Sir

Ivo Vesey
Vesey in 1920
Born(1876-08-11)11 August 1876
Dorking, Surrey, England
Died19 February 1975(1975-02-19) (aged 98)
Colchester, Essex, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
Years of service1897–1939
1939–1945
RankGeneral
Commands held
Battles/wars
Awards

General Sir Ivo Lucius Beresford Vesey, KCB, KBE, CMG, DSO (11 August 1876 – 19 February 1975) was a British Army officer who served as Chief of the General Staff in India from 1937 to 1939.

Military career

Born the second son of Major General George Henry Vesey and educated at Wellington College and the Royal Military College Sandhurst,[1] Vesey was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Queen's Royal Regiment on 20 February 1897. He was promoted to lieutenant on 20 October 1898. He served in the Second Boer War of 1899–1902, where he was wounded in the Battle of Colenso on 15 December 1899, and later served in the Natal from March to June 1900, including action at Laing's Nek in June. While in South Africa, he was acting adjutant of the 2nd Battalion of his regiment from 15 May to 29 November 1900.[2][3] After peace was declared in May 1902, Vesey left South Africa on board the SS Bavarian and arrived in the United Kingdom the following month.[4]

Vesey later served in the First World War and then became Director of Recruiting and Organisation at the War Office in 1919.[3] He was appointed Director of Organisation and Staff Duties at the Air Ministry in 1923, General Officer Commanding of 48th South Midland Division in 1930 and Director of Staff Duties at the War Office in 1931.[3] He went on to be General Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Western Command, India in 1935, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Southern Command, India in March 1936 and Chief of the General Staff in India in 1937 before retiring in 1939.[3] He served in the Second World War as a battalion commander in the Home Guard.[1] He was also Colonel of the Queen's Royal Regiment from 1939 to 1945.[3]

Family

In 1913, Vesey married Geraldine Foley; they had two sons.[5]

The grave of Ivo Vesey in the churchyard of St John the Baptist, Layer de la Haye, Essex.

Honours and awards

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB)[6]
Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE)[6]
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG)[6]
Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO)[6]
Queen's South Africa Medal[6]with five clasps
King's South Africa Medal[6]with two clasps
1914 Star[6]with '5th Aug.-22nd Nov. 1914' clasp
British War Medal[6]
Victory Medal with palm for Mention in Despatches[6]
King George V Silver Jubilee Medal[6]1935
King George VI Coronation Medal[6]1937
Officer of the Order of the Crown[6](Belgium)
Knight of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus[6](Italy)
Officer of the Legion of Honour[6](France)
Croix de guerre[6](Belgium)

References

  1. 1 2 "Queen's Royal Surreys: Colonels". Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  2. ↑ Hart's Army list, 1903
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Vesey, Ivo". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Archived from the original on 5 February 2011. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  4. ↑ "The Army in South Africa – the Coronation contingent". The Times. No. 36791. London. 11 June 1902. p. 14.
  5. ↑ The Peerage.com
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "Queen's Royal Surreys: General Sir Ivo Vesey Medals". Retrieved 8 February 2020.
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