Letter Signed by Brigadier E W C Flavell WW1 and WW11. Handw...

Hammer

£30

Letter Signed by Brigadier E W C Flavell WW1 and WW11. Handwritten Letter dated 14 January 1976 Brigadier Edwin William Conquest Flavell DSO, MC and Two Bars, (22 February 1898 - 29 November 1993) was a British Army Officer who served in both in Great War and WW2. In 1914, during World War 1, at the age of 17, Edwin William Conquest Flavell enlisted in the East Surrey Regiment and was commissioned as a 2nd Lt as a five months later. In 1916 he transferred to the newly formed Machine Gun Corps, and in 1917 he was believed to be the youngest Major serving in the Flanders area at the age of 20. He was wounded during the Battle of Cambrai in the same year, and by the end of the conflict had been awarded the Military Cross a total of three times (referred to as the Military Cross and two Bars). The first was awarded for taking command of an infantry company that had lost all of its officers; by his leadership the unit was able to continue advancing. The second (his first bar) was for conducting several personal reconnaissance's of enemy positions. In mid-March 1918, Flavell was transferred from the 19th ( Western) Division to the 42nd ( East Lancashire ) Division, where he took command of the 126th Machine Gun Company; one of the officers in the company was his future commanding officer, Lieutenant (later General ) Richard Nelson Gale. On 21 March the Germans launched Operational Michael, a major offensive against the British Army, and the 42nd Division moved into the frontline near Bapaume, replacing the 46th (North Midland) Division who had taken heavy casualties. The offensive was repulsed, and by the end of August the division had advanced towards Hindenburg Line. Forming a part of the British Third Army the division then made rapid advances towards Bapaume and by the end of September had reached the Hindenburg Line; on 27 September Flavell's brigade, the 126th ( east Lancashire was tasked with capturing Highland Ridge, near Havrincourt Wood. The next day, after the brigade had reached the top of the ridge, Gale's machine gun section sighted in on two German field guns moving parallel to their position; they sighted in on the horses leading the guns, but just before they could open fire, Flavell arrived. According to Gale, "Flavell could not resist and, firing one of the guns himself, he brought down the leading horses;" the crews fled, and the section was able to capture the two guns This action resulted in Flavell being awarded his third Military Cross (second bar). He served with great distinction during the latter, where he commanded the 1st Parachute Brigade in North Africa Operation Torch and the 6th Airlanding Brigade in Normandy, before becoming Deputy Chief of Staff HQ First Allied Airborne Army Good Content about Operation Touch. Good condition. All autographs come with a Certificate of Authenticity. We combine postage on multiple winning lots and can ship worldwide. UK postage from £5.99, EU from £7.99, Rest of World from £9.99