Major General Sir Richard Granville Hylton Howard-Vyse (27 June 1883 – 5 December 1962) was a

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

officer in 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 ...

. Howard-Vyse served in the

First World War 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 ...

commanding the 10th Cavalry Brigade, and in the

Second World War 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 ...

as the Head of British Military Mission to French High Command between 1939 and 1940. He was invested as a Knight Commander Order of St Michael and St George and awarded the

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 ...

. He also held the office of Deputy Lieutenant of

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, and was a Justice of the Peace.

Early life

Richard Granville Hylton Howard-Vyse was born on 27 June 1883, the son of Howard Henry Howard-Vyse and Mabel Diana Howard-Vyse of

Stoke Poges Stoke Poges () is a village and civil parish in south-east Buckinghamshire, England. It is centred north-north-east of Slough, its post town, and is southeast of Farnham Common. In 2021, it had a population of 5,067. Geography Hamlets withi ...

. He had two siblings, George Cecil Howard-Vyse died, and Lilly Eleanor Howard-Vyse.

Military career

Howard-Vyse was commissioned as a second-lieutenant in the

Royal Horse Guards The Royal Regiment of Horse Guards, also known as the Blues, or abbreviated as RHG, was one of the cavalry regiments of the British Army and part of the Household Cavalry. In 1969, it was amalgamated with the 1st The Royal Dragoons to form the ...

in December 1902. Five years later, in 1907, he was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

and made regimental

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 ...

in September 1907. In March the following year he relinquished being adjutant, and in April was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Now a captain, Howard-Vyse attended the British Army's

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 ...

from January 1911. After Staff College he became a

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

for the 5th Cavalry Brigade, still ranked as a captain, in May 1914. By July 1915 he was a General Staff officer 2nd Grade, still with the 5th Cavalry Brigade. On 1917, following a request from General

Edmund Allenby Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby, (23 April 1861 – 14 May 1936) was a senior British Army Officer (armed forces), officer and imperial governor. He fought in the Second Boer ...

Howard-Vyse was sent to the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

as the Chief Staff Officer for the

Desert Mounted Corps The Desert Mounted Corps was an army corps of the British Army during the First World War, of three mounted divisions renamed in August 1917 by General Edmund Allenby, from Desert Column. These divisions which served in the Sinai and Palestine ...

, with the brevet rank of lieutenant colonel and the temporary rank of brigadier general. For his service he was made a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

in April 1918. Then in July 1918 he assumed the command of the 10th Cavalry Brigade.

Post war

Howard-Vyse became the next commandant of the Zeitoun School of Instruction, in

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 ...

. It was followed by command of his regiment the Royal Horse Guards from 1922 to 1926. It was at Cairo that he married his fiancée, Phyllis Hermione, daughter of Francis Saxham Elwas Drury, on 15 October 1925. He returned to the War Office in 1927 as a grade 1 General Staff officer; and thence was sent to Egypt in 1928 as the commander of the Cairo Cavalry Brigade. His next appointment was the Inspector of Cavalry and commandant of the Equitation School from 1930 to 1934. He was then made the chief of staff to

Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (Henry William Frederick Albert; 31 March 1900 – 10 June 1974) was a member of the British royal family. He was the third son of King George V and Mary of Teck, Queen Mary, and was a younger brother of kings E ...

for his tour of Australia, being awarded a

knighthood 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 ...

Later career

Howard-Vyse retired from the army in 1935, and in November 1937 was admitted to the

King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

of the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

and became the

High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire The High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'. Sheriff is the oldest secular office under th ...

. He became the Honorary Colonel of the 99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

from 1938. He was recalled up to military service, with a special appointment, in August 1939, becoming the head of British Military Mission to the French High Command and returning to the reserve list when he relinquished his special appointment in July 1940. On 14 June 1940, Howard-Vyse was told by

Alanbrooke Field Marshal Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke (23 July 1883 – 17 June 1963), was a senior officer of the British Army. He was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), the professional head of the British Army, during the Secon ...

to fly home to London to explain to

John Dill Field Marshal Sir John Greer Dill, (25 December 1881 – 4 November 1944) was a senior British Army officer with service in both the First World War and the Second World War. From May 1940 to December 1941 he was the Chief of the Imperial Gene ...

(CIGS) that the proposed Brittany Defence Scheme (Redoubt) was quite impossible, and all British troops should be evacuated from France as quickly as possible. Later that day at Le Mans (the L of C HQ) Alanbrooke had a difficult phone call from Dill and then Churchill before Churchill agreed. In June 1950 he was removed from the reserve list by reason of age, and became the honorary colonel of the Royal Horse Guards in July 1951. As such, for the

Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Elizabeth acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon th ...

he was the Gold Stick in Waiting. Sir Richard Granville Hylton Howard-Vyse died on 5 December 1962.

References

External links