William Francis Kynaston Thompson
| William Francis Kynaston Thompson | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Sheriff |
| Born |
12 November 1909 Greenwich, London |
| Died | 6 June 1980 (aged 70) |
| Allegiance | British |
| Service/branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1929–1959 |
| Rank | Brigadier |
| Service number | 44179 |
| Unit | Royal Artillery |
| Commands held | |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
|
| Spouse(s) | Rosemary Foster |
| Other work | Journalist |
William Francis Kynaston "Sheriff" Thompson OBE (12 November 1909 – 6 June 1980) was a British soldier and journalist. Born in Greenwich, London in 1909 Thompson served in the army for 30 years before becoming the defence correspondent of the Daily Telegraph.
Thompson was educated at Cheltenham College and then attended the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich before being commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1929.
Promoted to Lieutenant in 1932, Thompson was posted to India where he served in a mountain artillery battery. It was in India that Thompson developed a love of climbing and also acquired his nickname of Sheriff. Returning to England Thompson was seconded to the Royal Artillery Training Battalion at the Military College of Science and later appointed adjutant at the College with the rank of Captain.
In 1940 Thompson was awarded the MBE "in recognition of distinguished services rendered in recent operations" and after various staff appointments by early 1943 he was a temporary Major Thompson and second-in-command of 1st Airlanding Light Regiment. In May 1943 the regiment moved to Algeria but did not participate in the Allied invasion of Sicily unlike the infantry components of 1st Airlanding Brigade. During operations in Sicily the divisional artillery commander was killed and the Commanding Officer of the 1st Airlanding Light Regiment was appointed to the role. As a result Thompson was promoted to acting (subsequently temporary) Lieutenant colonel and given command of the regiment. Thompson and the regiment landed in Italy in September 1943 and took part in operations in Italy throughout the remainder of 1943 and into January 1944 when the regiment was withdrawn to England.
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