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Obituary (The Times November 25 1997)

Major-General John Douglas-Withers

Major-General John Douglas-Withers CBE, MC died on November 3 aged 77. He was born on December 11th 1919.

A loyal servant of the Royal Regiment of Artillery, John Douglas-Withers was an able and courageous professional soldier. Committed to the highest standards he was never happier than when training his officers and men on exercises which were demanding, realistic and, above all, fun.

Throughout the war he served as a forward observation officer (FOO) in the 113rd Field Regiment, which played a decisive part in the fighting at Salerno and in the ensuing Italian campaign. At a time when casualties among forward observation officers were high, he led a charmed life, earning the confidence and respect of the 2nd/6th and 2nd/7th Queens, whom he supported throughout most of the campaign.

56th Division did not join in the Eighth Army until it had reached Tunisia in March 1943, when Douglas-Withers was detached as an FOO to the 4th Indian Division in order to gain combat experience. He took part in and survived the battles all of the Mareth Line, Wadi Akarit and Enfidaville before returning to his own division for the invasion of Italy in September 1943, his regiment landing on the beaches at Solerno. Again he survived that battle, which Wellington would have called " a damned close-run thing" - the combined British and American landing forces almost being driven back to their ships.

Thereafter, he fought continuously with the 56th Division, participating in the crossings of the Volturno and Garigliarno rivers, the battle of Monte Camino, the grim fighting at Anzio and the breaching of the Gothic Line, followed by the debilitating winter battles across the flooded river lines south of the River Po.

The action for which he was awarded his MC occurred on the night of October 22-23 1943. He was acting as FOO to a battalion attacking a hill feature north of Volturno. While the battalion was consolidating on its objective, German counter-attacks began, and he was forced to withdraw his observation post party into a company position where he found its commander severely wounded and with no other officers left. In the midst of heavy German artillery and mortar fire, he took command of the company while continuing to direct artillery defensive fire. But for his quick grasp of the situation and his prompt action, the position might have been lost.

John Keppel Ingold Douglas-Withers was born into a military family. His father Lieutenant-Colonel H.H. ("Bunny") Douglas-Withers commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, the South Lancashire Regiment. Bunny Douglas-Withers was an extrovert communicator, who produced some of the more elaborate military displays of the interwar years, including the Aldershot Tattoo on Rushmoor Arena.

Educated at Shrewsbury School, Christ Church, Oxford and the University of Poitiers, John Douglas-Withers became an associate of the Institute of Linguistics in French and German. He undertook a 1000-mile cycling holiday in 1938 through Europe, including witnessing Hitler's Anschluss in Austria. Commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1940 he was posted to the 113rd Field Regiment.

After the war and gunnery staff training, he formed the new signals wing at the School of Artillery, moving on to run the first trials of helicopters as Air OPs. By 1948 he was commanding E. Battery of 1st Royal Horse Artillery in the Canal Zone of Egypt and later became its adjutant. The Staff College, Camberley, followed in 1950, whence he became GSO 2 in Military Operations 3 (MO 3) in the War Office, dealing with the Middle East. He moved next to Germany to join 3rd RHA in 1953, but found that his posting had been switched to King's Troop.

Such an appointment was the dream of every of horse-minded gunner. Although maintaining the impeccable standards required of the King's Troop was demanding work, he found he could hunt regularly besides taking part in show jumping, hunter trials and point to points. After enjoying three pleasant and rather old-fashioned years, he returned to the Staff College as an instructor in 1956, and was promoted brevet lieutenant-colonel (a form of accelerated a promotion) in 1958.

Returning for a short spell of regimental duty in 1959 he commanded G Battery (Mercer's Troop) in 4th RHA before becoming Assistant Military Secretary in the War Office (1961-62) responsible for staffing promotions and postings of full colonels and brigadiers.

At last senior enough to be given substantial regimental command he took over the excellent, but perhaps over serious 49th Field Regiment in Lippstadt in Germany. He commented on its efficiency by saying: " All I had to do was to take off the brakes, encourage laughter and enjoy myself."

After attending the Imperial Defence College in 1965 he was appointed to command 6th Armoured Brigade at Munster in Germany in the following year. He considered this to be the high point of his career, when he could use his skills as trainer of soldiers for the last time. He was particularly proud of the performance of his brigade on one of the early German corps exercises where it excelled.

At the end of his command he stayed on in Germany as Chief of Staff, at Bielefeld. The illness of the Corps Commander threw an additional burden on his shoulders during the busy period of 1968-70. He was appointed CBE in 1969. Although a touch disappointed not to be given a division in 1970, he settled down to command the large South-West District.

His last army job was Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Personnel & Logistics) in the Ministry of Defence. He was involved not only in the crises of the early 1970s in Malta, Honduras and Uganda, but also in the perennial struggle with the government to maintain the principle of comparability in the Armed Forces pay negotiations.

Often he retired from the army in 1974, he joined Jardine Matheson in Hong Kong, which he described as " one of the nicest regiments I have ever been in". He retired again in 1980 but continued part time, helping Lord Blake to write the history of Jardine's. He kept in close touch with the Royal Regiment of Artillery as a Colonel Commandant, a member of the Master of Gunner's Committee of 49th Field Regiment.

He married Sylvia (Dickie) Beatrice Dean in 1945. She survives him, together with a son and a daughter, the former of whom is the present Director Royal Artillery

John Douglas-Withers - Times Obituary