Edmond Schreiber

Sir Edmond Charles Acton Schreiber
Nickname(s)	"Teddy"
Born	30 April 1890
Died	8 October 1972 (aged 82)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1909–1947
Rank	Lieutenant General
Unit	Royal Field Artillery Royal Artillery
Commands held	61st Infantry Division 45th Infantry Division 4th Infantry Division V Corps First Army Western Command South Eastern Command Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Malta
Battles/wars	First World War Second World War
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order Knight of the Order of St John Mentioned in dispatches
Other work	Deputy Lieutenant of Devon (1948) National President, Old Contemptibles Association (1960)

Lieutenant General Sir Edmund Charles Acton Schreiber, KCB, DSO, KStJ, DL (30 April 1890 – 8 October 1972) was a senior British Army officer who served in both the First World War and the Second World War. In the latter he commanded the 45th Infantry Division, V Corps and the British First Army.

Military career

Born the son of Brigadier General Acton L. Schreiber CB, CMG, DSO, Edmond Schreiber was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the British Army's Royal Field Artillery, becoming a lieutenant in 1912.^[1] He served in the First World War (1914–1918) with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front, earning the Distinguished Service Order, being mentioned in dispatches and ending the war as a brevet major.

In the 1930s, during the interwar period, he served at the Staff College, Camberley, the War Office and the Senior Officers' School, Sheerness and was Brigadier Royal Artillery in Southern Command.^[2]

During the Second World War (1939–1945) Schreiber served with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France between 1939 and 1940.^[3] He became General Officer Commanding (GOC) 61st Infantry Division in 1940, GOC 45th Infantry Division later in 1940 and GOC 4th Infantry Division in 1941 before being promoted to take command of V Corps later that year.^[2] In 1942 he was appointed to command the British First Army (in reality an Anglo-American formation) which was to be the parent organisation for Allied forces in French North Africa after Operation Torch in November; however, he developed a kidney problem and became unfit for active service.^[4]

Restricted to non-field roles, he became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) Western Command in 1942 and of South Eastern Command in 1944.^[2] Between 1944 and 1946, Schreiber was Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Malta.^[5] He retired from the British Army after the war in 1947.^[2] Schreiber became a Knight of the Venerable Order of Saint John in 1944.

Retirement

He was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of Devon in 1948 and National President of the Old Contemptibles Association in 1960.

Family

Edmond Schreiber married Phyllis Barchard in 1916; there were two daughters.

Notes

1. The London Gazette: no. 28674. p. 9784. 24 December 1912. Retrieved 26 July 2009.
2. Generals.dk
3. Alanbrooke (2001), e.g. entries 29 November 1939, 11 December 1939, 22 April 1940.
4. Mead, p. 59.
5. Alanbrooke (2001), e.g. entries 21 August 1944, 29 January 1945, 10 February 1945.

References

• Alanbrooke, Field Marshal Lord (2001). Danchev, Alex & Todman, Daniel, eds. War Diaries 1939–1945. Phoenix Press. ISBN 1-84212-526-5.
• Mead, Richard (2007). Churchill's Lions: A biographical guide to the key British generals of World War II. Stroud (UK): Spellmount. ISBN 978-1-86227-431-0.

External links

• Biography of Lieutenant General Sir Edmond Charles Acton SCHREIBER