William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim
Encyclopedia
Field Marshal
William Joseph "Bill"'Slim, 1st Viscount Slim, KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, DSO
, MC
, KStJ
(6 August 1891 – 14 December 1970) was a British military commander and the 13th Governor-General of Australia
.
He fought in both the First
and Second
world wars and was wounded in action three times. During World War II he led the 14th Army, the so-called "forgotten army" in the Burma campaign
. From 1953 to 1959 he was Governor-General of Australia, an authentic war hero who had fought with the Anzacs at Gallipoli
.
, near Bristol
to John and Charlotte (née Tucker) Slim, where he was baptised at St. Bonaventure's Roman Catholic church. He was brought up in Birmingham
, attending St. Philip's Grammar School
(Edgbaston
, Birmingham
) and King Edward's School
(also Birmingham). After leaving school, he taught at a primary school and worked as a clerk in Stewarts & Lloyds
, a metal-tube maker, between 1910 and 1914.
He joined Birmingham University Officers' Training Corps in 1912, and was thus able to be commissioned as a temporary second lieutenant
in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment on 22 August 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War; in later life, as a result of his modest social origins and unpretentious manner, he was sometimes wrongly supposed to have risen from the ranks. He was badly wounded at Gallipoli
. On return to England
, he was granted a regular commission as a second lieutenant in the West India Regiment
. In October 1916, he returned to his regiment in Mesopotamia
. On 4 March 1917, he was promoted to first lieutenant
(with seniority back-dated to October 1915). He was wounded a second time in 1917. Having been previously given the temporary rank of captain
, he was awarded the Military Cross
on 7 February 1918 for actions in Mesopotamia.
Evacuated to India
, he was given the temporary rank of Major in the 6th Gurkha Rifles on 2 November 1918. He was formally promoted to captain and transferred to the British Indian Army
on 22 May 1919. He became adjutant of the battalion in 1921.
In 1926, Slim was sent to the Indian Staff College
at Quetta
. On 5 June 1929, he was appointed a General Staff Officer, Second Grade On 1 January 1930, he was given the brevet
rank of major, with formal promotion to this rank made on 19 May 1933. His performance at Staff College resulted in his appointment first to Army Headquarters India in Delhi
and then to Staff College, Camberley
in England (as a General Staff Officer, Second Grade), where he taught from 1934 to 1937. In 1938, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and given command of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Gurkha Rifles. In 1939 he was briefly given the temporary rank of brigadier
as commander of his battalion. On 8 June 1939, he was promoted to colonel
(again with temporary rank of brigadier) and appointed head of the Senior Officers' School at Belgaum
, India
.
and was sent to Sudan
. He took part in the East African Campaign
to liberate Ethiopia
from the Italians
. Slim was wounded again during the fighting in Eritrea
. On 21 January 1941, Slim was hit when his position was strafed during the advance on Agordat
.
. He was given the rank of acting major-general
in June 1941. He led the Indian 10th Infantry Division
as part of Iraqforce
during the Anglo-Iraqi War
, the Syria-Lebanon Campaign
, and the invasion of Persia
. He was twice mentioned in despatches during 1941.
In March 1942, Slim was given command of Burma Corps
, also known as BurCorps, consisting of the 17th Indian Infantry Division and 1st Burma Division. Slim was made acting lieutenant-general on 8 May 1942. The corps was under attack in Burma by the Japan
ese and, heavily outnumbered, he was soon forced to withdraw to India. On 28 October 1942, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
(CBE).
Slim then took over XV Corps
under the command of the Eastern Army. His command covered the coastal approaches from Burma to India, east of Chittagong
. He had a series of disputes with Noel Irwin
, commander of Eastern Army and, as a result, Irwin (although an army commander) took personal control of the initial advance by XV Corps into the Arakan Peninsula
. The operations ended in disaster, during which Slim was restored to command of XV Corps, albeit too late to salvage the situation. General Irwin and Slim blamed each other for the result but in the end Irwin was removed from his command and Slim was promoted to command the new Fourteenth Army
—formed from IV Corps (United Kingdom) (Imphal), XV Corps
(Arakan) and XXXIII Corps (reserve) – later joined by XXXIV Corps. On 14 January 1943, Slim was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
(DSO) for his actions in the Middle East during 1941.
Slim quickly got on with the task of training his new army to take the fight to the enemy. The basic premise was that off-road mobility was paramount: much heavy equipment was exchanged for mule- or air-transported equipment and motor transport was kept to a minimum and restricted to those vehicles that could cope with some of the worst combat terrain on Earth. The new doctrine dictated that if the Japanese
had cut the lines of communication, then they too were surrounded. All units were to form defensive 'boxes', to be resupplied by air and assisted by integrated close air support and armour. The boxes were designed as an effective response to the tactics of infiltration practiced by the Japanese in the war. Slim also supported increased offensive patrolling, to encourage his soldiers to lose both their fear of the jungle and their belief that Japanese soldiers were better jungle fighters.
At the start of 1944, Slim held the official rank of colonel with a war-time rank of major-general and the temporary rank of lieutenant-general. In January 1944, when the Second Arakan Offensive was met by a Japanese counter-offensive, the Indian 7th Infantry Division
was quickly surrounded along with parts of the Indian 5th Infantry Division
and the 81st (West Africa) Division
. The 7th Indian Division's defence was based largely on the "Admin Box
"—formed initially from drivers, cooks, suppliers etc. They were supplied by air—negating the importance of their lost supply lines. The Japanese forces were able to defeat the offensive into Arakan, but they were unable to decisively defeat the allied forces or advance beyond the surrounded formations.
In early 1944, Slim was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath
(CB). Later in 1944 the Japanese launched an invasion of India aimed at Imphal, hundreds of miles to the north. Slim airlifted two entire veteran divisions (5th & 7th Indian) from battle in the Arakan, straight into battle in the north. Desperate defensive actions were fought at places such as Imphal
, Sangshak and Kohima
, while the RAF
and USAAF
kept the forces supplied from the air. While the Japanese were able to advance and encircle the formations of 14th Army, they were unable to defeat those same forces or break out of the jungles along the Indian frontier. The Japanese advance stalled. The Japanese refused to give up even after the monsoon
started and large parts of their army were wrecked by conducting operations in impossible conditions. As a result their units took unsupportable casualties and were finally forced to retreat in total disorder in July 1944, leaving behind many dead. On 8 August 1944, Slim was promoted to lieutenant-general, and, on 28 September 1944, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
(KCB). In December 1944, during a ceremony at Imphal in front of the Scottish
, Gurkha
and Punjabi
regiments, Slim and three of his corps commanders (Christison
, Scoones
and Stopford) were knighted by the viceroy Lord Wavell
and invested with their honours: Slim was presented with his insignia as KCB, the others with their KBEs
. Slim was also mentioned in despatches.
In 1945, Slim launched an offensive into Burma, with lines of supply stretching almost to breaking point across hundreds of miles of trackless jungle. He faced the same problems that the Japanese had faced in their failed 1944 offensive in the opposite direction. He made the supply of his armies the central issue in the plan of the campaign. The Chindwin River
was spanned with the longest Bailey bridge
in the world at the time. After crossing the Irrawaddy the town of Meiktila
was taken, followed by Burma's second city, Mandalay
. The Allies had reached the open plains of central Burma, sallying out and breaking Japanese attacking forces in isolation, maintaining the initiative at all times, backed up by air-land co-operation including resupply by air and close air support, performed by both RAF and USAAF units.
In combination with these attacks, Force 136
helped initiate a countrywide uprising of the Burmese people
against the Japanese. In addition to fighting the allied advance south, the Japanese were faced with heavy attacks from behind their own lines. Toward the end of the campaign, the army raced south to capture Rangoon
before the start of the monsoon. It was considered necessary to capture the port because of the length of the supply lines overland from India and the impossibility of supply by air or land during the monsoon. Rangoon was eventually taken by a combined attack from the land (Slim's army), the air (parachute operations south of the city) and a seaborne invasion. Also assisting in the capture of Rangoon was the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League
led by Thakin Soe with Aung San
(the future Prime Minister of Burma and father of Aung San Suu Kyi
) as one of its military commanders.
As the Burma campaign came to an end Slim was informed in May by Oliver Leese
, the commander of Allied Land Forces South-East Asia (ALFSEA) that he would not be commanding Fourteenth Army in the forthcoming invasion planned for Malaya
but would take command of the new Twelfth Army being formed to mop up in Burma. Slim refused the appointment, saying he would prefer to retire. As the news spread Fourteenth Army fell into turmoil and Alan Brooke, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, furious at not having been consulted by Leese, and Claude Auchinleck
, the C-in-C India who was at the time in London, brought pressure to bear. The Supreme Allied Commander of the Southeast Asia Theatre, Louis Mountbatten
was obliged to order Leese to undo the damage. On 1 July 1945, Slim was promoted to general
and was informed that he was to succeed Leese as C-in-C ALFSEA. However, by the time he took up the post, having taken some leave, the war was at an end.
(GBE). and took the post of Commandant of the Imperial Defence College
for its first course since 1939. On 7 February 1947 he was made an Aide-de-camp
(ADC) to the King
. At the end of his two year appointment at the Imperial Defence College Slim retired as ADC and from the army on 11 May 1948. He had been approached by both India and Pakistan to become C-in-C of their respective armies post independence but refused and instead became Deputy Chairman of the Railway Executive
.
rejected the proposal by Viscount Montgomery
that he should be succeeded as Chief of the Imperial General Staff by John Crocker
and instead brought back Slim from retirement in the rank of field marshal in January 1949. Slim thus became the first Indian Army officer to be so appointed. Also in 1948 the United States awarded Slim the Commander of the Legion of Merit
.
In September 1949, he was appointed to the Army Council
. On 2 January 1950, he was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
(GCB) and later that year was made a Chief Commander of the Legion of Merit
by the United States. On 1 November 1952, he relinquished the position of Chief of the Imperial General Staff.
(GCMG) on his appointment as Governor-General of Australia
which post he took up on 8 May 1953. On 2 January 1953, he was appointed a Knight of the Order of St. John
(KStJ).
Slim was a popular choice for Governor-General since he was an authentic war hero who had fought alongside Australians at Gallipoli and in the Middle East. In 1954 he was able to welcome Queen Elizabeth II
on the first visit by a reigning monarch to Australia. For his services to the Queen during the tour, he was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order
(GCVO) on 27 April 1954. Liberal
leader Robert Menzies
held office throughout Slim's time in Australia. His Official Secretary
throughout his term was Murray Tyrrell
.
Slim's duties as Governor-General were entirely ceremonial and there were no controversies during his term. However, during his tenure he was patron of the Fairbridge Farms child migration homes in Australia. In 2007 allegations were made by three former residents that as young boys Slim had sexually assaulted
them during visits to the farms. These allegations were dismissed out of hand at that time by those who had served under Slim in the army and by his son John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
. The allegations were aired again on ABC television in the programme The Long Journey Home, broadcast on 17 November 2009, the day after the parliamentary apology to the Forgotten Australians
.
. On 24 April 1959, he was appointed a Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter
(KG). On 15 July 1960, he was created "Viscount Slim
of Yarralumla
in the Capital Territory of Australia
and of Bishopston
in the City and County of Bristol
". After a successful further career on the boards of major UK companies, he was appointed Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle
on 18 June 1964. He died in London on 14 December 1970, aged 79.
medication they refused to take. Slim did not blame his medics for this problem, but placed the responsibility on his officers. "Good doctors are no use without good discipline. More than half the battle against disease is fought not by the doctors, but by the regimental officers."
After Slim dismissed a few officers for high unit malaria rates, the others realized he was serious and malaria treatment was enforced, dropping the rate to less than 5%. The combat effectiveness of his army was thus greatly enhanced. It was this physical and mental turnaround in the army under him that was a contributing factor to the eventual defeat of the Japanese in Burma. Of all the memorials to Slim the one that he would perhaps have cherished most was the impact he made on those he commanded. A half-century later, one of them recalled:
Sir John Kiszely
has recommended Slim's memoirs (Defeat into Victory
) describing Slim as "perhaps the Greatest Commander of the 20th Century" and commenting on Slim's "self-deprecating style" Slim discussed his mistakes during the war in detail and lessons learned, which may help explain why his memoirs have never been out of print. Slim's 14th Army was composed of an amalgam of Indian (Hindu, Sikh and Muslim troops), British, African, and other troops; he was on the far end of a long logistical pipeline and generally had the oldest equipment of any Allied army. By all accounts, he was a superb logistician, imaginative in his tactics and operational concepts, and - unusually - very popular with his troops.
As a British commander on the Asian mainland, Slim (and his contribution to the U.S. war effort in the Pacific) has often been ignored in U.S. history books. For three years, Slim's soldiers tied down tens of thousands of Japanese troops in Burma that could have been otherwise redeployed against U.S. forces in New Guinea
, the Philippines
, Iwo Jima
and Okinawa.
Military historian Max Hastings
:
The spirit of comradeship Slim created within 14th Army lived on after the war in the Burma Star Association
, of which Slim was a co-founder and first President.
A statue to Slim is on Whitehall
, outside the Ministry of Defence
, was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II
in 1990. Designed by Ivor Roberts-Jones
, the statue is one of three of British Second World War Field Marshals (the others being Alanbrooke
and Montgomery
).
Slim's papers were collected by his biographer, Ronald Lewin
, and given to the Churchill Archives Centre
by Slim's wife, Aileen, Viscountess Slim, and son, John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
, and other donors, 1977-2001. Lewin's biography, Slim: The Standardbearer, was awarded the 1977 WH Smith Literary Award
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Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
William Joseph "Bill"'Slim, 1st Viscount Slim, KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, DSO
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...
, 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
Venerable Order of Saint John
The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
(6 August 1891 – 14 December 1970) was a British military commander and the 13th Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
.
He fought in both the First
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and Second
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...
world wars and was wounded in action three times. During World War II he led the 14th Army, the so-called "forgotten army" in the Burma campaign
Burma Campaign
The Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II was fought primarily between British Commonwealth, Chinese and United States forces against the forces of the Empire of Japan, Thailand, and the Indian National Army. British Commonwealth land forces were drawn primarily from...
. From 1953 to 1959 he was Governor-General of Australia, an authentic war hero who had fought with the Anzacs at Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
.
Early years
Slim was born in BishopstonBishopston, Bristol
Bishopston the name of both a council ward of the city of Bristol, England, and a suburb of the city that falls within that ward. Bishopston is situated around the Gloucester Road , the main northern arterial road in the city. The ward includes St Bonaventures and Ashley Down parishes, as well as...
, near Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
to John and Charlotte (née Tucker) Slim, where he was baptised at St. Bonaventure's Roman Catholic church. He was brought up in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, attending St. Philip's Grammar School
St. Philip's School
St. Philip's RC Grammar School was a Roman Catholic grammar school for boys located on Hagley Road in Birmingham, England.-History:St Philip's was founded when two priests of the Birmingham Oratory took over an existing Catholic Grammar School in 1887...
(Edgbaston
Edgbaston
Edgbaston is an area in the city of Birmingham in England. It is also a formal district, managed by its own district committee. The constituency includes the smaller Edgbaston ward and the wards of Bartley Green, Harborne and Quinton....
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
) and King Edward's School
King Edward's School, Birmingham
King Edward's School is an independent secondary school in Birmingham, England, founded by King Edward VI in 1552. It is part of the Foundation of the Schools of King Edward VI in Birmingham, and is widely regarded as one of the most academically successful schools in the country, according to...
(also Birmingham). After leaving school, he taught at a primary school and worked as a clerk in Stewarts & Lloyds
Stewarts & Lloyds
Stewarts & Lloyds was a steel tube manufacturer with its headquarters based at Corby, Northamptonshire, England. The company was created in 1903 by the amalgamation of two of the largest iron and steel makers in Britain, A. & J. Stewart & Menzies Ltd, Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland and...
, a metal-tube maker, between 1910 and 1914.
He joined Birmingham University Officers' Training Corps in 1912, and was thus able to be commissioned as a temporary 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 Royal Warwickshire Regiment on 22 August 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War; in later life, as a result of his modest social origins and unpretentious manner, he was sometimes wrongly supposed to have risen from the ranks. He was badly wounded at Gallipoli
Battle of Gallipoli
The Gallipoli Campaign, also known as the Dardanelles Campaign or the Battle of Gallipoli, took place at the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire between 25 April 1915 and 9 January 1916, during the First World War...
. On return to 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...
, he was granted a regular commission as a second lieutenant in the West India Regiment
West India Regiment
The West India Regiment was an infantry unit of the British Army recruited from and normally stationed in the British colonies of the Caribbean between 1795 and 1927. The regiment differed from similar forces raised in other parts of the British Empire in that it formed an integral part of the...
. In October 1916, he returned to his regiment in Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
. On 4 March 1917, he was promoted to first lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
(with seniority back-dated to October 1915). He was wounded a second time in 1917. Having been previously given the temporary rank of captain
Captain (OF-2)
The army rank of captain is a commissioned officer rank historically corresponding to command of a company of soldiers. The rank is also used by some air forces and marine forces. Today a captain is typically either the commander or second-in-command of a company or artillery battery...
, 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....
on 7 February 1918 for actions in Mesopotamia.
Evacuated to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, he was given the temporary rank of Major in the 6th Gurkha Rifles on 2 November 1918. He was formally promoted to captain and transferred to 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...
on 22 May 1919. He became adjutant of the battalion in 1921.
Personal life
He married Aileen Robertson in 1926 (died 1993), later Viscountess Slim, by whom he had one son and one daughter.In 1926, Slim was sent to the Indian Staff College
Command and Staff College
The Command and Staff College was established in 1907 at Quetta, Balochistan, British Raj, now in Pakistan, and is the oldest and the most prestigious institution of the Pakistan Army. It was established in 1905 in Deolali and moved to its present location at Quetta in 1907 under the name of Quetta...
at Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
. On 5 June 1929, he was appointed a General Staff Officer, Second Grade On 1 January 1930, he was given the brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
rank of major, with formal promotion to this rank made on 19 May 1933. His performance at Staff College resulted in his appointment first to Army Headquarters India in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
and then to 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:...
in England (as a General Staff Officer, Second Grade), where he taught from 1934 to 1937. In 1938, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and given command of the 2nd Battalion, 7th Gurkha Rifles. In 1939 he was briefly given the temporary rank of brigadier
Brigadier
Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
as commander of his battalion. On 8 June 1939, he was promoted to colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
(again with temporary rank of brigadier) and appointed head of the Senior Officers' School at Belgaum
Belgaum
Belgaum is a city and a municipal corporation in Belgaum district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the fourth largest city of the state of Karnataka, the first three being Bangalore, Mysore, Hubli-Dharwad....
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
East African Campaign
On the outbreak of the Second World War, Slim was given command of the Indian 10th Brigade of the Indian 5th Infantry DivisionIndian 5th Infantry Division
Indian 5th Infantry Division was an infantry division in the Indian Army during World War II which fought in several theatres of war and more than earned its nickname the "Ball of Fire".- History :...
and was sent to Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. He took part in the East African Campaign
East African Campaign (World War II)
The East African Campaign was a series of battles fought in East Africa during World War II by the British Empire, the British Commonwealth of Nations and several allies against the forces of Italy from June 1940 to November 1941....
to liberate 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...
from the Italians
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...
. Slim was wounded again during the fighting in 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...
. On 21 January 1941, Slim was hit when his position was strafed during the advance on Agordat
Agordat
Agordat is a city in Eritrea. It was the former capital of the now defunct Barka Province of Eritrea .- Overview :...
.
Middle East
Slim joined the staff of General Archibald Wavell in the Middle East CommandMiddle East Command
The Middle East Command was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to defend British interests in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region.The...
. He was given the rank of acting major-general
Major-General (United Kingdom)
Major general is a senior rank in the British Army. Since 1996 the highest position within the Royal Marines is the Commandant General Royal Marines who holds the rank of major general...
in June 1941. He led the Indian 10th Infantry Division
Indian 10th Infantry Division
The Indian 10th Infantry Division was a war formed Infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II. In four years, the division traveled over from Tehran to Trieste, fought three little wars, and fought two great campaigns: Anglo-Iraqi War, Invasion of Syria-Lebanon, Anglo-Soviet invasion...
as part of Iraqforce
Iraqforce
Iraqforce was a British and Commonwealth formation that came together in the Kingdom of Iraq. The formation fought in the Middle East during World War II.-Background:...
during the Anglo-Iraqi War
Anglo-Iraqi War
The Anglo-Iraqi War was the name of the British campaign against the rebel government of Rashid Ali in the Kingdom of Iraq during the Second World War. The war lasted from 2 May to 31 May 1941. The campaign resulted in the re-occupation of Iraq by British armed forces and the return to power of the...
, the Syria-Lebanon Campaign
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
, and the invasion of Persia
Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran
The Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran was the Allied invasion of the Imperial State of Iran during World War II, by British, Commonwealth, and Soviet armed forces. The invasion from August 25 to September 17, 1941, was codenamed Operation Countenance...
. He was twice mentioned in despatches during 1941.
Burma campaign
- See South-East Asian Theatre of World War IISouth-East Asian theatre of World War IIThe South-East Asian Theatre of World War II was the name given to the campaigns of the Pacific War in Burma , Ceylon, India, Thailand, Indochina, Malaya and Singapore. Conflict in the theatre began when the Empire of Japan invaded Thailand and Malaya from bases located in Indochina on December 8,...
and Burma CampaignBurma CampaignThe Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II was fought primarily between British Commonwealth, Chinese and United States forces against the forces of the Empire of Japan, Thailand, and the Indian National Army. British Commonwealth land forces were drawn primarily from...
In March 1942, Slim was given command of Burma Corps
Burma Corps
The Burma Corps was an Army Corps of the Indian Army during World War II.It was formed in Prome, Burma in March 1942, it took part in the Burma Campaign and was disbanded on arrival in India in May 1942.-Formation:*1st Burma Infantry Division...
, also known as BurCorps, consisting of the 17th Indian Infantry Division and 1st Burma Division. Slim was made acting lieutenant-general on 8 May 1942. The corps was under attack in Burma by the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese and, heavily outnumbered, he was soon forced to withdraw to India. On 28 October 1942, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
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...
(CBE).
Slim then took over XV Corps
XV Corps (British India)
The XV Corps was a formation of the British Indian Army, which was formed in India during World War II. It took part in the Burma Campaign and was disbanded after the end of the war.-World War II:...
under the command of the Eastern Army. His command covered the coastal approaches from Burma to India, east of Chittagong
Chittagong
Chittagong ) is a city in southeastern Bangladesh and the capital of an eponymous district and division. Built on the banks of the Karnaphuli River, the city is home to Bangladesh's busiest seaport and has a population of over 4.5 million, making it the second largest city in the country.A trading...
. He had a series of disputes with Noel Irwin
Noel Irwin
Lieutenant General Noel Mackintosh Stuart Irwin CB, DSO & Two Bars, MC was a British soldier, who played a prominent role in the British Army after the Dunkirk evacuation, and in the Burma Campaign...
, commander of Eastern Army and, as a result, Irwin (although an army commander) took personal control of the initial advance by XV Corps into the Arakan Peninsula
Rakhine State
Rakhine State is a Burmese state. Situated on the western coast, it is bordered by Chin State in the north, Magway Region, Bago Region and Ayeyarwady Region in the east, the Bay of Bengal to the west, and the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh to the northwest. It is located approximately between...
. The operations ended in disaster, during which Slim was restored to command of XV Corps, albeit too late to salvage the situation. General Irwin and Slim blamed each other for the result but in the end Irwin was removed from his command and Slim was promoted to command the new Fourteenth Army
British Fourteenth Army
The British Fourteenth Army was a multinational force comprising units from Commonwealth countries during World War II. Many of its units were from the Indian Army as well as British units and there were also significant contributions from West and East African divisions within the British Army.It...
—formed from IV Corps (United Kingdom) (Imphal), XV Corps
XV Corps (British India)
The XV Corps was a formation of the British Indian Army, which was formed in India during World War II. It took part in the Burma Campaign and was disbanded after the end of the war.-World War II:...
(Arakan) and XXXIII Corps (reserve) – later joined by XXXIV Corps. On 14 January 1943, Slim 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...
(DSO) for his actions in the Middle East during 1941.
Slim quickly got on with the task of training his new army to take the fight to the enemy. The basic premise was that off-road mobility was paramount: much heavy equipment was exchanged for mule- or air-transported equipment and motor transport was kept to a minimum and restricted to those vehicles that could cope with some of the worst combat terrain on Earth. The new doctrine dictated that if the Japanese
Imperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
had cut the lines of communication, then they too were surrounded. All units were to form defensive 'boxes', to be resupplied by air and assisted by integrated close air support and armour. The boxes were designed as an effective response to the tactics of infiltration practiced by the Japanese in the war. Slim also supported increased offensive patrolling, to encourage his soldiers to lose both their fear of the jungle and their belief that Japanese soldiers were better jungle fighters.
At the start of 1944, Slim held the official rank of colonel with a war-time rank of major-general and the temporary rank of lieutenant-general. In January 1944, when the Second Arakan Offensive was met by a Japanese counter-offensive, the Indian 7th Infantry Division
Indian 7th Infantry Division
The 7th Indian Infantry Division was a war-formed infantry division, part of the Indian Army during World War II .-History:The division was created on 1 October 1940 at Attock. Its formation sign was an arrow, pointing bottom left to top right, in yellow on a black background. The division was...
was quickly surrounded along with parts of the Indian 5th Infantry Division
Indian 5th Infantry Division
Indian 5th Infantry Division was an infantry division in the Indian Army during World War II which fought in several theatres of war and more than earned its nickname the "Ball of Fire".- History :...
and the 81st (West Africa) Division
81st (West Africa) Division
The 81st Division was formed under British control during World War II. It took part in the Burma Campaign.-History:The inspiration for the division's formation came from General George Giffard, commander of the British Army's West Africa Command, who subsequently commanded India Command's Eastern...
. The 7th Indian Division's defence was based largely on the "Admin Box
Battle of the Admin Box
The Battle of the Admin Box took place on the Southern Front of the Burma Campaign from 5 February to 23 February 1944, in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II...
"—formed initially from drivers, cooks, suppliers etc. They were supplied by air—negating the importance of their lost supply lines. The Japanese forces were able to defeat the offensive into Arakan, but they were unable to decisively defeat the allied forces or advance beyond the surrounded formations.
In early 1944, Slim was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(CB). Later in 1944 the Japanese launched an invasion of India aimed at Imphal, hundreds of miles to the north. Slim airlifted two entire veteran divisions (5th & 7th Indian) from battle in the Arakan, straight into battle in the north. Desperate defensive actions were fought at places such as Imphal
Battle of Imphal
The Battle of Imphal took place in the region around the city of Imphal, the capital of the state of Manipur in North-East India from March until July 1944. Japanese armies attempted to destroy the Allied forces at Imphal and invade India, but were driven back into Burma with heavy losses...
, Sangshak and Kohima
Battle of Kohima
The Battle of Kohima was the turning point of the Japanese U Go offensive into India in 1944 in the Second World War. The battle was fought from 4 April to 22 June 1944 around the town of Kohima in northeast India. It is often referred to as the "Stalingrad of the East".The battle took place in...
, while the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
and USAAF
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
kept the forces supplied from the air. While the Japanese were able to advance and encircle the formations of 14th Army, they were unable to defeat those same forces or break out of the jungles along the Indian frontier. The Japanese advance stalled. The Japanese refused to give up even after the monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
started and large parts of their army were wrecked by conducting operations in impossible conditions. As a result their units took unsupportable casualties and were finally forced to retreat in total disorder in July 1944, leaving behind many dead. On 8 August 1944, Slim was promoted to lieutenant-general, and, on 28 September 1944, he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(KCB). In December 1944, during a ceremony at Imphal in front of the Scottish
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...
, Gurkha
Gurkha
Gurkha are people from Nepal who take their name from the Gorkha District. Gurkhas are best known for their history in the Indian Army's Gorkha regiments, the British Army's Brigade of Gurkhas and the Nepalese Army. Gurkha units are closely associated with the kukri, a forward-curving Nepalese knife...
and Punjabi
Punjabi people
The Punjabi people , ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ), also Panjabi people, are an Indo-Aryan group from South Asia. They are the second largest of the many ethnic groups in South Asia. They originate in the Punjab region, which has been been the location of some of the oldest civilizations in the world including, the...
regiments, Slim and three of his corps commanders (Christison
Philip Christison
General Sir Philip Christison, 4th Baronet GBE CB DSO MC was a British military commander of the Second World War.-Early life and career:...
, Scoones
Geoffrey Scoones
General Sir Geoffrey Allen Percival Scoones KCB, KBE, CSI, DSO, MC was a general in the British Indian Army during the Second World War. His younger brother was Reginald "Cully" Scoones.-Military career:...
and Stopford) were knighted by the viceroy Lord Wavell
Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell
Field Marshal Archibald Percival Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell GCB, GCSI, GCIE, CMG, MC, PC was a British field marshal and the commander of British Army forces in the Middle East during the Second World War. He led British forces to victory over the Italians, only to be defeated by the German army...
and invested with their honours: Slim was presented with his insignia as KCB, the others with their KBEs
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...
. Slim was also mentioned in despatches.
In 1945, Slim launched an offensive into Burma, with lines of supply stretching almost to breaking point across hundreds of miles of trackless jungle. He faced the same problems that the Japanese had faced in their failed 1944 offensive in the opposite direction. He made the supply of his armies the central issue in the plan of the campaign. The Chindwin River
Chindwin River
The Chindwin River is a river in Burma , and the largest tributary of the country's chief river the Ayeyarwady . It flows entirely within Burma and is known as Ning-thi to the Manipuris.-Source:...
was spanned with the longest Bailey bridge
Bailey bridge
The Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge. It was developed by the British during World War II for military use and saw extensive use by both British and the American military engineering units....
in the world at the time. After crossing the Irrawaddy the town of Meiktila
Meiktila
Meiktila is a city in central Myanmar, located on the banks of Lake Meiktila in Mandalay Division, at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Air Force's central command and Meiktila Air...
was taken, followed by Burma's second city, Mandalay
Mandalay
Mandalay is the second-largest city and the last royal capital of Burma. Located north of Yangon on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, the city has a population of one million, and is the capital of Mandalay Region ....
. The Allies had reached the open plains of central Burma, sallying out and breaking Japanese attacking forces in isolation, maintaining the initiative at all times, backed up by air-land co-operation including resupply by air and close air support, performed by both RAF and USAAF units.
In combination with these attacks, Force 136
Force 136
Force 136 was the general cover name for a branch of the British World War II organization, the Special Operations Executive . The organisation was established to encourage and supply resistance movements in enemy-occupied territory, and occasionally mount clandestine sabotage operations...
helped initiate a countrywide uprising of the Burmese people
Bamar
The Bamar are the dominant ethnic group of Burma , constituting approximately two-thirds of the population. The Bamar live primarily in the Irrawaddy basin, and speak the Burmese language, which is also the official language of Burma. Bamar customs and identity are closely intertwined with general...
against the Japanese. In addition to fighting the allied advance south, the Japanese were faced with heavy attacks from behind their own lines. Toward the end of the campaign, the army raced south to capture Rangoon
Yangon
Yangon is a former capital of Burma and the capital of Yangon Region . Although the military government has officially relocated the capital to Naypyidaw since March 2006, Yangon, with a population of over four million, continues to be the country's largest city and the most important commercial...
before the start of the monsoon. It was considered necessary to capture the port because of the length of the supply lines overland from India and the impossibility of supply by air or land during the monsoon. Rangoon was eventually taken by a combined attack from the land (Slim's army), the air (parachute operations south of the city) and a seaborne invasion. Also assisting in the capture of Rangoon was the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League
Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League
The Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League , or hpa hsa pa la by its Burmese acronym, was the main political party in Burma from 1945 until 1962...
led by Thakin Soe with Aung San
Aung San
Bogyoke Aung San ; 13 February 1915 – 19 July 1947) was a Burmese revolutionary, nationalist, and founder of the modern Burmese army, the Tatmadaw....
(the future Prime Minister of Burma and father of Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi, AC is a Burmese opposition politician and the General Secretary of the National League for Democracy. In the 1990 general election, her National League for Democracy party won 59% of the national votes and 81% of the seats in Parliament. She had, however, already been detained...
) as one of its military commanders.
As the Burma campaign came to an end Slim was informed in May by Oliver Leese
Oliver Leese
Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver William Hargreaves Leese, 3rd Baronet, KCB, CBE, DSO was a British general during World War II.-Early years:...
, the commander of Allied Land Forces South-East Asia (ALFSEA) that he would not be commanding Fourteenth Army in the forthcoming invasion planned for Malaya
British Malaya
British Malaya loosely described a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the Island of Singapore that were brought under British control between the 18th and the 20th centuries...
but would take command of the new Twelfth Army being formed to mop up in Burma. Slim refused the appointment, saying he would prefer to retire. As the news spread Fourteenth Army fell into turmoil and Alan Brooke, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, furious at not having been consulted by Leese, and Claude Auchinleck
Claude Auchinleck
Field Marshal Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck, GCB, GCIE, CSI, DSO, OBE , nicknamed "The Auk", was a British army commander during World War II. He was a career soldier who spent much of his military career in India, where he developed a love of the country and a lasting affinity for the soldiers...
, the C-in-C India who was at the time in London, brought pressure to bear. The Supreme Allied Commander of the Southeast Asia Theatre, Louis Mountbatten
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC, FRS , was a British statesman and naval officer, and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
was obliged to order Leese to undo the damage. On 1 July 1945, Slim was promoted 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....
and was informed that he was to succeed Leese as C-in-C ALFSEA. However, by the time he took up the post, having taken some leave, the war was at an end.
Retirement from the army
At the end of 1945 Slim returned to the UK. On 1 January 1946, he was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British EmpireOrder 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...
(GBE). and took the post of Commandant of the Imperial Defence College
Commandant Royal College of Defence Studies
The Commandant of the Royal College of Defence Studies was a UK senior serving military officer between 1972 and 2001. The post rotated through the three branches of the armed forces in turn. In 1971 the old Imperial Defence College became the Royal College of Defence Studies...
for its first course since 1939. On 7 February 1947 he was made an Aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
(ADC) to the King
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
. At the end of his two year appointment at the Imperial Defence College Slim retired as ADC and from the army on 11 May 1948. He had been approached by both India and Pakistan to become C-in-C of their respective armies post independence but refused and instead became Deputy Chairman of the Railway Executive
British Transport Commission
The British Transport Commission was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain...
.
Return to the army
However, in November 1948 the British Prime Minister Clement AttleeClement Attlee
Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...
rejected the proposal by Viscount Montgomery
Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, KG, GCB, DSO, PC , nicknamed "Monty" and the "Spartan General" was a British Army officer. He saw action in the First World War, when he was seriously wounded, and during the Second World War he commanded the 8th Army from...
that he should be succeeded as Chief of the Imperial General Staff by John Crocker
John Crocker
General Sir John Tredinnick Crocker GCB, KBE, DSO, MC was a British Army officer and corps commander during the Second World War.- First World War :...
and instead brought back Slim from retirement in the rank of field marshal in January 1949. Slim thus became the first Indian Army officer to be so appointed. Also in 1948 the United States awarded Slim the Commander of the 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...
.
In September 1949, he was appointed to the Army Council
Army Council (1904)
The Army Council is a governing board for the British military organization. It was created in 1904 along with other institutional changes made in that year to the British Army....
. On 2 January 1950, he was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(GCB) and later that year was made a Chief Commander of the 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...
by the United States. On 1 November 1952, he relinquished the position of Chief of the Imperial General Staff.
Governor-General of Australia
On 10 December 1952 Slim was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St GeorgeOrder of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(GCMG) on his appointment as Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
which post he took up on 8 May 1953. On 2 January 1953, he was appointed a Knight of the Order of St. John
Venerable Order of Saint John
The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
(KStJ).
Slim was a popular choice for Governor-General since he was an authentic war hero who had fought alongside Australians at Gallipoli and in the Middle East. In 1954 he was able to welcome Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
on the first visit by a reigning monarch to Australia. For his services to the Queen during the tour, he was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
(GCVO) on 27 April 1954. Liberal
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
leader Robert Menzies
Robert Menzies
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....
held office throughout Slim's time in Australia. His Official Secretary
Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia
The Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia and his staff provide governors-general with the necessary support to enable them to carry out their constitutional, statutory, ceremonial and public duties. The position of Official Secretary was established in 1901, although only...
throughout his term was Murray Tyrrell
Murray Tyrrell
Sir Murray Louis Tyrrell KCVO CBE was the Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia for a record term of 26 years, 1947–73, in which time he served six governors-general....
.
Slim's duties as Governor-General were entirely ceremonial and there were no controversies during his term. However, during his tenure he was patron of the Fairbridge Farms child migration homes in Australia. In 2007 allegations were made by three former residents that as young boys Slim had sexually assaulted
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
them during visits to the farms. These allegations were dismissed out of hand at that time by those who had served under Slim in the army and by his son John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
Colonel John Douglas Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim OBE, DL, FRGS is a British peer and soldier. He is one of the 92 hereditary peers in the House of Lords, elected to remain after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999. In 1970, he succeeded to his father's title...
. The allegations were aired again on ABC television in the programme The Long Journey Home, broadcast on 17 November 2009, the day after the parliamentary apology to the Forgotten Australians
Forgotten Australians
Forgotten Australians is a term applied to the more than 500,000 non-indigenous, child migrants and indigenous children who experienced care in institutions or outside a home setting during the 20th century. Many of these children were abused physically, emotionally, or sexually while in care...
.
Retirement
In 1959, Slim retired and returned to Britain, where he published his memoirs, Unofficial History and Defeat into VictoryDefeat into Victory
Defeat into Victory is an account of the retaking of Burma by Allied forces during the Second World War by the British Field Marshal William Slim and published in the UK by Cassell in 1956. It was published in the United States as Defeat into Victory: Battling Japan in Burma and India, 1942-1945 by...
. On 24 April 1959, he was appointed a Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(KG). On 15 July 1960, he was created "Viscount Slim
Viscount Slim
Viscount Slim, of Yarralumla in the Capital Territory of Australia and of Bishopston in the City and County of Bristol, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1960 for Field Marshal Sir William Slim upon the end of his term as Governor-General of Australia. the title is...
of Yarralumla
Yarralumla
Yarralumla may refer to:* Government House, Canberra, the residence of the Governor-General of Australia known as Yarralumla* Yarralumla, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra* Yarralumla Primary School...
in the Capital Territory of Australia
Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...
and of Bishopston
Bishopston, Bristol
Bishopston the name of both a council ward of the city of Bristol, England, and a suburb of the city that falls within that ward. Bishopston is situated around the Gloucester Road , the main northern arterial road in the city. The ward includes St Bonaventures and Ashley Down parishes, as well as...
in the City and County of Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
". After a successful further career on the boards of major UK companies, he was appointed Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle
Constables and Governors of Windsor Castle
The Constables and Governors of Windsor Castle are in charge of Windsor Castle on behalf of the sovereign. The day-to-day operations are under the Superintendent, who is an officer of the Master of the Household's Department of the Royal Household....
on 18 June 1964. He died in London on 14 December 1970, aged 79.
Legacy
- Slim was given a full military funeral at St. George's Chapel, Windsor and was afterward cremated. A remembrance plaque was placed in the crypt of St. Paul's Cathedral.
- The road William Slim Drive, in the district of BelconnenBelconnenBelconnen is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, comprising 25 suburbs with 29,900 dwellings housing 82,247 people of the 311,518 people in the Australian Capital Territory ....
, CanberraCanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
is named after him.
- On 7 September 2008, a plaque in Slim's memory, and those who served with him, was unveiled at the Cenotaph in his native Bristol. Fr Robert King of the Diocese of CliftonRoman Catholic Diocese of CliftonThe Roman Catholic Diocese of Clifton is a Latin Rite Roman Catholic diocese centred around the Cathedral Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Clifton....
was joined by faith leaders from the Hindu, Muslim and Sikh communities at the ceremony, which was led by the Lord Mayor of Bristol's chaplain, the Rev. Prebendary Harold Clarke.
Relations with troops
Slim had a unique relationship with his troops - the "Forgotten Army", as they called themselves and despite being very close to defeat at the hands of the Japanese, who had driven them back to the Indian border by 1942, Slim raised training and morale within the ranks. He was also concerned with the health of his troops and the impact of this on their fighting efficiency. In his book, Defeat into Victory, he tells of the malaria rates among his units being 70%, largely due to noncompliance by his soldiers with the foul-tasting quinineQuinine
Quinine is a natural white crystalline alkaloid having antipyretic , antimalarial, analgesic , anti-inflammatory properties and a bitter taste. It is a stereoisomer of quinidine which, unlike quinine, is an anti-arrhythmic...
medication they refused to take. Slim did not blame his medics for this problem, but placed the responsibility on his officers. "Good doctors are no use without good discipline. More than half the battle against disease is fought not by the doctors, but by the regimental officers."
After Slim dismissed a few officers for high unit malaria rates, the others realized he was serious and malaria treatment was enforced, dropping the rate to less than 5%. The combat effectiveness of his army was thus greatly enhanced. It was this physical and mental turnaround in the army under him that was a contributing factor to the eventual defeat of the Japanese in Burma. Of all the memorials to Slim the one that he would perhaps have cherished most was the impact he made on those he commanded. A half-century later, one of them recalled:
"But the biggest boost to morale was the burly man who came to talk to the assembled battalion … it was unforgettable. Slim was like that: the only man I've ever seen who had a force that came out of him...British soldiers don't love their commanders much less worship them; Fourteenth Army trusted Slim and thought of him as one of themselves, and perhaps his real secret was that the feeling was mutual".
Slim's place in history
Lieutenant GeneralLieutenant 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 John Kiszely
John Kiszely
Lieutenant General Sir John Panton Kiszely KCB, MC was Director of the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom. In December 2008 he was appointed as the National President of The Royal British Legion.-Military career:...
has recommended Slim's memoirs (Defeat into Victory
Defeat into Victory
Defeat into Victory is an account of the retaking of Burma by Allied forces during the Second World War by the British Field Marshal William Slim and published in the UK by Cassell in 1956. It was published in the United States as Defeat into Victory: Battling Japan in Burma and India, 1942-1945 by...
) describing Slim as "perhaps the Greatest Commander of the 20th Century" and commenting on Slim's "self-deprecating style" Slim discussed his mistakes during the war in detail and lessons learned, which may help explain why his memoirs have never been out of print. Slim's 14th Army was composed of an amalgam of Indian (Hindu, Sikh and Muslim troops), British, African, and other troops; he was on the far end of a long logistical pipeline and generally had the oldest equipment of any Allied army. By all accounts, he was a superb logistician, imaginative in his tactics and operational concepts, and - unusually - very popular with his troops.
As a British commander on the Asian mainland, Slim (and his contribution to the U.S. war effort in the Pacific) has often been ignored in U.S. history books. For three years, Slim's soldiers tied down tens of thousands of Japanese troops in Burma that could have been otherwise redeployed against U.S. forces in New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
and Okinawa.
Military historian Max Hastings
Max Hastings
Sir Max Hugh Macdonald Hastings, FRSL is a British journalist, editor, historian and author. He is the son of Macdonald Hastings, the noted British journalist and war correspondent and Anne Scott-James, sometime editor of Harper's Bazaar.-Life and career:Hastings was educated at Charterhouse...
:
"In contrast to almost every other outstanding commander of the war, Slim was a disarmingly normal human being, possessed of notable self-knowledge. He was without pretension, devoted to his wife, Aileen, their family and the Indian Army. His calm, robust style of leadership and concern for the interests of his men won the admiration of all who served under him ... His blunt honesty, lack of bombast and unwillingness to play courtier did him few favours in the corridors of power. Only his soldiers never wavered in their devotion".
The spirit of comradeship Slim created within 14th Army lived on after the war in the Burma Star Association
Burma Star Association
The Burma Star Association is a British veterans' association for ex-servicemen and women of all services who served in the Burma Campaign of World War II...
, of which Slim was a co-founder and first President.
A statue to Slim is on Whitehall
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...
, outside the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
, was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 1990. Designed by Ivor Roberts-Jones
Ivor Roberts-Jones
Ivor Roberts-Jones, RA was a British sculptor. He is best known for his sculpted heads of notable people such as Yehudi Menuhin and George Thomas, Viscount Tonypandy....
, the statue is one of three of British Second World War Field Marshals (the others being Alanbrooke
Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke
Field Marshal The Rt. Hon. Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, KG, GCB, OM, GCVO, DSO & Bar , was a senior commander in the British Army. He was the Chief of the Imperial General Staff during the Second World War, and was promoted to Field Marshal in 1944...
and Montgomery
Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, KG, GCB, DSO, PC , nicknamed "Monty" and the "Spartan General" was a British Army officer. He saw action in the First World War, when he was seriously wounded, and during the Second World War he commanded the 8th Army from...
).
Slim's papers were collected by his biographer, Ronald Lewin
Ronald Lewin
Ronald Lewin , full name George Ronald Lewin, was a British military historian, radio producer and publishing editor.He was educated at Heath School, Halifax and Oxford University where he was a Hastings Scholar and Goldsmiths’ Exhibitioner....
, and given to the Churchill Archives Centre
Churchill Archives Centre
The Churchill Archives Centre is one of the largest repositories in the United Kingdom for the preservation and study of modern personal papers. It is best known for housing the Churchill Papers, the massive archive of Sir Winston Churchill, as well as the private papers of Baroness Thatcher...
by Slim's wife, Aileen, Viscountess Slim, and son, John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
John Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim
Colonel John Douglas Slim, 2nd Viscount Slim OBE, DL, FRGS is a British peer and soldier. He is one of the 92 hereditary peers in the House of Lords, elected to remain after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999. In 1970, he succeeded to his father's title...
, and other donors, 1977-2001. Lewin's biography, Slim: The Standardbearer, was awarded the 1977 WH Smith Literary Award
WH Smith Literary Award
The WH Smith Literary Award was an award founded in 1959 by British high street retailer W H Smith. Its founding aim was stated to be to "encourage and bring international esteem to authors of the British Commonwealth"; originally open to all residents of the UK, the Commonwealth and the Republic...
Styles
| 1891-1914: | William Slim |
| 1914-1916: | Temp. 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... William Slim |
| 1916-1917: | Second Lieutenant William Slim |
| 1917-7 February 1918: | 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... (Temp. Captain) William Slim |
| 7 February-2 November 1918: | Lieutenant (Temp. Captain) William Slim, 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.... |
| 2 November 1918 – 22 May 1919: | Lieutenant (Temp. 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. ... ) William Slim, MC |
| 22 May 1919 – 1 January 1930: | Captain (Temp. Major) William Slim, MC |
| 1 January 1930-1933: | Captain (Brevet Major) William Slim, MC |
| 1933-1938: | 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. ... William Slim, MC |
| 1938-12 May 1939: | Lieutenant-Colonel William Slim, MC |
| 12 May-8 June 1939: | Lieutenant-Colonel (Temp. Brigadier Brigadier Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general.... ) William Slim, MC |
| 8 June 1939 – 14 May 1941: | Colonel Colonel Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures... (Temp. Brigadier) William Slim, MC |
| 15 May 1941 – 18 March 1942: | Colonel (Actg. Major-General) William Slim, MC |
| 19 March 1942 – 27 October 1942: | Colonel (Actg. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, MC |
| 28 October 1942 – 13 January 1943: | Colonel (Actg. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, CBE CBE CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering... , MC |
| 14 January 1943 – 18 March 1943: | Colonel (Actg. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, CBE, DSO 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... , MC |
| 19 March 1943 – 15 November 1943: | Colonel (Temp. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, CBE, DSO, MC |
| 16 November 1943-January 1944: | Major-General (Temp. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, CBE, DSO, MC |
| January-2 April 1944: | Major-General (Temp. Lieutenant-General) William Slim, CB Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath... , CBE, DSO, MC |
| 3 April 1944 – 27 September 1944: | Lieutenant-General William Slim, CB, CBE, DSO, MC |
| 28 September 1944 – 30 June 1945: | Lieutenant-General Sir Sir Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures... William Slim, KCB Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath... , CBE, DSO, MC |
| 1 July 1945 – 31 December 1945: | General General A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given.... Sir William Slim, KCB, CBE, DSO, MC |
| 1 January 1946 – 6 February 1947: | General Sir William Slim, GBE GBE GBE or Gbe may refer to:* Gbe languages, a group of languages in West Africa* Gigabit ethernet, a term for transmitting Ethernet frames at a rate of a gigabit per second* Government business enterprise... , KCB, DSO, MC |
| 7 February 1947 – 11 May 1948: | General Sir William Slim, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC, ADC Aide-de-camp An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state... |
| 11 May 1948 – 3 January 1949: | General Sir William Slim, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC |
| 4 January 1949 – 1 January 1950: | Field Marshal Field Marshal Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical... Sir William Slim, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC |
| 2 January 1950 – 9 December 1952: | Field Marshal Sir William Slim, GCB, GBE, DSO, MC |
| 10 December 1952 – 1 January 1953: | Field Marshal Sir William Slim, GCB, GCMG, GBE, DSO, MC |
| 2 January 1953 – 7 May 1953: | Field Marshal Sir William Slim, GCB, GCMG, GBE, KStJ KSTJ KSTJ may refer to:* KFRH, a radio station licensed to Boulder City, Nevada, United States, which used the call sign KSTJ from September 1998 to October 2007... , DSO, MC |
| 8 May 1953 – 15 February 1954: | His Excellency Excellency Excellency is an honorific style given to certain members of an organization or state.Usually, people styled "Excellency" are heads of state, heads of government, governors, ambassadors, certain ecclesiastics, royalty, aristocracy, and military, and others holding equivalent rank .It is... Field Marshal Sir William Slim, GCB, GCMG, GBE, KStJ KSTJ KSTJ may refer to:* KFRH, a radio station licensed to Boulder City, Nevada, United States, which used the call sign KSTJ from September 1998 to October 2007... , DSO, MC |
| 16 February 1954 – 23 April 1959: | His Excellency Field Marshal Sir William Slim, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, KStJ, DSO, MC |
| 24 April 1959 – 2 February 1960: | His Excellency Field Marshal Sir William Slim, KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, KStJ, DSO, MC |
| 3 February 1960 – 14 July 1960: | Field Marshal Sir William Slim, KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, KStJ, DSO, MC |
| 15 July 1960 – 14 December 1970: | Field Marshal The Right Honourable The Right Honourable The Right Honourable is an honorific prefix that is traditionally applied to certain people in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Anglophone Caribbean and other Commonwealth Realms, and occasionally elsewhere... The Viscount Slim Viscount Slim Viscount Slim, of Yarralumla in the Capital Territory of Australia and of Bishopston in the City and County of Bristol, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1960 for Field Marshal Sir William Slim upon the end of his term as Governor-General of Australia. the title is... , KG, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE, KStJ, DSO, MC |
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