Hamish Forbes
Encyclopedia
Major Sir Hamish Stewart Forbes, 7th Baronet, MBE
, MC
KStJ (15 February 1916 - 3 September 2007) was a British Army
officer who served in the Welsh Guards
in the Second World War
, spending over 5 years in German
custody as a prisoner of war
. In later life, he was patron of the Lonach Highland and Friendly Society from 1984 until his death.
. He was the second but only surviving son of Lieutenant Colonel James Forbes and his wife, Feridah Taylor. He was educated at Eton
, at Lawrenceville
in the United States
, and at the School of Oriental and African Studies
in London
.
Before the Second World War, he worked for health salts manufacturer Eno
and for sugar broker Czarnikow.
in 1939. After a short period in Gibraltar
, he served as battalion intelligence officer in the British Expeditionary Force
in France in 1940. Leading a reconnaissance patrol near Arras
in May 1940, he was captured by the Germans
. He was later awarded the Military Cross
for his conduct.
He was held in a series of German prisoner-of-war camps until the end of the war, but was involved in at least 10 attempts to escape from the four prisoner of war
camps in which he was detained. He and six others escaped from Oflag IX-A/Z at Rotenburg
. He was quickly recaptured and jailed. He was involved in three attempts to escape from Oflag VII-C
at Laufen, and three further attempts at Oflag VI-B
at Dössel (now part of Warburg
).
He was moved to Oflag VII-B
at Eichstätt
then back to Oflag IX-A/Z, where another escape bought him eight days of liberty. Recaptured and marched west with other prisoners to prevent being released by the advancing Red Army
, he slipped out of the column and managed to reach forward units of the advancing First United States Army, and was quickly returned to England.
His escape attempts led to a mention in dispatches in 1945, upgraded to an MBE (Military Division).
He continued to serve in the Welsh Guards after the war, in England, Germany and with CENTO
forces in Turkey
. He retired from the Army as a major in 1958.
, he worked for Calmic Chemicals, Gillette and Shell-Mex BP until 1964. He was also an amateur painter and sculptor, and also very interested in heraldry
. He retired to Strathdon
in Aberdeenshire
.
The Society was founded in 1822 by his ancestor Sir Charles Forbes, the 1st Baronet, to preserve and promote Highland culture and the Scottish Gaelic language
.
, Scotland
and was survived by his second wife, and son and daughters from his first marriage. His son, James, succeeded him as 8th Baronet.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
KStJ (15 February 1916 - 3 September 2007) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer who served in the Welsh Guards
Welsh Guards
The Welsh Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division.-Creation :The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of His Majesty King George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards, "..though the order...
in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, spending over 5 years in German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
custody as a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
. In later life, he was patron of the Lonach Highland and Friendly Society from 1984 until his death.
Early life
Forbes was born in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He was the second but only surviving son of Lieutenant Colonel James Forbes and his wife, Feridah Taylor. He was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, at Lawrenceville
Lawrenceville School
The Lawrenceville School is a coeducational, independent preparatory boarding school for grades 9–12 located on in the historic community of Lawrenceville, in Lawrence Township, New Jersey, U.S., five miles southwest of Princeton....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and at the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Before the Second World War, he worked for health salts manufacturer Eno
Eno (drug)
Eno is the most global of GSK's gastrointestinal products. The fast-acting effervescent fruit salts, used as an antacid and reliever of bloatedness, was invented in the 1850s by James Crossley Eno...
and for sugar broker Czarnikow.
Military career
Forbes was commissioned as a subaltern in the 1st Welsh GuardsWelsh Guards
The Welsh Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division.-Creation :The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of His Majesty King George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards, "..though the order...
in 1939. After a short period in Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, he served as battalion intelligence officer in the British Expeditionary Force
British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
The British Expeditionary Force was the British force in Europe from 1939–1940 during the Second World War. Commanded by General Lord Gort, the BEF constituted one-tenth of the defending Allied force....
in France in 1940. Leading a reconnaissance patrol near Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
in May 1940, he was captured by the Germans
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. He was later awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
for his conduct.
He was held in a series of German prisoner-of-war camps until the end of the war, but was involved in at least 10 attempts to escape from the four prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
camps in which he was detained. He and six others escaped from Oflag IX-A/Z at Rotenburg
Rotenburg an der Wümme
Rotenburg an der Wümme is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Rotenburg.-Geography:...
. He was quickly recaptured and jailed. He was involved in three attempts to escape from Oflag VII-C
Oflag VII-C
Oflag VII-C was a World War II German prisoner-of-war camp for officers located in Laufen Castle in south-eastern Bavaria from 1940 to 1942. Most of the prisoners were British officers captured during the Battle of France in 1940. To relieve overcrowding, some of the officers were transferred to...
at Laufen, and three further attempts at Oflag VI-B
Oflag VI-B
Oflag VI-B Dössel was a World War II German POW camp for officers located SW of the small town Dössel in north-western Germany.- Timeline :In 1940 the camp was built on what had been originally intended to be an airfield...
at Dössel (now part of Warburg
Warburg
Warburg is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia on the river Diemel near the three-state point shared by Hessen, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is in Höxter district and Detmold region...
).
He was moved to Oflag VII-B
Oflag VII-B
Oflag VII-B was a World War II German POW camp for officers, located 1 km from Eichstätt, Bavaria.- Timeline :The camp was built in September 1939 to house Polish prisoners from the German September 1939 offensive...
at Eichstätt
Eichstätt
Eichstätt is a town in the federal state of Bavaria, Germany, and capital of the District of Eichstätt. It is located along the Altmühl River, at , and had a population of 13,078 in 2002. It is home to the Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, the lone Catholic university in Germany. The...
then back to Oflag IX-A/Z, where another escape bought him eight days of liberty. Recaptured and marched west with other prisoners to prevent being released by the advancing Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
, he slipped out of the column and managed to reach forward units of the advancing First United States Army, and was quickly returned to England.
His escape attempts led to a mention in dispatches in 1945, upgraded to an MBE (Military Division).
He continued to serve in the Welsh Guards after the war, in England, Germany and with CENTO
Cento
Cento is a city and comune in the province of Ferrara, part of the region Emilia-Romagna . In Italian "cento" means 100.-History:The name Cento is a reference to the centuriation of the Po Valley...
forces in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. He retired from the Army as a major in 1958.
Later life
After leaving the British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, he worked for Calmic Chemicals, Gillette and Shell-Mex BP until 1964. He was also an amateur painter and sculptor, and also very interested in heraldry
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
. He retired to Strathdon
Strathdon
Strathdon is an area in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is situated in the strath of the River Don, 45 miles west of Aberdeen in the Highlands...
in Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...
.
Affiliations
He was secretary of the Order of St John from 1973 to 1983, and president of the Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade Association from 1974 to 2000. He succeeded his third cousin, Colonel Sir John Stewart Forbes, to be the 7th Baronet in 1984, and also became patron of the Lonach Highland Society that year.The Society was founded in 1822 by his ancestor Sir Charles Forbes, the 1st Baronet, to preserve and promote Highland culture and the Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
.
Personal life
He married twice. He married Jacynthe Underwood in 1945, and they had a son and three daughters. They divorced in 1981. He remarried later that same year, to Mary Christine Rigby (MBE).Death
He died in AberdeenAberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and was survived by his second wife, and son and daughters from his first marriage. His son, James, succeeded him as 8th Baronet.