GENERAL & CRICKETER

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 77, 24 January 1947, Page 5

GENERAL & CRICKETER

SIR MILES DEMPSEY’S RAPID

RISE TO SENIORITY It was once said of General Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey (“of the Rhine”) that if he had not been such a serious and scientific soldier, he might have played Test cricket for England. Several days ago, according to cable advices, the General, a 49-year-old bachelor, was appointed chairman of the British Racecourse Betting Control Board. At £6OOO a year, the job will pay him £2OOO more than his Army pay. For many years until the early days of World War 11, General Dempsey opened the batting for the Army XI. He played on many occasions for his country club, Sussex—for whom the great Ranjitsinhji appeared and the almost equally great Maurice Tate. Few senior officers in the British Army have had the meteoric rise of General Dempsey. From LieutenantColonel in 1939 to acting LieutenantGeneral in 1944 at the tender age (for Lieut-Generals) at 47, Dempsey was promoted over the heads of many seniors.

Dempsey was famous in many theatres of World War 11, culminating in his command of the Second Army in the invasion of France. During the battle of Caen (Normandy), Dempsey called upon Bomber Command for an absolute effort in support of his Second Army. Dempsey wanted to miss nothing, so he went up during the raid to do his own spotting in a captured Fies-ler-Storch reconnaissance plane with an Air Marshal for a pilot. Infantry Opened Up

For nearly an hour the pair ranged over the British line.

The story goes that just as 800 British bombers were seen on their way to battle, there was an earsplitting crash and all the ack-ack in the area seemed to open up on the tiny plane, which had British markings. “Put her down, for the love of Mike,” yelled the General, and down it went.

Before the plane had come to a stop, the nearest Allied infantry had opened up, so Dempsey promptly stuck his “brass hat” on a swagger stick as identification.

After a while the shooting stopped and up came a rather sheepish officer.

“Where’s your identity card,” he demanded.

The rest of that story was probably censored. After the final victory in Europe, Dempsey, in July, 1945, succeeded General Sir William Slim in command of the 14th Army then at Singapore. His last appointment was as Commander-in-Chief Middle East.

Finally, General Dempsey brings to his big betting job, which begins next July, a knowledge of horses excelled by few people in Britain.