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Major General Gerald Ion Gartlan, CBE, DSO, MC, DL (24 June 1889 – 15 July 1975) was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War and the Second World War.

Military career

Born in County Down in what is now Northern Ireland, on 24 June 1889, Gartlan was educated at Downside School and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, from where he was commissioned into the Royal Irish Rifles (later the Royal Ulster Rifles) in 1909. He was promoted to lieutenant in November 1910.

Gartlan saw service during the First World War, mainly as a staff officer on the Western Front and, after being awarded the Military Cross, he was later appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order for his service during the Upper Silesia plebiscite. He was promoted to captain in September 1915.

After attending Staff College, Camberley from 1924 to 1925, Gartlan became commander of the regimental depot of the Royal Ulster Rifles in 1929. He went on to be commanding officer of the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1933 to 1936 and attended the Imperial Defence College in 1937. Towards the end of the interwar period, he was made the commander of the 5th Infantry Brigade in 1938, which was accompanied by the rank of brigadier.

Gartlan was deployed to France with his brigade, which formed part of the 2nd Infantry Division in the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), at the start of the Second World War. Following the Dunkirk evacuation, the 2nd Division was placed on Home Defence duties in Yorkshire. He briefly served as acting General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 2nd Division from 15 August 1940 to 18 September 1940. In late February 1941 he was promoted to the acting rank of major general and assumed command of the Dorset County Division, which he commanded until December 1941 when it was disbanded. He then served as the district commander for the East Riding of Yorkshire before retiring with the honorary rank of major general in 1944.

Gartlan returned to Northern Ireland with his two daughters and, always keen on sports, served as a deputy lieutenant for his native County Down in 1952. In 1954 he was High Sheriff of Down and the following year was made a justice of the peace.

References

1. ^ Smart 2005, p. 114.
2. "No. 28438". The London Gazette. 18 November 1910. p. 8288.
3. "No. 29285". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 September 1915. p. 8827.
4. Smart 2005, p. 114−115.
5. "No. 34474". The London Gazette. 18 January 1938. p. 365.
6. ^ Smart 2005, p. 115.
7. Jeffreys, Alan (2005). The British Army in the Far East 1941–45. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1841767901.
8. Joslen, H. F. (2003) . Orders of Battle: Second World War, 1939–1945. Uckfield, East Sussex: Naval and Military Press. ISBN 978-1-84342-474-1., p. 39
9. "No. 35099". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 March 1941. p. 1428.
10. "Gartland, Gerald Ion". Generals.dk. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
11. "No. 36421". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 March 1944. p. 1211.

Bibliography

• Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.

• 1889 births
• 1975 deaths
• Northern Ireland justices of the peace
• High sheriffs of Down
• Deputy lieutenants of Down
• Military personnel from County Down
• Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies
• British Army major generals
• Royal Ulster Rifles officers
• Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
• Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
• Recipients of the Military Cross
• Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
• British Army personnel of World War I
• British Army generals of World War II
• Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley
• People educated at Downside School
• Lawyers from County Down