Eric Bols
| Eric Bols | |
|---|---|
Eric Bols, pictured (far left) as a major-general, with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery during the Battle of the Bulge, January 1945.
|
|
| Born |
8 August 1904 Camberley, Surrey, England |
| Died | 14 June 1985 (aged 80) Battle, East Sussex, England |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 British Army
|
| Years of service | 1924–1948 |
| Rank | Major-General |
| Unit |
Devonshire Regiment King's Regiment (Liverpool) |
| Commands held |
3rd Reconnaissance Regiment 185th Infantry Brigade 6th Airborne Division |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order & Bar Silver Star (United States) |
Major-General Eric Louis Bols CB DSO & Bar (8 June 1904 – 14 June 1985) was a senior British Army officer, who, during World War II, was most notable for serving as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6th Airborne Division during Operation Varsity in March 1945.
Born in Surrey in 1904, the son of Lt-Gen Sir Louis Jean Bols, he was educated at Lancing College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
Bols joined the British Army in 1924 and saw service in a number of areas of the British Empire during the interwar period, including Hong Kong and Shanghai, as well as Malta. He served as a Cadet Instructor at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst and attended courses at the Staff College, Camberley on promotion to captain.
When the Second World War began in September 1939, Bols moved through several staff officer positions, serving in several institutions and Army formations before being promoted to colonel and taking charge of all training for the troops under the command of 21st Army Group and helping to plan Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy. Bols was then promoted again and commanded the 185th Infantry Brigade during the Allied advance through Western Europe, before taking over command of the 6th Airborne Division from Richard Gale in late 1944. He led the division in the Battle of the Bulge, as well as Operation Varsity, the airborne operation to cross the River Rhine, then led the division into northern Germany until the end of the conflict. After the end of the war Bols remained in command of the division in peace-keeping duties in the Middle East, and then retired in 1948 as a major-general.
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