John Harold Owen Wilsey

British Army general (1904–1961)

John Wilsey

Nickname(s)| "Felix"
Born| 29 November 1904
Camberley, Surrey, England[1]
Died| 20 July 1961 (aged 56)
St. Saviour, Jersey
Allegiance| United Kingdom
Service / branch| British Army
Years of service| 1924–1956
Rank| Major General
Service number| 30965
Unit| Dorsetshire Regiment
Worcestershire Regiment
Commands| 2nd Division (1954–56)
5th Infantry Brigade (1949–50)
Middle East Staff College (1945–46)
158th Infantry Brigade (1945)
7th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment (1943–44)
9th Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment (1943)
Battles / wars| Second World War
Awards| Companion of the Order of the Bath
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Distinguished Service Order
Relations| Sir John Wilsey (son)

Major General John Harold Owen Wilsey, CB, CBE, DSO (29 November 1904 − 20 July 1961) was a senior British Army officer who fought in the Second World War and later commanded the 2nd Division from 1954 to 1956.

## Military career

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John Wilsey was born in 1904 and was educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College and later attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.[2] He passed out from the latter on 27 August 1924, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant into the Dorset Regiment, a line infantry regiment of the British Army.[3] However, due to a lack of promotion in the Dorsets, he transferred to the Worcestershire Regiment on 27 February 1936, and was promoted to captain in that regiment.[4][5]

Wilsey served in the Second World War, as commanding officer of the 9th Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment in Northern Ireland and Southeast England from January to October 1943. The battalion formed part of the 182nd Brigade of the 61st Division and, although initially selected to take part in the Allied invasion of Normandy, it fid not materialise. He then served as commanding officer of the 7th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment, which formed part of the 147th Brigade of the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division. He led the battalion during the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944 and throughout the Battle of Normandy, and through most of the Northwest Europe Campaign until, in early January 1945, Wilsey was promoted to command the 158th Brigade, part of the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division, which he commanded for rest of the campaign in North West Europe until Victory in Europe Day in May 1945.[5]

After the war Wilsey took command of the 5th Infantry Brigade in 1949, became Director of Infantry in 1951 and Director of Staff Duties at the War Office in 1953.[5] His last appointment was as General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2nd Division from 1954 before retiring from the army in 1956.[6]

In retirement Wilsey lived at Maufant Manor in St. Saviour on Jersey.[5]

## References

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1. ^ "John Harold Owen Wilsey". Jersey Heritage. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
2. ^ Orders of Chivalry Haileybury
3. ^ "No. 32969". The London Gazette. 29 August 1924. p. 6499.
4. ^ "No. 34323". The London Gazette. 15 September 1936. p. 5936.
5. ^ a b c d "Major-General John Harold Owen WILSEY, C.B., C.B.E., D.S.O. – Worcestershire Regiment". www.worcestershireregiment.com.
6. ^ "Army Commands" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2015.

## External links

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* Generals of World War II

Military offices

Preceded by

Basil Coad

|  General Officer Commanding 2nd Division
1954–1956  | Succeeded by

Cosmo Nevill