Major General Ridley Pakenham Pakenham-Walsh, (29 April 1888 – 3 November 1966) was a senior

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 served as Engineer-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

and later as

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

Northern Ireland District and

IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to: France * 9th Army Corps (France) * IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German ...

.Pakenham-Walsh, Vol IX, Appendix A.Smart, pp. 244−5.

Military career

After attending 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 ...

, Pakenham-Walsh was commissioned into the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

(RE) in December 1908.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> He became an instructor at the

Royal Military College, Duntroon The Royal Military College, Duntroon, also known simply as Duntroon, is the Australian Army's Officer (armed forces), officer training establishment. It was founded at Duntroon, Australian Capital Territory, Duntroon in Canberra, Australian Capi ...

, in Australia, in 1914. Pakenham-Walsh served in

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 ...

, in the Gallipoli campaign and on the Western Front. He 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 ...

on 18 December 1914, and to Acting

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

on 9 January 1917 when he took command of a field company. He was awarded the

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 ...

in the 1918 New Year Honours list. From 15 July 1918 until the end of the war in November he held the appointment of Commander, Royal Engineers, (CRE) to 3rd Division in the final Allied

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front, the Allies pushed the Imperial Germa ...

, with the rank of acting Lieutenant-Colonel. After the war he became British Representative at the International Commission in Teschen, Poland, and attended 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 ...

from 1921 to 1922. He was then appointed an instructor in tactics at the School of Military Engineering (SME) in 1923. After attending the

Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...

in 1931 he was appointed a

General Staff Officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

and then Assistant Adjutant General (Mobilisation) at the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

, before becoming Brigadier, General Staff, of Eastern Command in 1935. In June 1939 he took up the appointment of Commandant of the SME, which also carried the titles of Inspector, RE, and

Chatham Area, but left these roles on the outbreak of

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 ...

when he was appointed as Engineer-in-Chief for the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). During the '

Phoney War The Phoney War (; ; ) was an eight-month period at the outset of World War II during which there were virtually no Allied military land operations on the Western Front from roughly September 1939 to May 1940. World War II began on 3 Septembe ...

' his office's work involved designing reinforced concrete defences around

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

. When the Phoney War ended with the German invasion of the Low Countries on 10 May, the BEF abandoned these defences and advanced to aid the Belgians under the Anglo-French Plan D. However, the German breakthrough in the

Ardennes The Ardennes ( ; ; ; ; ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France. Geological ...

threatened the BEF's flank and forced its withdrawal back into France. Soon the situation was so dangerous that Pakenham-Walsh was ordered to organise all the RE units employed at General Headquarters and on the

Lines of Communication A line of communication (or communications) is the route that connects an operating military unit with its supply base. Supplies and reinforcements are transported along the line of communication. Therefore, a secure and open line of communicat ...

into improvised infantry battalions to assist the defence. By 26 May the BEF was cut off and the decision had been made to evacuate it through

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

. The commander of

III Corps III or iii may refer to: Companies * Information International, Inc., a computer technology company * Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company * 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company Other uses * I ...

, Lt-Gen Sir Ronald Adam, was sent to command the British troops forming the perimeter covering the port and to coordinate the evacuation (

Operation Dynamo Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

) with the naval authorities, with Pakenham-Walsh to assist him. After the Dunkirk evacuation he was sent as Head of Mission to the United States, then became GOC Northern Ireland District in 1940–41. He was appointed GOC of

in 1941 and commander of Salisbury Plain District in 1941–3. Early in 1943 he was appointed Controller-General Army Provision, Eastern Group, in charge of procuring all kinds of military stores from

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

and Allied sources east of

Suez Suez (, , , ) is a Port#Seaport, seaport city with a population of about 800,000 in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea, near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal. It is the capital and largest c ...

, and supplying them to the forces operating in that theatre. He retired in 1946. After retirement he was commissioned by the Institution of Royal Engineers to write the history of the Royal Engineers from 1938 to 1948, covering the whole of

. Hampered by arthritis this took him almost 10 years, but the two volumes were published in 1958. Pakenham-Walsh's name appears on a

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

in Rathmichael Church in Shankill,

County Dublin County Dublin ( or ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and holds its capital city, Dublin. It is located on the island's east coast, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Until 1994, County Dubli ...

.Irish War Memorials
/ref>

References

Bibliography

* Maj A.F. Becke, ''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 1: The Regular British Divisions'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1934/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, ISBN 1-847347-38-X. * Maj L.F. Ellis
''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War in France and Flanders 1939–1940'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1954/Uckfield: Naval & Military, 2004, 978-1-85457-056-6.
* Maj-Gen R.P. Pakenham-Walsh, ''History of the Corps of Royal Engineers'', Vol VIII, ''1938–1948: Campaigns in France and Belgium, 1939–40. Norway, Middle East, East Africa, Western Desert, North West Africa, and Activities in the U.K.'', Chatham: Institution of Royal Engineers, 1958. * Maj-Gen R.P. Pakenham-Walsh, ''History of the Corps of Royal Engineers'', Vol IX, ''1938–1948: Campaigns in Sicily and Italy: the War Against Japan: North-west Europe 1944º–45: Minor and Non-Operational Areas: Post-War 1945–48'', Chatham: Institution of Royal Engineers, 1958. *

External links

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pakenham-Walsh, Ridley 1888 births 1966 deaths Military personnel from County Kilkenny British Army lieutenant generals British Army generals of World War II Royal Engineers officers Companions of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Military Cross British Army personnel of World War I Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich People educated at Cheltenham College Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies