in September 1942 the DSO. Having reorganised, the brigade was once more attached to 5th Indian Division and during mid July fought in the battles of Ruweisat Ridge, part of series of engagements now called the First Battle of El Alamein. The brigade continued to hold positions on or near the Ruweisat Ridge up to November and the

Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...

. By this time 5th Indian Division had been relieved and the brigade was once more part of 4th Indian Division. For his services between May and October Russell was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. 4th Indian Division's initial role in the second Alamein battle was to make diversionary displays from Ruweisat Ridge while the main offensive went into the north. In early November the 2nd New Zealand Division had made a salient into the

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

lines and 5th Indian Brigade were attached to the exhausted 51st (Highland) Infantry Division to complete the breakthrough. By dawn on 4 November the brigade had secured its objectives opening the way for the British armour.

Iraq and Syria

In January 1943 Russell was appointed

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad range of sk ...

major-general and appointed to command 8th Indian Infantry Division in

. When the German defeat at the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad ; see . rus, links=on, Сталинградская битва, r=Stalingradskaya bitva, p=stəlʲɪnˈɡratskəjə ˈbʲitvə. (17 July 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, ...

removed the threat to Iraq and

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

from the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

the division was moved to

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

for training. In June 1943 the division was ordered to seize the island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

but the armistice with Italy forestalled the operation.

Italy

In September 1943 the division landed in

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

in southern Italy, destined to become engaged for the rest of the war fighting on the Italian Front. For the next three months the division fought up the eastern side of Italy as part of Eighth Army's V Corps, making crossings of the rivers Biferno, Trigno and in late November the Sangro. By mid-December they had crossed the Moro but

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Sir Bernard Montgomery, the Eighth Army commander, called off offensive operations as deteriorating winter weather and conditions underfoot made further attacks impractical and 8th Indian Division were tasked to hold the front between Orsogna and the

Apennine Mountains The Apennines or Apennine Mountains ( ; or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; or – a singular with plural meaning; )Latin ''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which would be segmented ''Apenn-inus'', often used with nouns s ...

. At the beginning of May 1944, 8th Indian Division had been attached to XIII Corps and switched in secrecy across the Apennines to the mouth of the Liri valley beneath

Monte Cassino The Abbey of Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a Catholic Church, Catholic, Benedictines, Benedictine monastery on a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Valle Latina, Latin Valley. Located on the site of the ancient ...

for the fourth

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome, was a series of four military assaults by the Allies of World War II, Allies against Nazi Germany, German forces in Kingdom of Italy, Italy during the Italian Campaign (World War ...

, '' Operation Diadem''. 8th Indian and British 4th Division were given the job to get across the fast-flowing Rapido river and establish bridgeheads. The attack went in on the night of 11 May and by 09.00 the next morning Russell's divisional engineers had erected a

Bailey bridge A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, Prefabrication, pre-fabricated, Truss Bridge, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British Empire in World War II, British for military use during the World War II, Second World War and saw ...

to allow supporting armour into the bridgehead to repel German armoured counterattacks. By 13 May the Germans fell back and

1st Canadian Infantry Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short notice, and is staffed a ...

passed through the

bridgehead In military strategy, a bridgehead (or bridge-head) is the strategically important area of ground around the end of a bridge or other place of possible crossing over a body of water which at time of conflict is sought to be defended or taken over ...

to lead the advance. 8th Indian Division now came under X Corps for a 150-mile advance before being rested at the end of June. In August 1944 Russell was awarded the CBE. After three weeks' rest the division re-joined XIII Corps, which by this time formed the right wing of the U.S. Fifth Army, under Mark Clark, to liberate

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

before moving into the central Apennines and advance north east to confront the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (; ) was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains du ...

. Monte Citerna on the Gothic line was taken on 9 September but this only heralded another two and a half months fighting, making slow progress in poor conditions and wild terrain. In late 1944, as Eighth Army ground its way forward across the division's front from the right, the Germans withdrew from 8th Indian Division's sector to shorten their front line and lines of communication. In late December Russell was ordered to take two brigades to the far western wing of the Fifth Army where the inexperienced U.S. 92nd Infantry Division was thought by the new Fifth Army commander, Lieutenant General Lucian K. Truscott, to be very vulnerable. On 26 December the Germans broke through towards Russell's rearguard positions but the attack was not carried through and 8th Indian Division recovered the lost ground. The division was then withdrawn to rest at

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

. On 8 February Indian Division was moved to the Adriatic front once more to join Eighth Army's V Corps once again and take up positions on the river Senio. The main attack on the Senio started on 9 April 1945. By the evening 8th Indian Division, with the

New Zealanders New Zealanders are people associated with New Zealand, sharing a common History of New Zealand, history, Culture of New Zealand, culture, and language (New Zealand English). People of various ethnicities and national origins are citizens of Ne ...

on their left, had in furious fighting against desperate defence created a bridgehead one and a half miles deep. On 11 April they made a strongly opposed crossing of the river Santerno before allowing the British 78th Division to pass through into the Argenta Gap. After a brief pause for rest, during which time 78th Division and British 56th Division had forced the Argenta Gap defences, 8th Indian Division were put back in the front line to take

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

and be the first Eighth Army formation to reach the

river Po The Po ( , ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy, starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is , or if the Maira, a right bank tributary, is included. The headwaters of the Po are formed by a spring ...

. After crossing the Po the division crossed the river

Adige The Adige is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the province of South Tyrol, near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland, and flows through most of northeastern Italy ...

on 28 April and was ordered to halt. Following the formal cessation of hostilities on 2 May, 8 Indian Division was repatriated to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

during June. Russell's temporary rank of major-general was made substantive in November and he was appointed Companion of the Bath (CB). He was also mentioned in despatches and received the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

, Degree of Commander.

Post war

The 8th Indian Division was disbanded in April 1946 and Russell was appointed to command 5th Indian Division. In 1947 Russell became C-in-C Delhi and East Punjab Command in the acting rank of lieutenant-general before in 1948 becoming Chief Advisor to the Indian Army. He was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

ed KBE in the 1950 New Year's honours list at the request of the Indian government and retired in July 1954 retaining the honorary rank of lieutenant-general.

Personal

He married Elizabeth Birket in 1929.

Honours and decorations

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

2 January 1950 (CBE 31 August 1944, OBE, 30 December 1941) :

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

5 June 1945 :

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

9 September 1942 :

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

8 March 1919 :

Mention in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

24 June 1943, 23 June 1945 : Commander, Legion of Merit (United States) 2 August 1945

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

Generals of World War II
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Dudley 1896 births 1978 deaths Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I Indian Army personnel of World War I Indian Army generals of World War II Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Military Cross Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Legion of Merit Graduates of the Staff College, Quetta People from Bexleyheath British Indian Army generals Military personnel from the London Borough of Bexley