Edmond Schreiber

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.

Sir Edmond Schreiber
Nickname(s)	"Teddy"
Born	30 April 1890 London, England
Died	8 October 1972 (aged 82) Exmouth, Devonshire, England
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1909–1947
Rank	Lieutenant-General
Unit	Royal Artillery
Commands held	X Field Brigade, Royal Artillery 61st Infantry Division 45th Infantry Division V Corps First Army Western Command South-Eastern Command 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)

Military career

Born in London, England, on 30 April 1890, the son of Brigadier-General Acton Lemuel Schreiber, Edmond Charles Acton Schreiber was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, from where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the British Army's Royal Field Artillery on 23 December 1909.[1] He was promoted to lieutenant on 23 December 1912.[2] He served in the First World War with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front, earning the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) on December 1914, for his "Very gallant conduct on 14th September in saving horses which had become entangled in blocked road, and man-handling guns away from a position which had become untenable from a very heavy shell fire, continuing to work, although wounded".[3] He was several times mentioned in dispatches and ended the war as a brevet major, having been promoted to that rank on 1 January 1918.[4]

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.[5]

During the Second World War Schreiber served with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France between 1939 and 1940.[6] Promoted to acting Major-General on 26 April 1940,[7] he became General Officer Commanding (GOC) 61st Infantry Division on the same date, before being made GOC 45th Infantry Division later in 1940. In May 1941 he was promoted to acting Lieutenant-General[8] to take command of V Corps later that year. 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.[9]

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.[5] Between 1944 and 1946, Schreiber was Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Malta.[10] He retired from the British Army after the war in 1947.[5]

Retirement

He was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of Devon in 1948 and National President of the Old Contemptibles Association in 1960.[11]

Family

Edmond Schreiber married Phyllis Barchard in 1916; there were two daughters.[4]

Notes

1. "No. 28329". The London Gazette. 14 January 1910. p. 340.
2. "No. 28674". The London Gazette. 24 December 1912. p. 9784.
3. "No. 28992". The London Gazette. 1 December 1914. p. 10189.
4. "Schreiber, Edmund". Unit Histories. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
5. Generals.dk
6. Alanbrooke (2001), e.g. entries 29 November 1939, 11 December 1939, 22 April 1940.
7. "No. 34848". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 May 1940. p. 2881.
8. "No. 35253". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 August 1941. p. 4853.
9. Mead, p. 59.
10. Alanbrooke (2001), e.g. entries 21 August 1944, 29 January 1945, 10 February 1945.
11. Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnsley, U.K.: Pen & Sword Military. ISBN 1-84415-049-6.

References

• Alanbrooke, Field Marshal Lord (2001). Danchev, Alex & Todman, Daniel (eds.). War Diaries 1939–1945. Phoenix Press. ISBN 1-84212-526-5.

External links

• Biography of Lieutenant General Sir Edmond SCHREIBER
• Generals of World War II