World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseOliver William Hargreaves Leese was born to Second Baronet Sir William Hargreaves Leese in London, England, United Kingdom in 1894. He was educated at Ludgrove School (Wokingham, Berkshire, England) and Eton College (also in Berkshire). During WW1, he saw combat with the Colstream Guards regiment of the British Army and was wounded three times; he was Mentioned in Despatches and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his WW1 service. He was promoted to the rank of captain in 1921. Between 1927 and 1928, he attended the Staff College, Camberley in Surrey, England; he would strike a friendship with Bernard Montgomery while at Camberley. In Nov 1929, he was appointed as Brigade Major to 1st Infantry Brigade (Guards); a few days later he was formally promoted to the rank of major. In Jul 1933, he was promoted to the brevet rank of lieutenant-colonel. In Dec 1936, he was promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant-colonel. In Jan 1937, upon his father's passing, he was made the Third Baronet of the Leese Baronetcy. In Sep 1938, he was promoted to the rank of brevet colonel, followed by permanent colonel two months later after being posted to the Staff College, Quetta in India (now Pakistan) as an instructor. The European War broke out while he was in India. Returning in Britain in Mar 1940, he served as the Deputy Chief of Staff of the British Expeditionary Force in France. After being evacuated near Dunkerque, France on 31 May, he was given command of first 29th Infantry Brigade, then West Sussex County Division, and 15th (Scottish) Division in Jan 1941. In Nov 1940, he was promoted to the rank of brevet major-general, followed by a permanent promotion in Dec. In Jun 1941, he was made the commanding officer of the newly-formed Guards Armoured Division. In Sep 1942, he was assigned to the British Eighth Army in North Africa by the request of Montgomery to command the XXX Corps at the acting rank of lieutenant-general, and he would be with XXX Corps through the end of the Desert War and through the invasion of Sicily, Italy. In Sep 1943, he was promoted to the rank of brevet lieutenant-general. In Dec 1943, while in Britain, he was ordered to travel to Italy to take command of Eighth Army, where he would remain for about one year. In Jul 1944, he was promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant general. In Sep, he was appointed the commanding officer of Eleventh Army Group; when he assumed command in Nov, it had been renamed Allied Land Forces, South-East Asia. Under his leadership, the Allies pushed through Burma, capturing the capital of Rangoon by May 1945, but conflicts between him and the field generals he inherited, namely William Slim, caused him grief. It culminated in 1945 when Leese's attempt to replace Slim with Philip Christison became his own undoing, resulting in Louis Mountbatten and Alan Brooke replacing Leese with Slim. Having lost his command in Southeast Asia, he returned to Britain to head up the Eastern Command, which was viewed as a demotion. He retired from military service in Jan 1947 without reaching the rank of full general. He moved to Worfield, Shropshire, England and kept a well-noted garden. In 1958, he served as the High Sheriff of Shropshire. In 1973, his right leg was amputated. He passed away from a heart attack at his small Dolwen estate at LLanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant in Wales, United Kingdom in 1978. He was buried at a church in Worfield in Shropshire.

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