Major General Sir (Thomas) John Willoughby Winterton
KCB,
KCMG,
CBE
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 ...
,
DL (13 April 1898 – 14 December 1987) was a
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 ...
officer who was the Military Governor and Commander of the British and US Zone of the
Free Territory of Trieste
The Free Territory of Trieste was an independent territory in Southern Europe between Italy and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, facing the north part of the Adriatic Sea, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 16, direct responsibility of ...
from 1951 to 1954.
Military career
Born on 13 April 1898 at
Newbury, Berkshire
Newbury is a market town in West Berkshire, England, in the valley of the River Kennet. It is south of Oxford, north of Winchester, southeast of Swindon and west of Reading, Berkshire, Reading. It is also where West Berkshire Council is hea ...
, Winterton was educated at
Oundle School
Oundle School is a public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging boarding school, boarding and day school) for pupils 11–18 situated in the market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire ...
and at the
Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of Officer (armed forces), commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers o ...
, from where he was
commissioned into the
Royal Field Artillery
The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...
in 1917, 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 ...
.
[Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives]
/ref>
After the war, he married, in 1921, and was adjutant
Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...
to a Territorial Army (TA) unit, from 1925 to 1929, before being posted to Burma
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
in 1930 and later 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 ...
from 1936 to 1937. In 1938 he was sent to the Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which ...
as an instructor, and transferred to the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1958, serving in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II.
The regiment was formed as a consequence of th ...
upon the recommendation of the Commandant of the Staff College, Camberley, Major General Bernard Paget.[Obituary Royal Green Jackets Chronicle 1987 p. 275.]
He served in 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 ...
initially as Deputy Adjutant and Quartermaster General for I Corps in which role he took part in the Dunkirk evacuation
The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...
.[ He became Chief of Staff to the General Officer Commanding Burma, Harold Alexander, in 1942 and was given command of a brigade in Burma in 1943 and then in Italy in 1944.][
After the war, he became Deputy Commissioner of the Allied Control Commission for Austria 1945 and then became British High Commissioner and Commander-in-Chief ]Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
in 1950.[ He went on to be Military Governor and Commander of the British and US Zone of the ]Free Territory of Trieste
The Free Territory of Trieste was an independent territory in Southern Europe between Italy and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, facing the north part of the Adriatic Sea, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 16, direct responsibility of ...
from 1951 to 1954 before retiring in 1955.[ Winterton was Colonel Commandant of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry from 1955 to 1958 and Colonel Commandant of the ]1st Green Jackets (43rd and 52nd)
The 1st Green Jackets (43rd and 52nd) was an infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1958 to 1966. The regiment served in the Cyprus Emergency, Brunei Revolt, Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation and West Berlin. The regiment formed ...
from 1958 to 1960.[ He lived in Newbury, ]Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...
.[
Winterton was also an Aide-de-camp to the King.
]
Personal life
He married Helen Cross in 1921 with whom he was to have three sons.[
One son, Cecil John Winterton (1922–2012), was an Anglican priest from 1951 to 1955. He then converted to Catholicism, joined the ]Oratory of Saint Philip Neri
The Confederation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri (), abbreviated C.O. and commonly known as the Oratorians, is a Catholic Church, Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right for men (priests and Religious brother, religious brot ...
in 1961 (taking the religious name
A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts.
Christianity
Catholic Church Baptismal name
In baptism, Catholic Church, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should n ...
"Gregory"), and was ordained as a Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...
in 1963. He was Provost
Provost may refer to:
Officials
Ecclesiastic
* Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official
* Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official
Government
* Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...
of the Birmingham Oratory
The Birmingham Oratory is a Catholic religious community of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, located in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham. The community was founded in 1849 by John Henry Newman as the first house of that congregation in England. ...
(1971-1992), and was also a teacher at St Philip's Grammar School, Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
.
Winterton died on 14 December 1987.[
]
References
Bibliography
*
External links
Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winterton, John
1898 births
1987 deaths
British Army personnel of World War I
British Army generals of World War II
Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
Royal Artillery officers
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry officers
Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath
Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Deputy lieutenants of Berkshire
People from Newbury, Berkshire
People educated at Oundle School
Graduates of the Staff College, Quetta
British Army major generals
Academics of the Staff College, Camberley
Military personnel from Berkshire
Royal Field Artillery officers