{{short description|General in the British Army}} {{Use British English|date=November 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}} {{Infobox military person | honorific_prefix = [[Major general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] | name = Robert Ross | honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|CB|DSO|MC}} | image = Negative H24742 (cropped).jpg | image_size = 225px | alt = | caption = Ross in 1942 | nickname = "Bobby"<br/>"Willie"{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} | birth_date = {{birth date|1893|08|23|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Gibraltar]]<ref name="ancestry.com">https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/robert-knox-ross-24-grlqhc?geo_a=r&geo_s=us&geo_t=us&geo_v=2.0.0&o_xid=62916&o_lid=62916&o_sch=Partners {{User-generated source|certain=yes|date=July 2022}}</ref> | death_date = {{death date and age|1951|11|03|1893|08|23|df=yes}} | death_place = [[Regent's Park]], [[London]], England<ref name="ancestry.com"/> | burial_place = [[Shalford, Surrey|Shalford Cemetery]], Surrey, England | allegiance = United Kingdom | branch = [[British Army]] | service_years = 1913–1946 | rank = [[Major-general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] | service_number = 5517 | unit = [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)|Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)]] | commands = [[Aldershot Command|Aldershot and Hampshire District]] (1945–1946)<br/>[[53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division]] (1942–1945)<br/>[[160th (Welsh) Brigade|160th Infantry Brigade]] (1940–1942)<br/>2nd Battalion, [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)|Queen's Royal Regiment]] (1937–1940) | battles = [[First World War]]<br/>[[1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine|Arab Revolt in Palestine]]<br/>[[Second World War]] | awards = [[Companion of the Order of the Bath]]<br/>[[Distinguished Service Order]]<br/>[[Military Cross]]<br/>[[Mentioned in Despatches]] (3)<br/>[[Legion of Honour]] (France)<br/>[[Croix de guerre 1939–1945 (France)|Croix de guerre]] (France) | relations = | other_work = }} [[Major-general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] '''Robert Knox Ross''', {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100|sep=,|CB|DSO|MC}} (23 August 1893 – 3 November 1951) was a senior [[British Army]] officer who, during the [[Second World War]], commanded the [[53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division]] throughout the [[Western Front (World War II)|campaign in North-West Europe]] from June 1944 until May 1945.{{sfn|Devine|2015|p=85}}
==Early life and military career== Robert Knox Ross was born on 23 August 1893, the son of a [[British Army]] officer, [[Brigadier (United Kingdom)|Brigadier General]] [[Robert James Ross (British Army officer)|Robert James Ross]] of the [[Middlesex Regiment]],{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=19}} he was educated at [[Cheltenham College]] and the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]].{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} He graduated from Sandhurst and was [[Officer (armed forces)|commissioned]] as a [[second lieutenant]] into the [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)|Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)]], the second most senior line infantry regiment of the British Army, on 5 February 1913.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=28687|page=843|date=4 February 1913}}</ref>{{sfn|Devine|2015|p=84}} He served with the 2nd Battalion, Queen's in South Africa and [[Bermuda]].<ref name=bio>{{cite web|url=http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/colonels_and_co/commanding_officers/queens_west_surrey/023.html|title=Major General R K Ross CB DSO MC|publisher=Queen's Royal Surreys|accessdate=3 September 2016|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924083743/http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/colonels_and_co/commanding_officers/queens_west_surrey/023.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
On the outbreak of the [[First World War]], in August 1914, the battalion, stationed in [[Pretoria]], was sent to England, arriving there in September, where it became part of the [[22nd Brigade (United Kingdom)|22nd Brigade]] of the [[7th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)|7th Division]]. On 22 September Ross was promoted to [[Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines)|lieutenant]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=28939|page=8238|date=13 October 1914|supp=y}}</ref> The battalion was sent to the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] in October and Ross, commanding a [[platoon]] in 'A' Company, with his battalion, fought in the [[First Battle of Ypres]], where he was one of the few officers not killed or wounded. On 22 October 1915, he was promoted to [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|captain]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29390|page=12062|date=3 December 1915}}</ref> Ross remained on the Western Front until 1916, upon promotion to the staff and becoming [[brigade major]] of the [[27th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|27th Brigade]], and later the [[233rd Brigade (United Kingdom)|233rd Brigade]] in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]] in the [[Middle Eastern theatre of World War I|Middle Eastern theatre]].{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=19}}<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29903|page=572|date=12 January 1917|supp=y}}</ref> In 1916 he became a [[Staff (military)|General Staff Officer Grade 2]] (GSO2) with the [[60th (2/2nd London) Division]], part of the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] (EEF).{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=19}} He ended the war in 1918 having been awarded the [[Distinguished Service Order]] (DSO), in January 1918,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=30450|page=25|date=28 December 1917|supp=y}}</ref> [[Military Cross]] (MC) in February 1915,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29074|page=1691|date=16 February 1915|supp=y}}</ref> and was thrice [[mentioned in dispatches|mentioned in despatches]].{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}}{{sfn|Devine|2015|p=84}}
==Between the wars== Remaining in the British Army during the [[interwar period]], he served as [[adjutant]] of the 2nd Battalion, Queen's Royal Regiment in [[British Raj|India]] from 14 May 1919<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=31687|page=15570|date=12 December 1919|supp=y}}</ref> until September 1923. He was seconded to the [[Egyptian Army]] and the [[Sudan Defence Force]] (SDF) for almost a decade, from 21 September 1923<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=32881|page=7947|date=20 November 1923}}</ref> until 1932.<ref name=bio/> He married Kathleen Ogden in 1933 and, in 1937, he was promoted to [[Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom)|lieutenant colonel]]<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=34397|page=3110|date=11 May 1937}}</ref> and assumed command of the 2nd Battalion of his regiment, then serving in Palestine during the [[1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine|Arab revolt]], for which he was awarded his fourth mention in despatches.{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} While there he first met [[Major-general (United Kingdom)|Major General]] [[Bernard Montgomery]], [[General officer commanding|General Officer Commanding]] (GOC) of the [[8th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)|8th Division]], of which the 2nd Queen's formed part of, serving in the [[14th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|14th Brigade]]. Unlike many others who later became senior commanders, Ross did not attend the staff colleges at either [[Staff College, Camberley|Camberley]] or [[Pakistan Command and Staff College|Quetta]].{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} He was mentioned in despatches for his services in Palestine in September 1939.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=34684|page=6330|date=15 September 1939}}</ref>
==Second World War== Still serving in Palestine upon the outbreak of the [[Second World War]], the battalion moved, in January 1940, to [[Brigadier (United Kingdom)|Brigadier]] [[Cyril Lomax]]'s [[16th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|16th Brigade]]. In April he returned to the United Kingdom and, on 24 April, was promoted to the [[acting rank]] of brigadier, and took command of the [[160th Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Wales|160th Infantry Brigade]], a [[Army Reserve (United Kingdom)|Territorial Army]] (TA) formation then serving in [[Northern Ireland]] with its parent unit, the [[53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division]], then commanded by Major General [[Bevil Wilson]].
On 12 September 1942, promoted to acting major general,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=35786|page=4978|date=13 November 1942}}</ref> he became the GOC of the 53rd Division, succeeding Major General [[Gerard Bucknall]].{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=19}} His rank of major general was made temporary on 12 September 1943,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=36186|page=4295|date=24 September 1943|supp=y}}</ref> and permanent on 12 December 1944 (with seniority backdated to 3 February 1944)<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=36934|page=857|date=9 February 1945|supp=y}}</ref>
[[File:The Life and work Edward G Malindine, Photojournalist and Official Army Photographer 1906 - 1970 HU102819.jpg|thumb|left|Field Marshal [[Bernard Montgomery|Sir Bernard Montgomery]] poses for a group photograph with members of his staff, along with his army, corps and division commanders, at Walbeck, Germany, 22 March 1945. Pictured standing in the third row, on the furthest right, is Major General Robert Knox Ross.]]
Ross trained the division in England for the next 21 months, leading it with great success during [[Operation Overlord]], codename for the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] [[invasion of Normandy]], in the summer of 1944. His 53rd Division sustained heavy casualties in the [[Battle for Caen]] and the battles that followed, but by the end of the campaign in Normandy had captured some 3,500 [[Wehrmacht|German troops]] as [[Prisoner of war|prisoners of war]] (POWs). The division then, in the aftermath of the [[Falaise Pocket|Battle of Falaise]] (where Captain [[Tasker Watkins]] of the 1/5th Battalion, [[Welch Regiment]] was awarded the division's only [[Victoria Cross]] of the war), took part in the pursuit of the retreating German forces during the [[Allied advance from Paris to the Rhine]], entering the [[Netherlands]] and playing a relatively minor role in [[Operation Market Garden]], capturing the town of [['s-Hertogenbosch]], later being one of the few British divisions to play a part in the [[Battle of the Bulge]]. In February 1945 the division played a significant role in [[Operation Veritable]] (Battle of the Reichswald), later crossing the [[Rhine|River Rhine]] in March and taking part in the [[Western Allied invasion of Germany]], eventually ending the war in [[Hamburg]] in May. He continued to command the division in the [[Allied-occupied Germany|Allied occupation of Germany]].{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} Ross was made a [[Order of the Bath|Companion of the Order of the Bath]] (CB) on 1 February 1945.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=36917|date=30 January 1945|page=669|supp=y}}</ref>
==Postwar years== For his services in North-West Europe, Ross was appointed a [[Companion of the Order of the Bath]] in 1945, and awarded the French [[Legion of Honour]] and the [[Croix de guerre 1939–1945 (France)|Croix de guerre]], the latter two in 1944.<ref name=bio/> In November 1945, after three years as GOC, he relinquished command of the 53rd Division. The division historian described "the departure of General Ross" as a "sad event." Ross "had been associated with the Division since May 1940, first as Commander of the 160th Brigade, and from September 1942 as Divisional Commander. He was one of the few who held the same command from the time of the early fighting in Normandy until the German surrender. The uninterrupted successes of the Division during nearly a year of continuous fighting were the measures of the qualities of this fine officer."{{sfn|Barclay|1956|p=188}} He then commanded the [[Aldershot Command|Aldershot and Hampshire District]] in [[Southeast England]] before his retirement from the British Army in December 1946.{{sfn|Smart|2005|p=277}} He died suddenly on 3 November 1951, at the age of 58.
==Personality== Despite being not nearly as well known as other senior British commanders, [[General (United Kingdom)|General]] [[Charles Harington (British Army officer, born 1910)|Sir Charles Harington]], then CO of the 1st Battalion, [[Manchester Regiment]], who later became GSO1, claimed Ross was "popular with everyone" and a "Father figure to the troops."{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=19}} H. C. Kenway, then a junior staff officer, described Ross as "confident and impressive and greatly respected as a commander", although he "was not charismatic like many other generals and was rather reserved and introspective by nature. In my experience he was always courteous, never overbearing and never tried to impress as a great 'character' like a Monty, a [[George S. Patton|Patton]] or a [[Brian Horrocks|Horrocks]]. He was ruthless when necessary, as all successful commanders need to be at times, but I do not think he was ever unfair."{{sfn|Delaforce|2015|p=21}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==Bibliography== *{{cite book| last = Barclay | first = C. N.| year = 1956| title = The History of the 53rd (Welsh) Division in the Second World War| publisher = Wm. Clowes & Sons|author-link=C. N. Barclay| location = London| oclc = 36762829}} *{{cite book|title=Red Crown & Dragon: 53rd Welsh Division in North-West Europe 1944–1945|last=Delaforce |first=P.|year=2015 |orig-year=1996|publisher=Tom Donovan|location=Brighton|edition=Thistle|author-link=Patrick Delaforce|isbn=978-1-91019-863-6}} *{{cite book|first=Louis Paul|last=Devine|title=The British Way of War in Northwest Europe 1944−5: A Study of Two Infantry Divisions|isbn=978-1-4742-2564-9|year=2015|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing}} *{{cite book| first=Nick| last=Smart| title=Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War| isbn=1844150496| year=2005| location=Barnesley| publisher=Pen & Sword}}
==External links== *[https://generals.dk/general/Ross/Robert_Knox/Great_Britain.html Generals of World War II] *[https://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/colonels_and_co/commanding_officers/queens_west_surrey/major-general-rk-ross.shtml Biography: Major-General R K Ross, CB DSO MC]
{{s-start}} {{s-mil}} {{s-bef|before=[[Gerard Bucknall]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division|GOC 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division]]|years=1942–1945}} {{s-aft|after=[[Francis Matthews (British Army officer)|Francis Matthews]]}} |- {{s-bef|before=[[Henry Curtis (British Army officer)|Henry Curtis]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Aldershot Command|GOC-in-C Aldershot and Hampshire District]]|years=1945–1946}} {{s-aft|after=[[Noel Holmes]]}} {{s-end}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Robert}} [[Category:1893 births]] [[Category:1951 deaths]] [[Category:Gibraltarian military personnel]] [[Category:British Army major generals]] [[Category:Burials in Surrey]] [[Category:British Army generals of World War II]] [[Category:British Army personnel of World War I]] [[Category:British military personnel of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine]] [[Category:Companions of the Distinguished Service Order]] [[Category:Companions of the Order of the Bath]] [[Category:Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst]] [[Category:British recipients of the Legion of Honour]] [[Category:People educated at Cheltenham College]] [[Category:Queen's Royal Regiment officers]] [[Category:British recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France)]] [[Category:Recipients of the Military Cross]]