Mervyn McCord

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Brigadier
Mervyn McCord
CBE MC

Brigadier Mervyn McCord CBE, MC.jpg

Brigadier Mervyn McCord CBE, MC in the uniform of Colonel of the Royal Irish Rangers.
Born(1929-12-25)25 December 1929
Armagh
Died 8 February 2013(2013-02-08) (aged 83)
Allegiance Flag of the United Kingdom.svg
Service/branchFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
Rank Brigadier
Unit Royal Ulster Rifles
Commands held Ulster Defence Regiment
Battles/wars Han River
Awards CBE, MC
Spouse(s) Annette Thomson

Brigadier Mervyn Noel Samuel McCord, CBE, MC, ADC (25 December 1929 –8 February 2013) was a decorated Irish officer of the British Army who served with distinction during the Korean War and rose to be Commanding Officer of the Ulster Defence Regiment.

Brigadier (Brig) is a senior rank in the British Army and the Royal Marines. Brigadier is the superior rank to colonel, but subordinate to major-general. It corresponds to the Rank of brigadier general in many other nations.

Military Cross third-level military decoration of the British Armed Forces, Commonwealth officers

The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries.

British Army land warfare branch of the British Armed Forces of the United Kingdom

The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of British Armed Forces. As of 2018, the British Army comprises just over 81,500 trained regular (full-time) personnel and just over 27,000 trained reserve (part-time) personnel.

Contents

Early life

McCord was born on 25 December 1929 in Armagh, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. [1] He was the elder son of Major George McCord who had served with the Royal Ulster Rifles. [2] [3] He was educated at the Coleraine Academical Institution. [2] He then went to Queen's University Belfast to read Medicine but left after one year of study. [1]

Armagh County town of County Armagh in Northern Ireland

Armagh is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Primates of All Ireland for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland. In ancient times, nearby Navan Fort was a pagan ceremonial site and one of the great royal capitals of Gaelic Ireland. Today, Armagh is home to two cathedrals and the Armagh Observatory, and is known for its Georgian architecture.

County Armagh Place in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

County Armagh is one of the traditional counties of Ireland and one of six counties that form Northern Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 1,326 km² and has a population of about 174,792. County Armagh is known as the "Orchard County" because of its many apple orchards. The county is part of the historic province of Ulster.

Royal Ulster Rifles British Army infantry regiment

The Royal Irish Rifles was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd Regiment of Foot and the 86th Regiment of Foot. The regiment saw service in the Second Boer War, the First World War, the Second World War, and the Korean War.

Military career

McCord received his military training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. While there he was captain of the cross-country team and represented the Academy in athletics. [2] He was commissioned into the Royal Ulster Rifles as a second lieutenant on 16 December 1949 with seniority from the same date. He was given the service number 407952. [4]

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst British Army officer initial training centre

The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of Sandhurst, Berkshire, though its ceremonial entrance is in Camberley, southwest of London. The Academy's stated aim is to be "the national centre of excellence for leadership". All British Army officers, including late-entry officers who were previously Warrant Officers, as well as other men and women from overseas, are trained at The Academy. Sandhurst is the British Army equivalent of the Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth, Royal Air Force College Cranwell, and the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines.

Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1a rank.

A service number is an identification code used to identify a person within a large group. Service numbers are most often associated with the military; however, they may be used in civilian organizations as well. Social Security Numbers may be seen as types of service numbers.

His first tour was in 1950/51 to Korea during the Korean War with the 1st Battalion, Royal Ulster Rifles. He was awarded the Military Cross for actions that occurred on the night of 1 to 2 January 1951. General Ridgway decided to withdraw behind the Han River to the south of their position following intense pressure from Chinese force. It was McCord's platoon that brought up the rear of the retreat. [2] The valley through which they were retreating became a death trap when faced with a machine gun post. McCord rallied his troops to try and break through before finally charging the position with a comrade. They successfully destroyed the post making way for the continued retreat. He then lead his troops over the mountains to safety. [1] His citation noted "In his first action, which took place at night, McCord showed great powers of leadership and disregard for personal danger" [2] and "his personal action undoubtedly helped to extricate a number of men from a situation in which they would otherwise have been killed or captured". [1]

Korea Region in East Asia

Korea is a region in East Asia. Since 1948, it has been divided between two distinct sovereign states: North Korea and South Korea. Korea consists of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and several minor islands near the peninsula. Korea is bordered by China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and neighbours Japan to the east by the Korea Strait and the Sea of Japan.

Korean War 1950–1953 war between North Korea and South Korea

The Korean War was a war between North Korea and South Korea. The war began on 25 June 1950 when North Korea invaded South Korea following a series of clashes along the border.

Matthew Ridgway United States Army general

General Matthew Bunker Ridgway was a senior officer in the United States Army, who served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe (1952–1953) and the 19th Chief of Staff of the United States Army (1953–1955). He fought with distinction during World War II, where he was the Commanding General of the 82nd Airborne Division, leading it in action in Sicily, Italy and Normandy, before taking command of the newly formed XVIII Airborne Corps in August 1944. He held the latter post until the end of the war, commanding the corps in the Battle of the Bulge, Operation Varsity and the Western Allied invasion of Germany.

He was promoted to lieutenant on 16 December 1951 [5] and to captain on 16 December 1955. [6] Following Korean were postings to Hong Kong and to the British Army of the Rhine. [1] Having attended the Staff College, Camberley, [2] he was promoted to major on 16 December 1962. [7] In 1963, he was attached to the Canadian Army as an exchange officer. He was based at HQ Eastern Command in Halifax, Nova Scotia. [1] He served in Canada as a logistics staff officer. Near the end of his posting, he organised the first Canadian contingent to join the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus. [2] He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 30 June 1970, [8] and posted to Northern Ireland. He served there as chief operations officer at HQ Northern Ireland in Lisburn. [3]

Lieutenant is a junior officer rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above second lieutenant and below captain and has a NATO ranking code of OF-1 and it is the senior subaltern rank. Unlike some armed forces which use first lieutenant, the British rank is simply lieutenant, with no ordinal attached. The rank is equivalent to that of a flying officer in the Royal Air Force (RAF). Although formerly considered senior to a Royal Navy (RN) sub-lieutenant, the British Army and Royal Navy ranks of lieutenant and sub-lieutenant are now considered to be of equivalent status. The Army rank of lieutenant has always been junior to the Navy's rank of lieutenant.

Captain (Capt) is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines and in both services it ranks above lieutenant and below major with a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a flight lieutenant in the Royal Air Force. The rank of captain in the Royal Navy is considerably more senior and the two ranks should not be confused.

British Army of the Rhine inactive geographical command of the British Army

There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.

Honours and decorations

McCord was awarded the Military Cross (MC) on 10 July 1951 'in recognition of gallant and distinguished service in Korea'. [9] He was awarded a number of service medals during his career; the Korea Medal, the United Nations Korea Medal, the General Service Medal and the United Nations Service Medal for UNFICYP. He was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal. [1]

Korea Medal

The Korea Medal, sometimes referred to as the Queen's Korea Medal to distinguish it from the United Nations Service Medal, is a campaign medal created in 1951 to recognize troops from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom who had given either one day's service in an air sortie over Korea, or 28 days service offshore, during the Korean War. The medal was identical in all countries where it was awarded, except for Canada where it contained unique elements. An award distributed across the Commonwealth, the Korea Medal holds a different place in each country's order of precedence for honours.

United Nations Korea Medal The medal could also be awarded for an aggregate of thirty days, which need not have been consecutive, spent on official visits of inspection to the qualifying area.

The United Nations Service Medal for Korea (UNKM) is an international military decoration established by the United Nations on December 12, 1950 as the United Nations Service Medal. The decoration was the first international award ever created by the United Nations and recognized the multi-national defense forces which participated in the Korean War.

General Service Medal (1962) campaign medal introduced in 1962

The General Service Medal, is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom introduced in 1962 to combine the General Service Medal (1918), as awarded to the Army and RAF, and the Naval General Service Medal (1915). The 1962 GSM was awarded until 2007, when it was replaced by the Operational Service Medal. In 2015 the General Service Medal (2008) was introduced.

In the 1974 New Year Honours, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). [10] He was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) on 6 June 1978 'in recognition of distinguished service in Northern Ireland during the period 1 November 1977 – 31 January 1978'. [11]

He was appointed Aide-de-Camp to the Queen (ADC) on 31 July 1981. [12] He was Deputy Colonel of the Royal Irish Rangers between 1 September 1976 [13] and 1 September 1981. [14] He was appointed Honorary Colonel of the same regiment on 27 August 1985. [15] He served in that role until 27 August 1990 when he was succeeded by the then Major General Roger Wheeler. [16]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Brigadier Mervyn McCord". The Telegraph. 18 March 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Brigadier Mervyn McCord". The Times. 18 February 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Obituary: Korean War hero Mervyn McCord who led UDR at height of the Troubles". The Belfast Telegraph. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  4. ↑ "No. 38829". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 February 1950. p. 586.
  5. ↑ "No. 39409". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 December 1951. p. 6579.
  6. ↑ "No. 40655". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 December 1955. p. 7066.
  7. ↑ "No. 42860". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 December 1962. p. 9899.
  8. ↑ "No. 45138". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 June 1970. pp. 7186–7187.
  9. ↑ "No. 39282". The London Gazette . 10 July 1951. p. 3752.
  10. ↑ "No. 46162". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1973. p. 5.
  11. ↑ "No. 47560". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 June 1978. p. 6841.
  12. ↑ "No. 48710". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 August 1981. p. 10656.
  13. ↑ "No. 47030". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 October 1976. p. 13442.
  14. ↑ "No. 48734". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 September 1981. p. 11679.
  15. ↑ "No. 50258". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 September 1985. p. 12788.
  16. ↑ "No. 52254". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 August 1990. p. 13852.
Military offices
Preceded by
Harry Baxter 		Commander of the Ulster Defence Regiment
1976 to 1978 		Succeeded by
David Millar
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