Eric Leslie Booth

DSO
BornApril 21, 1904
DiedAugust 14, 1944
AllegianceCanada
Service/branchCanadian Militia
Canadian Army
RankBrigadier
UnitThe Mississauga Horse
1st Hussars
17th Lancers
Commands held12th Armoured Regiment (Three Rivers Regiment)
4th Canadian Armoured Brigade
Battles/warsSecond World War
AwardsDistinguished Service Order[1] & Bar
Canadian Efficiency Decoration

Brigadier Eric Leslie Booth, DSO & Bar, ED (April 21, 1904 – August 14, 1944) was a Canadian Army officer.[2]

Biography

Born in Lancaster, England, Leslie Booth was the son of John William Booth and Rose Elizabeth Booth. His father was a veteran of the First World War.[2]

Booth was married to Mary Helen Booth of Penetanguishene, Ontario.[2]

Joining the Canadian Militia in the peacetime years, Booth was an officer with The Mississauga Horse of Toronto and later the 2nd/10th Dragoons of Hamilton until the outbreak of war in 1939. Joining the 1st Hussars of London, he proceeded overseas where later he was attached to the British Army's 17th Lancers as the regiment's second-in-command and served in the North African Campaign under General Montgomery.[2]

Rejoining the Canadian Army again in time for the Allied Invasion of Sicily, Booth was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and given command of the 12th Armoured Regiment (Three Rivers Regiment). During the campaign he received the Distinguished Service Order.[2][3][4] Booth would later receive a Bar to his DSO while commanding the regiment at the Battle of Ortona when while disregarding danger from sniper, shell and mortar fire, he went forward for reconnaissance and to direct and encourage the men of his regiment.[2]

In 1944, Booth was recalled from Italy and given command of the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade. During operations in Normandy on August 8, 1944, Major General George Kitching, unable to reach Booth by radio, found him drunk in his tank. Kitching severely reprimanded Booth, but did not remove him.

Booth was killed on August 14, when his tank was hit by German artillery during Operation Tractable. Brigadier Booth is buried at the Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery.[2][5]

References

  1. ↑ "No. 36180". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 September 1943. p. 4221.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Canada, Veterans Affairs (20 February 2019). "Eric Leslie Booth - The Canadian Virtual War Memorial - Veterans Affairs Canada". www.veterans.gc.ca. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  3. ↑ "Canadian Army Officers 1939-1945". www.unithistories.com. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  4. ↑ "Biography of Brigadier Eric Leslie Booth (1904 – 1944), Canada". www.generals.dk. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  5. ↑ CWGC. "Brigadier Eric Leslie Booth | War Casualty Details 2331643". CWGC. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
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