Major-General Errol Lonsdale was chief of army transport for three years from 1966. Devoted to transport - some would say besotted - he had a steam locomotive named after him during his time as transport officer-in-chief (army). Errol Lonsdale lives on, hauling trains on a preserved line in Wales.
Raised at Barnard Castle, County Durham, the younger son of a Church of England parson, Lonsdale enjoyed a lifetime interest in transport, and drove as a hobby until almost the end of his days.
Chief-of-staff (G4 Logistics) at Nato headquarters Northern Army Group in Germany, Lonsdale took over positions in the Royal Army Service Corps as colonel and latterly brigadier until called to the Ministry of Defence in 1966.
His command of logistics was recognised by the Chartered Institute of Transport, who conferred fellowship on him that year
On his retiral from the army in 1969, the Transport Trust made him a vice-president. But it was as a serving major-
general that his name was bestowed on the sturdy 1953-built 0-6-0 steam locomotive, and he was the last general to be so honoured.
There was a long army tradition of naming military locos after heroes and generals. Errol Lonsdale was one of a final batch of 14 engines built to the second world war ''Austerity'' design and delivered in 1953. It was named by General Lonsdale at a ceremony in 1968 on the extensive Longmoor Military Railway in Hampshire.
When Longmoor closed in 1970, Errol Lonsdale, the locomotive, was bought up by railway enthusiasts to service on various heritage railways, and this summer is working on the Gwili Railway in Carmarthenshire in west Wales.
Educated at Westminster and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, Lonsdale took a university direct-entry commission into the RASC in 1934, from where he was seconded to the Sudan Defence Force in 1938. For his bravery in the campaign against the Italians in the Sudan and Eritrea, he was made MBE (military) in 1942 and later mentioned in dispatches.
In 1943-44 he was senior supply officer to the 10th Armoured Division in the Middle East, and in 1945 he went to the Far East to join Headquarters 20th Indian Division in Saigon, where the formerly occupying Japanese were handing over control. He later held senior administrative posts in Allied Land Forces South East Asia.
He was commander RASC 1st Commonwealth Division in Korea 1953-54 and then moved to Malaya to take over similar responsibilities with the 1st Federal Division in north Malaya during the communist insurgency, for which he was again mentioned in dispatches. On his retirement from the army, he was appointed CB.
A keen sportsman and follower of sport, he was manager to the British team in modern pentathlon at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki while still a serving officer. In retirement he was appeals secretary of the British Olympic Association for two years from 1969, and introduced corporate financial support for the British team in the 1972 games.
In a deal that would not now be countenanced, he created an arrangement with Rothmans cigarettes that involved coupons included in packs being returned by the public: the more people smoked, the more money went to the BOA.
Lonsdale's ability to chair a committee with precision
and clarity was impressive. Respected for his intellect, his mental acuity was obvious, but he also brought to discussions wisdom, humanity, and a great sense of humour.
A member of the executive board of the International Union for the Modern Pentathlon and Biathlon, he was also president of the Modern Pentathlon Association of Great Britain. From 1971 until 1979 he served as chairman of the Institute of Advanced Motorists. He married Muriel Allison Payne in 1944. They had a son and a daughter.
Major-General Errol Henry Gerrard Lonsdale, CB, MBE FCIT, transport officer-in-chief (army) 1966-69; born February 26, 1913, died April 3, 2003
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article