Allison Digby Tatham-Warter
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Major Allison Digby Tatham-Warter DSO |
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| Birth name | Allison Digby Tatham-Warter |
| Nickname(s) | "Digby" |
| Born |
21 May 1917 Atcham, Shropshire, England |
| Died | 21 March 1993 (aged 75) Nanyuki, Kenya |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
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| Service/branch |
 British Army
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| Years of service | 1937–1946 |
| Rank | Major |
| Unit |
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry Parachute Regiment |
| Battles/wars | Battle of Arnhem |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Order |
| Other work | Safari operator |
Major Allison Digby Tatham-Warter DSO (21 May 1917 – 21 March 1993), also known as Digby Tatham-Warter or just Digby, was a British Army officer who fought in the Second World War. He was most known for carrying an umbrella into battle.
Digby was born in Atcham, Shropshire, England. He was the second son of Henry de Grey Tatham-Warter, a landowner with several estates in the south west of England. Digby's father fought in the First World War with the Artists Rifles; he was gassed in the trenches and died when Digby was 11. Digby was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire. In 1935 he was accepted into the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
Digby graduated from Sandhurst as an officer with the rank of second lieutenant on 21 January 1937 and was commissioned into the Unattached List for the Indian Army with a view to joining the Indian Army due to his family connections. He was attached to the 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry in India from 13 March 1937, and subsequently transferred to that regiment 27 April 1938 (so never joining the Indian Army) so that he would be able to continue his hobbies of tiger hunting and pig sticking.
When the Second World War broke out, Digby was not initially sent to fight in Europe. His sister Kit served in the Western Desert Campaign and was awarded the French Croix de guerre while serving with the Hadfield-Spears Unit. Upon hearing of his brother John's death at the Second Battle of El Alamein in late 1942 with the 2nd Dragoon Guards, The Queen's Bays, Digby volunteered for the airborne forces and transferred to the Parachute Regiment. He was appointed as the company commander of A Company of the 2nd Parachute Battalion, part of the 1st Parachute Brigade of the 1st Airborne Division. He was stationed in Grantham, Lincolnshire during training. Because his tiger hunting was well known, he was able to obtain the use of an American Dakota aeroplane and flew all the company officers in the camp to London for a party at The Ritz London Hotel.
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