Putney Born D-Day Hero Celebrated

General Sir Richard Gale landed in occupied France in a glider

General Sir Richard Gale GCB, KBE, DSO, MC

June 7, 2024

As celebrations continue for the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day landings, the focus has moved to one man with local origins and the part he played in the liberation of Europe.

General Sir Richard Gale was born on 25 July 1896 on Oakhill Road in Putney, although he spent much of his childhood in Australia and New Zealand returning to London when he was ten. He served with the armed forces during the First World War and won the Military Cross in 1918. He stayed with the army through to the outbreak of war in 1939 and, by 1943 ‘Windy’, as he was affectionately known by the men under his command, had earned the rank of Major-General and was put in charge of the newly-formed 6th Airborne Division.

He spent the year prior to the Normandy landings training and organising the Division. No British airborne division had ever been deployed into battle entirely through aerial means and Gale was responsible for forming the tactics for the operation.

In June 1944, Gale accompanied his Division and landed in occupied France. He was later awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his involvement in the mission. Other medals he was given included the Commander of the Legion of Merit from the United States, Commander of the Legion of Honour and the Croix de Guerre from France and Belgium’s Grand Officer of the Order of the Crown.

Mayor of Wandsworth, Cllr Sana Jafri, has led expressions of deep gratitude to General Gale, UK forces as a whole, and Allied troops from across 13 countries as the nation remembers and honours their sacrifice.

The invasion of the beaches at Normandy by Allied troops was the largest military naval, air and land operation ever attempted and was a significant turning point in the war, marking the beginning of the liberation of France.

Cllr Jafri said, “On this special anniversary, we have learned of one individual who had a major role in planning the Allied airborne invasion of Normandy, was a son of a Wandsworth resident.

“General Richard Gale was critical to the successful D-Day landings, training and organising the 6th Airborne Division and pioneering a never before attempted full air deployment into enemy territory.

“We reflect with gratitude on General Gale’s sacrifice, as we do the 250,000 personnel who were involved in the Normandy landings – and the 10,000 who died fighting for freedom. We Will Remember Them.”

Sir Richard retired from military service in 1960 and died a few days after his 86th birthday in Kingston-upon-Thames, 1982.