Humfrey Gale
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant General
Sir Humfrey Myddelton Gale KBE, CB, CVO, MC
(4 October 1890 – 8 April 1971) was an officer in the British Army
who served in the First World War and Second World War, during which he was Chief Administrative Officer at Allied Forces Headquarters
and later SHAEF under General of the Army
Dwight Eisenhower. After the Second World War he was European Director of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
, worked for the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, and was chairman of the Basildon
, Essex
New Town
Development Corporation
, England
on 4 October 1890, the eldest of five children of Ernest Sewell Gale, an architect
, and his wife Charlotte Sarah née Goddard. He was educated at St Paul's School, London and studied at the Architectural School, Westminster from 1908 to 1910. While there he served with the Artists Rifles. He decided to pursue a career in the British Indian Army
and applied to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. His application was successful and he entered the college in 1910. However he did not graduate sufficiently high in his class to qualify for a posting to the Indian Army and was instead commissioned as a second lieutenant
in the Army Service Corps in September 1911. His early service was at Woolwich
and Aldershot
.
, where he was awarded the Military Cross
. He was promoted to lieutenant
and then captain in 1914. In 1915, he became Deputy Assistant Director of Transport, British Expeditionary Force, and served in that post at General Headquarters for the remainder of the war. He was twice mentioned in despatches, and was awarded the Order of Wen-Hu
(5th Class). He married Winifred Cross in 1917. Their marriage lasted until her death in 1936, and produced two daughters.
from 1919 to 1923. Thereafter his inter-war service alternated between regimental duty at home and in Egypt, and postings to the War Office. He was promoted to the brevet rank of major
in 1921 but was not promoted substantially until 1930. He returned to the War Office in 1928, where he became Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General in 1930. After ten years as a major he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1932. In 1934, he became an instructor at the Staff College, Camberley
. He became Assistant Director of Shipping and Transport, War Office and was promoted to colonel in 1937 and then brigadier
in 1939.
in 1940. He was responsible for administrative arrangements during the Battle of Dunkirk
and managed to keep the supply system working. For his services in the campaign, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Gale was promoted to major general and appointed Major General, Administration (MGA), Scotland
. In 1941 he became Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to General
Sir Alan Brooke, Commander in Chief United Kingdom Home Forces. His work was recognised in June 1942 when he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
On 15 September 1942 Gale was appointed its Chief Administrative Officer of Lieutenant General
Dwight Eisenhower's Allied Forces Headquarters
(AFHQ). While the general staff sections of AFHQ were integrated, the British and American administrative systems differed so greatly that separate organisations were established. Gale's job, which Eisenhower called "unique in the history of war", was to coordinate the two. For the Allied invasion of Sicily
, Gale was tasked with the planning and coordination of the sea convoys. Ships had to depart multiple ports in the United Kingdom and the Middle East on a predefined schedule, loaded with enormous quantities of supplies, equipment, stores and troops. For a time it was feared that demands of the Sicilian operation would be so great that other operations would have to be curtailed. For his contribution to the victory in the Tunisia Campaign
, he was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in August 1943. He was also appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, and was awarded the United States Legion of Merit
.
When Eisenhower left the Mediterranean to become the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, Gale was one of a number of key officers that Eisenhower insisted on taking with him to his new headquarters, SHAEF. When Field Marshal Brooke demurred at this, Eisenhower's chief of staff, Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith
pointed out that Eisenhower had always felt "he would be unwilling to undertake another large Allied Command without Gale's administrative assistance .... He has that irreplaceable quality of being able to handle British-American supply problems with tact and judgement and he is almost as familiar with the American system of supply as with the British." However, General Gale found that while his title at SHAEF was the same, his role was different from that at Allied Force Headquarters. In the Mediterranean he had also had broad responsibility for logistics. In the European theatre, General Bernard Montgomery's 21st Army Group controlled its own supply while the American units had Headquarters, Communications Zone
under Major General John C. H. Lee
. At SHAEF, Gale had less real control over supply and administration than at Allied Force Headquarters and his duties mostly involved coordinating the activities of the SHAEF staff sections and serving as chairman of various high-level committees that dealt with matters of supply. Gale was promoted to the temporary rank of lieutenant general in August 1944, and in January 1945 he became Colonel Commandant
of the Royal Army Service Corps, a position he held until 1954. He was also colonel commandant of the Army Catering Corps
from 1946 to 1958. For his work at SHAEF, he was awarded the U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal.
and the widow of Prince Charles Louis of Beauvau-Craon. From September 1945 to July 1947 he was the European Director of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
. Gale retired from the British Army with the honorary rank of lieutenant general in October 1947, and took up a position with the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. In 1954 Harold Macmillan
persuaded Gale to become chairman of the Basildon
, Essex
New Town
Development Corporation
, a post Gale served in until 1964. Macmillan described Gale as one of the most efficient officers he had ever known. Gale and Minnie lived in La Tour de Peilz, Vaud
, Switzerland
, where he died on 8 April 1971. His papers are in the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives.
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
Sir Humfrey Myddelton Gale KBE, CB, CVO, 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....
(4 October 1890 – 8 April 1971) was an officer in the 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...
who served in the First World War and Second World War, during which he was Chief Administrative Officer at Allied Forces Headquarters
Allied Forces Headquarters
Allied Force Headquarters was the headquarters that controlled all Allied operational forces in the Mediterranean Theatre of World War II from late 1942 to the end of the war....
and later SHAEF under General of the Army
General of the Army
General of the Army is a military rank used in some countries to denote a senior military leader, usually a General in command of a nation's Army. It may also be the title given to a General who commands an Army in the field....
Dwight Eisenhower. After the Second World War he was European Director of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration was an international relief agency, largely dominated by the United States but representing 44 nations. Founded in 1943, it became part of the United Nations in 1945, was especially active in 1945 and 1946, and largely shut down...
, worked for the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, and was chairman of the Basildon
Basildon
Basildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
New Town
New towns in the United Kingdom
Below is a list of some of the new towns in the United Kingdom created under the various New Town Acts of the 20th century. Some earlier towns were developed as Garden Cities or overspill estates early in the twentieth century. The New Towns proper were planned to disperse population following the...
Development Corporation
Development Corporation
In England and Wales, Development Corporations are bodies set up by the UK government and charged with the urban development of an area, outside the usual system of Town and Country Planning in the United Kingdom...
Early life
Humfrey Myddelton Gale 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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on 4 October 1890, the eldest of five children of Ernest Sewell Gale, an architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, and his wife Charlotte Sarah née Goddard. He was educated at St Paul's School, London and studied at the Architectural School, Westminster from 1908 to 1910. While there he served with the Artists Rifles. He decided to pursue a career in the British Indian Army
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
and applied to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. His application was successful and he entered the college in 1910. However he did not graduate sufficiently high in his class to qualify for a posting to the Indian Army and was instead commissioned as a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in the Army Service Corps in September 1911. His early service was at Woolwich
Woolwich
Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
and Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
.
First World War
During the First World War, Gale served on the Western FrontWestern Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
, where he was 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....
. He was promoted to lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
and then captain in 1914. In 1915, he became Deputy Assistant Director of Transport, British Expeditionary Force, and served in that post at General Headquarters for the remainder of the war. He was twice mentioned in despatches, and was awarded the Order of Wen-Hu
Order of Wen-Hu
The Order of Wen-Hu was an award for military or naval service awarded by the Republic of China. It was issued in five classes. The badge showed a striped tiger in natural colours on a central medallion...
(5th Class). He married Winifred Cross in 1917. Their marriage lasted until her death in 1936, and produced two daughters.
Between the wars
Gale served as a staff captain at the War OfficeWar Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
from 1919 to 1923. Thereafter his inter-war service alternated between regimental duty at home and in Egypt, and postings to the War Office. He was promoted to the brevet rank of major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in 1921 but was not promoted substantially until 1930. He returned to the War Office in 1928, where he became Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General in 1930. After ten years as a major he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1932. In 1934, he became an instructor at the Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army from 1802 to 1997, with periods of closure during major wars. In 1997 it was merged into the new Joint Services Command and Staff College.-Origins:...
. He became Assistant Director of Shipping and Transport, War Office and was promoted to colonel in 1937 and then brigadier
Brigadier (United Kingdom)
Brigadier is a senior rank in the British Army and the Royal Marines.Brigadier is the superior rank to Colonel, but subordinate to Major-General....
in 1939.
Second World War
Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Gale was appointed Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General of the III Corps, which was deployed to France with the new British Expeditionary ForceBritish 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 1940. He was responsible for administrative arrangements during the Battle of Dunkirk
Battle of Dunkirk
The Battle of Dunkirk was a battle in the Second World War between the Allies and Germany. A part of the Battle of France on the Western Front, the Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and evacuation of British and allied forces in Europe from 26 May–4 June 1940.After the Phoney War, the Battle of...
and managed to keep the supply system working. For his services in the campaign, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Gale was promoted to major general and appointed Major General, Administration (MGA), 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...
. In 1941 he became Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to General
General (United Kingdom)
General is currently the highest peace-time rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. It is subordinate to the Army rank of Field Marshal, has a NATO-code of OF-9, and is a four-star rank....
Sir Alan Brooke, Commander in Chief United Kingdom Home Forces. His work was recognised in June 1942 when he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
On 15 September 1942 Gale was appointed its Chief Administrative Officer of Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General (United States)
In the United States Army, the United States Air Force and the United States Marine Corps, lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-9. Lieutenant general ranks above major general and below general...
Dwight Eisenhower's Allied Forces Headquarters
Allied Forces Headquarters
Allied Force Headquarters was the headquarters that controlled all Allied operational forces in the Mediterranean Theatre of World War II from late 1942 to the end of the war....
(AFHQ). While the general staff sections of AFHQ were integrated, the British and American administrative systems differed so greatly that separate organisations were established. Gale's job, which Eisenhower called "unique in the history of war", was to coordinate the two. For the Allied invasion of Sicily
Allied invasion of Sicily
The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major World War II campaign, in which the Allies took Sicily from the Axis . It was a large scale amphibious and airborne operation, followed by six weeks of land combat. It launched the Italian Campaign.Husky began on the night of...
, Gale was tasked with the planning and coordination of the sea convoys. Ships had to depart multiple ports in the United Kingdom and the Middle East on a predefined schedule, loaded with enormous quantities of supplies, equipment, stores and troops. For a time it was feared that demands of the Sicilian operation would be so great that other operations would have to be curtailed. For his contribution to the victory in the Tunisia Campaign
Tunisia Campaign
The Tunisia Campaign was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African Campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces. The Allies consisted of British Imperial Forces, including Polish and Greek contingents, with American and French corps...
, he was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in August 1943. He was also appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, and was awarded the United States Legion of Merit
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
.
When Eisenhower left the Mediterranean to become the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, Gale was one of a number of key officers that Eisenhower insisted on taking with him to his new headquarters, SHAEF. When Field Marshal Brooke demurred at this, Eisenhower's chief of staff, Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith
Walter Bedell Smith
Walter Bedell "Beetle" Smith was a senior United States Army general who served as General Dwight D. Eisenhower's chief of staff at Allied Forces Headquarters during the Tunisia Campaign and the Allied invasion of Italy...
pointed out that Eisenhower had always felt "he would be unwilling to undertake another large Allied Command without Gale's administrative assistance .... He has that irreplaceable quality of being able to handle British-American supply problems with tact and judgement and he is almost as familiar with the American system of supply as with the British." However, General Gale found that while his title at SHAEF was the same, his role was different from that at Allied Force Headquarters. In the Mediterranean he had also had broad responsibility for logistics. In the European theatre, General Bernard Montgomery's 21st Army Group controlled its own supply while the American units had Headquarters, Communications Zone
Communications Zone
Communications Zone is a US Army and NATO term which describes a part of the theater of war operations.The Communications Zone is the rear part of theater of operations which contains the lines of communications, establishments for supply and evacuation, and other agencies required for the...
under Major General John C. H. Lee
John C. H. Lee
John Clifford Hodges Lee was a US Army General. He graduated 12th out of 103 graduates from the United States Military Academy in 1909.He served in World War I, World War II and rose to the rank of Lieutenant General....
. At SHAEF, Gale had less real control over supply and administration than at Allied Force Headquarters and his duties mostly involved coordinating the activities of the SHAEF staff sections and serving as chairman of various high-level committees that dealt with matters of supply. Gale was promoted to the temporary rank of lieutenant general in August 1944, and in January 1945 he became Colonel Commandant
Colonel Commandant
Colonel Commandant is a military title used in the armed forces of some English-speaking countries. The title, not a substantive rank, could denote a senior colonel with authority over fellow colonels...
of the Royal Army Service Corps, a position he held until 1954. He was also colonel commandant of the Army Catering Corps
Army Catering Corps
The Army Catering Corps was a corps of the British Army, responsible for the feeding of all Army units. It was originally formed in March 1941 as part of the Royal Army Service Corps, and became a corps in its own right in 1965....
from 1946 to 1958. For his work at SHAEF, he was awarded the U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal.
Post-war
Gale married again in 1945, this time to Minnie Grace, the daughter of Count Gregorini-Bigham of BolognaBologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
and the widow of Prince Charles Louis of Beauvau-Craon. From September 1945 to July 1947 he was the European Director of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration was an international relief agency, largely dominated by the United States but representing 44 nations. Founded in 1943, it became part of the United Nations in 1945, was especially active in 1945 and 1946, and largely shut down...
. Gale retired from the British Army with the honorary rank of lieutenant general in October 1947, and took up a position with the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. In 1954 Harold Macmillan
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
persuaded Gale to become chairman of the Basildon
Basildon
Basildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
New Town
New towns in the United Kingdom
Below is a list of some of the new towns in the United Kingdom created under the various New Town Acts of the 20th century. Some earlier towns were developed as Garden Cities or overspill estates early in the twentieth century. The New Towns proper were planned to disperse population following the...
Development Corporation
Development Corporation
In England and Wales, Development Corporations are bodies set up by the UK government and charged with the urban development of an area, outside the usual system of Town and Country Planning in the United Kingdom...
, a post Gale served in until 1964. Macmillan described Gale as one of the most efficient officers he had ever known. Gale and Minnie lived in La Tour de Peilz, Vaud
Vaud
Vaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the French-speaking southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne. The name of the Canton in Switzerland's other languages are Vaud in Italian , Waadt in German , and Vad in Romansh.-History:Along the lakes,...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, where he died on 8 April 1971. His papers are in the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives.