Neil McLean (politician)
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant-Colonel Neil Loudon Desmond McLean DSO
, known as Billy McLean (28 November 1918 – 17 November 1986), was a British
Army
intelligence officer and politician who led a celebrated Special Operations Executive
operation in Albania
during the Second World War
, and later attempted to overthrow Communism in the country. He served as a Unionist Member of Parliament
for Inverness
.
, the elder son of Neil Gillean McLean, who had made a great deal of money trading with India and owned an estate at Glencalvie. He was a descendant of Gillean-na-Tuaighe ('Gillean of the Battle-axe') who founded Clan MacLean
. The family called him "Billy"; he went to Eton College
, where he excelled in fencing
, becoming Captain of the school team. and then to the Royal Military College at Sandhurst
. Having spent his holiday periods hunting
, he was a keen sportsman and won point to point races while at Sandhurst.
on leaving Sandhurst. He was posted to Palestine
in 1939 and spent the first two years of the Second World War there. In 1941 he was transferred to the Special Operations Executive
, an unorthodox military unit which worked behind enemy lines on sabotage
and espionage
. He came into Col. Orde Wingate's Gideon Force
in Ethiopia
, commanding a mixed group of Ethiopian
and Eritrea
n irregulars who were nicknamed "McLean's Foot" against the occupying Italian
army. He was awarded the Distinguished Military Medal of Haile Selassie I in 1941.
then in Syria
and Palestine
. He also worked for MI9
in Istanbul
aiding resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied countries. In early 1943 he was selected to lead a mission in occupied Albania
, for which he was promoted to Major
. His team was parachuted in to the country in April 1943, where they made contact with the Partisans. McLean's team organised them into the 1st Partisan Brigade, and arranged their training and armament. After his evacuation from Albania
in November 1943, McLean was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
and he returned to London, being promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel. However, the tension between the Partisans
and the nationalists in Albania caused concern to SOE and the Foreign Office
, and McLean devised a plan to unite them in a common struggle against the Axis
forces. He returned to Albania in April 1944 with a small team ("The Muskeeters" included Major David Smiley
and Captain Julian Amery
), but could not persuade the nationalists to join with the Partisans. Meanwhile the Partisans grew suspicious of this outside interference, and eventually McLean and his team were withdrawn. British strategy was changed to recognise only the Partisans, who went on to convert Albania into a Communist
state.
(SOE) against the Empire of Japan
. He was made military adviser to the British consul in Kashgar
, China
, and was working there when the war ended. After some years travelling, in the late 1940s McLean resigned his commission and joined attempts by the United States
and British intelligence agencies to undermine Enver Hoxha
and the Communist government in Albania. His wife, Daška Ivanović
, whom he married in 1949, was from Dubrovnik
in Croatia
. His new brother-in-law, diplomat Vane Ivanovic
, had coincidentally been a member of the Yugoslav section of the Political Warfare Executive
(PWE), the propaganda arm of SOE during the war.
, McLean was Conservative Party
candidate for Preston South
, a newly created constituency which was expected to be marginal. He was defeated by 149 votes, and stood again in the 1951 general election
, but was again defeated by the extremely narrow margin of 16 votes. This was the smallest majority in any constituency in that election. In the summer of 1952, McLean was chosen as the Unionist Party candidate for Inverness
, where the sitting Member of Parliament Lord Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton
had decided to stand down. He toured the constituency continuously, familiarising himself with its problems and speaking to local groups. In the event, Lord Malcolm resigned in autumn 1954 and a by-election
was called for December 21, inconveniently occurring just before Christmas. The Liberal Party
was strong in the constituency (one of the few areas in which the party was strong). They campaigned against the practice of "plural farming" by which landowners farmed multiple farms with a single labour force, and which was unpopular with agricultural workers. McLean's work in nursing the constituency paid off as he was elected by 1,331 votes.
Owing to illness, McLean did not make his maiden speech
until March 1956, and he chose to speak about Egypt
and Gamal Abdel Nasser
whom he regarded with extreme concern. McLean was a strong supporter of the decision to invade Egypt during the Suez Crisis
, and an equally strong opponent of the decision shortly thereafter to withdraw. The Members of Parliament who took this view were known as the "Suez Group"; McLean did not join those who abandoned the Conservative whip
in 1957, but did declare that he was in sympathy with them and that "the M.P.s who have resigned have raised the flag for many of us who have not resigned". In general McLean's Parliamentary contributions were concentrated on foreign affairs. He also visited areas of concern, including French Indochina
and Algeria
to find the situation on the ground, and reported back to British newspapers. In September 1962 while visiting Algeria he was pinned down for an hour by a firefight between rival groups. That year he also began to work with Muhammad al-Badr
in resisting Egyptian efforts to install an ally as President of North Yemen
; he became principal military adviser to the Royalist forces. He persuaded the Foreign Office not to recognise the Communist-backed government in the country; this achievement was described by McLean's biographer Xan Fielding
as his "crowning achievement". In June 1964 he introduced a Private Members Bill which aimed at protecting from nationalisation some paper mills, shipbuilding and cotton firms which had received government grants. He found himself under severe pressure from the Liberal Party at the 1964 general election
, and ended up losing his seat.
. He kept up his work in Yemen, and had contacts with most of the Muslim Arab states including Jordan
where he had developed a close relationship with then monarch King Hussein
. Fielding claimed that he was a kind of "unofficial under-secretary" of the Foreign Office, and quoted a 1979 letter from Harold Macmillan
which said "You are one of those people whose services to our dear country are known only to a few". In his retirement he was appointed to the Royal Company of Archers
, the Queen's bodyguard in Scotland
.
McLean suffered from diabetes and septicaemia and died of heart failure in 1986.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, known as Billy McLean (28 November 1918 – 17 November 1986), was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
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...
intelligence officer and politician who led a celebrated Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
operation in Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
during 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...
, and later attempted to overthrow Communism in the country. He served as a Unionist Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Inverness
Inverness (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election....
.
Family and education
McLean 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...
, the elder son of Neil Gillean McLean, who had made a great deal of money trading with India and owned an estate at Glencalvie. He was a descendant of Gillean-na-Tuaighe ('Gillean of the Battle-axe') who founded Clan MacLean
Clan MacLean
Clan Maclean is a Highland Scottish clan. They are one of the oldest clans in the Highlands and owned large tracts of land in Argyll as well as the Inner Hebrides. Many early MacLeans became famous for their honour, strength and courage in battle. They were involved in many clan skirmishes with...
. The family called him "Billy"; he went to Eton College
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"....
, where he excelled in fencing
Fencing
Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
, becoming Captain of the school team. and then to the Royal Military College at Sandhurst
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is a British Army officer initial training centre located in Sandhurst, Berkshire, England...
. Having spent his holiday periods hunting
Fox hunting
Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of followers led by a master of foxhounds, who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.Fox hunting originated in its current...
, he was a keen sportsman and won point to point races while at Sandhurst.
Army service
In August 1938 McLean was commissioned into the Royal Scots GreysScots Greys
The Royal Scots Greys was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1707 until 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers to form The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards ....
on leaving Sandhurst. He was posted to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
in 1939 and spent the first two years of the Second World War there. In 1941 he was transferred to the Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
, an unorthodox military unit which worked behind enemy lines on sabotage
Sabotage
Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
and espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
. He came into Col. Orde Wingate's Gideon Force
Gideon Force
The Gideon Force was a small British-led African regular force which acted as a Corps d'Elite amongst the irregular Ethiopian forces fighting the Italian occupation forces in Ethiopia during the East African Campaign of World War II...
in Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, commanding a mixed group of Ethiopian
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and Eritrea
Eritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
n irregulars who were nicknamed "McLean's Foot" against the occupying Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
army. He was awarded the Distinguished Military Medal of Haile Selassie I in 1941.
Albanian missions
1942 saw McLean shifted to a staff job with the SOE, first in CairoCairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
then in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. He also worked for MI9
MI9
MI9, the British Military Intelligence Section 9, was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office...
in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
aiding resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied countries. In early 1943 he was selected to lead a mission in occupied Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, for which he was promoted to 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. ...
. His team was parachuted in to the country in April 1943, where they made contact with the Partisans. McLean's team organised them into the 1st Partisan Brigade, and arranged their training and armament. After his evacuation from Albania
Military history of Albania during World War II
The Albanian Resistance of World War II was a movement of largely Communist persuasion directed against the occupying Italian and then German forces in Albania, which led to the successful liberation of the country in 1944....
in November 1943, McLean was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
and he returned to London, being promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel. However, the tension between the Partisans
Partisan (military)
A partisan is a member of an irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation by some kind of insurgent activity...
and the nationalists in Albania caused concern to SOE and the Foreign Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
, and McLean devised a plan to unite them in a common struggle against the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
forces. He returned to Albania in April 1944 with a small team ("The Muskeeters" included Major David Smiley
David Smiley
Colonel David de Crespigny Smiley, LVO, OBE, MC & Bar was a British special forces and intelligence officer. He fought in the Second World War in Palestine, Iraq, Persia, Syria, Western Desert and with Special Operations Executive in Albania and Thailand.- Background :Smiley was the 4th and...
and Captain Julian Amery
Julian Amery, Baron Amery of Lustleigh
Harold Julian Amery, Baron Amery of Lustleigh, PC was a British politician of the Conservative Party, who served as a Member of Parliament for 39 of the 42 years between 1950 and 1992. He was appointed to the Privy Council in 1960. He was created a life peer upon his retirement from the House of...
), but could not persuade the nationalists to join with the Partisans. Meanwhile the Partisans grew suspicious of this outside interference, and eventually McLean and his team were withdrawn. British strategy was changed to recognise only the Partisans, who went on to convert Albania into a Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
state.
Post-war
Early in 1945 McLean volunteered to work for the Special Operations ExecutiveSpecial Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
(SOE) against the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
. He was made military adviser to the British consul in Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and was working there when the war ended. After some years travelling, in the late 1940s McLean resigned his commission and joined attempts by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and British intelligence agencies to undermine Enver Hoxha
Enver Hoxha
Enver Halil Hoxha was a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary andthe leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania...
and the Communist government in Albania. His wife, Daška Ivanović
Daška Ivanović
Daška Marija Ivanović , better known as Daška McLean, was the daughter of one of the founders of the Croatian National Progressive Party . She made headlines in Europe and America when she made her 18-year-old daughter a ward of the court in the U.K...
, whom he married in 1949, was from Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. His new brother-in-law, diplomat Vane Ivanovic
Vane Ivanović
Ivan "Vane" Stefan Ivanović was an athlete, shipowner, political activist, diplomat, writer and philanthropist. One of the founders of the European Movement and the Consul General of Monaco in London, he devoted most of his life to the idea of Yugoslav unity.-Biography:Vane Ivanović was born in...
, had coincidentally been a member of the Yugoslav section of the Political Warfare Executive
Political Warfare Executive
During World War II, the Political Warfare Executive was a British clandestine body created to produce and disseminate both white and black propaganda, with the aim of damaging enemy morale and sustaining the morale of the Occupied countries....
(PWE), the propaganda arm of SOE during the war.
Entry to politics
At the 1950 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
, McLean was Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate for Preston South
Preston South (UK Parliament constituency)
Preston South was a parliamentary constituency in the city of Preston in Lancashire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
, a newly created constituency which was expected to be marginal. He was defeated by 149 votes, and stood again in the 1951 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
, but was again defeated by the extremely narrow margin of 16 votes. This was the smallest majority in any constituency in that election. In the summer of 1952, McLean was chosen as the Unionist Party candidate for Inverness
Inverness (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election....
, where the sitting Member of Parliament Lord Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton
Lord Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton
Wing Commander Lord Malcolm Avondale Douglas-Hamilton OBE, DFC was a Scottish nobleman and politician....
had decided to stand down. He toured the constituency continuously, familiarising himself with its problems and speaking to local groups. In the event, Lord Malcolm resigned in autumn 1954 and a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
was called for December 21, inconveniently occurring just before Christmas. The Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
was strong in the constituency (one of the few areas in which the party was strong). They campaigned against the practice of "plural farming" by which landowners farmed multiple farms with a single labour force, and which was unpopular with agricultural workers. McLean's work in nursing the constituency paid off as he was elected by 1,331 votes.
Owing to illness, McLean did not make his maiden speech
Maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country...
until March 1956, and he chose to speak about Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
whom he regarded with extreme concern. McLean was a strong supporter of the decision to invade Egypt during the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
, and an equally strong opponent of the decision shortly thereafter to withdraw. The Members of Parliament who took this view were known as the "Suez Group"; McLean did not join those who abandoned the Conservative whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
in 1957, but did declare that he was in sympathy with them and that "the M.P.s who have resigned have raised the flag for many of us who have not resigned". In general McLean's Parliamentary contributions were concentrated on foreign affairs. He also visited areas of concern, including French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
and Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
to find the situation on the ground, and reported back to British newspapers. In September 1962 while visiting Algeria he was pinned down for an hour by a firefight between rival groups. That year he also began to work with Muhammad al-Badr
Muhammad al-Badr
H.M. Muhammad Al-Badr was the last king of the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen and leader of the monarchist regions during the North Yemen Civil War...
in resisting Egyptian efforts to install an ally as President of North Yemen
Yemen Arab Republic
The Yemen Arab Republic , also known as North Yemen or Yemen , was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the western part of what is now Yemen...
; he became principal military adviser to the Royalist forces. He persuaded the Foreign Office not to recognise the Communist-backed government in the country; this achievement was described by McLean's biographer Xan Fielding
Xan Fielding
Xan Fielding, born Alexander Wallace Fielding DSO , was a British soldier and writer, noted for his English translations of Planet of the Apes and The Bridge on the River Kwai, both by Pierre Boulle....
as his "crowning achievement". In June 1964 he introduced a Private Members Bill which aimed at protecting from nationalisation some paper mills, shipbuilding and cotton firms which had received government grants. He found himself under severe pressure from the Liberal Party at the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
, and ended up losing his seat.
Final years
Being out of Parliament left McLean more time to travel, especially in the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. He kept up his work in Yemen, and had contacts with most of the Muslim Arab states including Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
where he had developed a close relationship with then monarch King Hussein
Hussein of Jordan
Hussein bin Talal was the third King of Jordan from the abdication of his father, King Talal, in 1952, until his death. Hussein's rule extended through the Cold War and four decades of Arab-Israeli conflict...
. Fielding claimed that he was a kind of "unofficial under-secretary" of the Foreign Office, and quoted a 1979 letter from 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....
which said "You are one of those people whose services to our dear country are known only to a few". In his retirement he was appointed to the Royal Company of Archers
Royal Company of Archers
The Royal Company of Archers is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's Bodyguard in Scotland, a role it has performed since 1822 and the reign of King George IV, when the company provided a personal bodyguard to the King on his visit to Scotland. It is currently known as the Queen's...
, the Queen's bodyguard in 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...
.
McLean suffered from diabetes and septicaemia and died of heart failure in 1986.