Richard Lonsdale

Lieutenant Colonel Richard Thomas Henry Lonsdale, (27 December 1913 – 23 November 1988) was an officer of the British Army who served with the Parachute Regiment throughout much of the Second World War.

Born in December 1913, Lonsdale initially entered the British Army in the 1930s as a private before attending Royal Military College, Sandhurst and being commissioned as an officer in the Leicestershire Regiment. In 1938, while serving with his regiment in Waziristan, he was awarded the Military Cross (MC). After the outbreak of the Second World War he was a founding member of the 151st Battalion of the Parachute Regiment in India. By 1943 he had been promoted to lead A Company of the 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment and served with distinction in the Allied invasion of Sicily. After returning to England he was made second in command of the 11th Battalion, Parachute Regiment in 1944, shortly before flying to Arnhem with the rest of the 4th Parachute Brigade and 1st Airborne Division. Here he again served with distinction during the Battle of Arnhem, and despite being wounded he took command of a mixed force that successfully defended the Allied perimeter against repeated German attacks. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) twice, for his actions in Sicily and Arnhem.

After the war Lonsdale remained with the army and took command of the 3rd Parachute Battalion. He later served with the King's African Rifles in Uganda before he retired from the army in 1951. He died in November 1988. Provided by Wikipedia