K. S. Thimayya
|
General Kodendera Subayya Thimayya DSO |
|
|---|---|
| Chief of the Army Staff (India) | |
|
In office 8 May 1957 – 7 May 1961 |
|
| Preceded by | General SM Shrinagesh |
| Succeeded by | General PN Thapar |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
30 March 1906 Madikeri, Coorg, Mysore, British India |
| Died |
17 December 1965 (aged 59) Cyprus |
| Awards |
 Padma Bhushan Distinguished Service Order
|
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 British Indian Empire India
|
| Service/branch |
British Indian Army Indian Army
|
| Years of service | 1926 – 1961 |
| Rank |
 General
|
| Unit | 19th Hyderabad Regiment (Now Kumaon Regiment) |
| Commands |
 Chief of Army Staff Southern Army19th Infantry Division 268th Indian Infantry Brigade 8th battalion The 19th Hyderabad Regiment |
General Kodendera Subayya Thimayya, DSO was a distinguished soldier of the Indian Army who served as Chief of Army Staff from 1957 to 1961 in the crucial years leading up to the conflict with China in 1962. Gen. Thimayya was the only Indian to command an Infantry brigade in battle during the Second World War and is regarded as the most distinguished combat officer the Indian Army has produced. After the Korean War, Thimayya headed a United Nations unit dealing with the repatriation of prisoners of war. After his retirement from the Army, he was appointed Commander of the United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus from July 1964 to December 1965 and died in Cyprus while on active duty on 18th Dec 1965.
Kodandera Subayya Thimayya was born in Madikeri, the district town of Kodagu (formerly known as Coorg), Karnataka, on 30 March 1906, to Thimayya and Sitamma. His family was one the leading coffee planters in the area. His mother, Sitamma, was highly educated and a social worker. She was the recipient of Kaisar-e-Hind Medal. Thimayya was the second child of six children in his family. The eldest was Ponappa, then Thimayya, followed by Somayya, and three younger sisters. All the three boys of the family rose to become officers in the Indian Army.
On his father's side, he belonged to the Kodendera clan to which India's first commander-in-chief Cariappa also belonged. His mother Cheppudi Chittauwa was from the Cheppudira family. His wife Mrs Nina Thimayya was a recipient of the Kaisar-e-Hind Medal for her philanthropic contribution during the 1935 Quetta earthquake. His maternal uncle C B Ponnappa was in first batch of commissioned Indian officers from the Indore defence school and a batchmate of Cariappa. Desiring that he receive a good education, he was sent at the age of eight years to St Joseph's College in Coonoor a convent run by Irish brothers. Later, Thimayya was sent to Bishop Cotton Boys' School in Bangalore. After completing school, Thimayya was sent to the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College, a necessary stepping stone for a commission in the Indian Army. His elder brother Ponappa (later joined INA) as well as younger brother Somayya (died in a mine accident in 1947–48 Kashmir operations) joined Indian army. Following his graduation from RIMC, "Timmy", as he was affectionately known, was one of only six Indian cadets selected for further training at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
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