Herbert Thomas Dobbin

Last updated

Brigadier-General

Herbert Thomas Dobbin

CBE DSO
Born(1878-05-27)27 May 1878
Died9 September 1946(1946-09-09) (aged 68)
Budleigh Salterton, England
AllegianceFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Service/branchFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
Rank Brigadier-General
Commands held Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
Awards CBE
DSO
Mentioned in Despatches (3)

Brigadier-General Herbert Thomas Dobbin CBE DSO (1878-1946) was a British Infantry officer of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry. He commanded a number of Battalions during the First World War and in 1918 was appointed GOC of the 75th Brigade. After the War he became Commandant of the Iraq Levies and Colonel Commandant of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry. [1]

Contents

Early life

Herbert Thomas Dobbin was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel G. M. Dobbin and was born on 27 May 1878. [2] He was educated at Bedford Modern School and was commissioned a second-lieutenant in the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry on 18 January 1899. [3] [4] He saw active service in Africa, and from 1911 to 1913 was commander of the Gambia Company, part of the West African Frontier Force. [5]

First World War

As an experienced professional soldier Dobbin was attached to a variety of Regiments as battalion commander during the War. From 29 June to 6 September 1916 he commanded the 1/4th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment. [6] From 7 September 1916 to 24 February 1917, he commanded the 1/8th Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. [7] From 30 May 1917 to 11 July 1917 he commanded the 1/8th (Ardwick) Battalion of the Manchester Regiment at Havrincourt Wood, after which he was appointed the Commander of the 4th Army Military School. [8] He was appointed GOC of the 75th Infantry Brigade on 8 February 1918 and was its commander during the German offensive at the First Battle of Bapaume during the following month. [9]

He was awarded the DSO in 1916 and was Mentioned in Despatches three times. [10] [11] He was also awarded the Croix de Guerre. [12]

Post-War Service

After the war Dobbin saw further service in West Africa before assuming command of the Iraq Levies in October 1922. This was a force of roughly brigade-strength drawn in large numbers from Iraq's non-Muslim population. [13] In 1923 Dobbin was appointed a CBE in recognition of his command of this force. [10] In 1926 he returned to England and until 1930 served as Colonel-Commandant of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry. [10]

Herbert Dobbin retired from the Army in 1935. He died at Budleigh Salterton, Devon on 9 September 1946. He was unmarried. [10] [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Crowther Roberts</span>

Major-General Frank Crowther Roberts, was a British Army officer and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry</span> Military unit

The Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry (SCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army. It was formed in October 1959 by the merger of the Somerset Light Infantry and the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, and was itself merged with three other regiments of the Light Infantry Brigade in 1968 to form The Light Infantry.

The 6th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II, created on 1 March 1941 in Secunderabad. On 11 September 1941 it was shipped to the Iraq and later Iran. During 1942 and 1943 it was part of the Tenth Army. The division remained in the Middle East where it was disbanded on 15 October 1944 in Basra, Iraq. During World War II its commanders included Major-General James Noel Thomson, Major-General Arthur Holworthy, and Major-General B.H. Chappel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald Lathbury</span> British Army general (1906–1978)

General Sir Gerald William Lathbury, was a senior British Army officer who fought during the Second World War, serving with distinction with the British Army's airborne forces, commanding the 1st Parachute Brigade in Sicily, Italy and Holland. He later became Governor of Gibraltar from 1965 to 1969.

Lieutenant-General Sir Harold Rawdon Briggs, was a senior British Indian Army officer, active during World War I and World War II and the Malayan Emergency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry</span> Light infantry regiment of the British Army

The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959.

Lieutenant-General Sir Cyril Frederick Charles Coleman, was a senior British Army officer.

Lieutenant General Sir Edwin Otway Herbert, was a senior British Army officer who served during the Second World War and achieved high command in the 1950s.

Lieutenant General Sir David Peel Yates KCB CVO DSO OBE was a senior British Army officer who served in the Second World War and reached high office during the 1960s.

Lieutenant General Sir Richard Elton Goodwin, was a senior British Army officer. He served in the Second World War as Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion, Suffolk Regiment during the campaign in Northwest Europe from June 1944 until May 1945, and later reached high office in the 1960s.

Major General Vivian Henry Bruce Majendie, was a British Army officer and amateur cricketer for Somerset County Cricket Club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vyvyan Evelegh</span> British Army general (1898–1958)

Major General Vyvyan Evelegh, was a senior officer of the British Army during the Second World War, commanding the 78th Infantry Division and the 6th Armoured Division in Tunisia and Italy.

The Coronation Honours 1911 for the British Empire were announced on 19 June 1911, to celebrate the Coronation of George V which was held on 22 June 1911.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Fanshawe (British Army officer)</span>

Major-General Sir Robert Fanshawe, KCB, DSO was a British Army officer, who commanded the 48th Division from 1915 to 1918 during the First World War. He was the youngest of three brothers who all rose to command divisions or corps during the war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Churcher</span> British Army general (1905–1997)

Major-General John Bryan Churcher was a senior British Army officer who, during the Second World War, commanded the 159th Infantry Brigade during the campaign in Northwest Europe and later commanded the 3rd Infantry Division.

The New Year Honours 1923 were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were published on 29 December 1922.

The 1926 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King on 3 June, but it was announced on 20 May that due to the national strike, the King had approved the Prime Minister's recommendation to delay the publication of the list until 3 July 1926. The honours were effective to 5 June 1926. Per standard practice, Sir Paul Chater, who died 27 May 1926, still received the honour of Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire as he would have received the honour if he had survived.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Knox Ross</span> General in the British Army

Major-General Robert Knox Ross was a senior British Army officer who, during World War II, commanded the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division throughout the campaign in North-West Europe from June 1944 until May 1945.

The 1927 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were published in The London Gazette on 3 June 1927.

References

  1. ↑ "Dobbin, Brig.-Gen. Herbert Thomas, (27 May 1878–9 Sept. 1946)" . WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U224729. ISBN   978-0-19-954089-1.
  2. ↑ Who was Who Vol. IV, 1941-50 (London, 1980), p. 319
  3. ↑ The Eagle Vol. XXVI, no. 1 (1946), p. 85
  4. ↑ "The London Gazette, 17 January 1899, retrieved March 2015" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "The History of the Royal African Frontier Force, retrieved March 2015".[ permanent dead link ]
  6. ↑ "Gloucestershire Regiment, retrieved 2015".[ permanent dead link ]
  7. ↑ "Warwickshire Regiment, retrieved March 2015".[ permanent dead link ]
  8. ↑ "8th Battalion WAR DIARY". www.themanchesters.org.
  9. ↑ Lt.-Col. M. Kincaid-Smith, The 25th Division in France and Flanders at Google Books
  10. 1 2 3 4 Who was Who p. 319
  11. ↑ The Eagle p. 85
  12. ↑ "Supplement to the London Gazette, 24 October 1919, retrieved March 2015" (PDF).
  13. ↑ "1915-1932". Assyrian RAF Levies.
  14. ↑ The Eagle p. 85.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.