A MOST DIPLOMATIC GENERAL by D. G. Williamson
Brian Robertson, the son of Field Marshal Sir William Robertson, played a pivotal role in his country's history in the middle years of this century. He organized the supplies for the 8th Army, 1941-3, and then served as Chief Adminstrative Officer in Italy under General Alexander. From 1945-50 he was First Deputy Military Governor, then Military Governor of the British zone in Germany and, finally, British High Commissioner. He moved on to become Commander-in-Chief of the British Middle East Land Forces and in 1953, he helped negotiate the terms of the British withdrawal from the Canal Zone. In 1953, he became Chairman of the British Transport Commission, and presided over a major attempt to modernize the railways. He retired in 1961. This biography also explores his early career as staff officer in World War I, military engineer in India, expert on disarmament in the War Office and at the League of Nations and Managing Director of Dunlops, South Africa, 1937-40.