Freddie Scott (British Army officer)

Major Frederic Balfour Scott MC (31 January 1922 - 15 April 2011) was a British Army officer who was awarded a Military Cross for gallantry whilst serving with the 2nd Battalion, The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (the 52nd) in Normandy during the Second World War.

Early life

Scott was born at Monifieth, Angus and educated at Fettes College.

In 1940 he enlisted in the Army as a private in The Duke of Wellington's Regiment and was later commissioned into the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and was posted to the 2nd Ox and Bucks (the 52nd). The 2nd Ox and Bucks was a Gliderborne Battalion which formed part of 6 Airlanding Brigade, 6 Airborne Division in 1943.

Normandy 1944

Scott was a platoon commander on D-Day, 6 June 1944 and landed at Ranville at approximately 21.00hrs, part of the main airlanding brigade landings which aimed to secure the eastern flank of the invasion area. He took part in the advance on Hérouvillette and Escoville and was with 2nd Ox and Bucks on Breville ridge until August.

After the British breakout from the bridgehead on 17 August and advance to the Seine, known as Operation Paddle, the 2nd Ox and Bucks on 25 August were ordered to capture Manneville-la-Raoult which was heavily defended by a German Garrison. Scott's platoon's leading section when approximately 300 yards from the village came under attack by machine gun fire and grenades; he immediately went forward and firing his sten gun inflicted many casualties amongst the enemy, who were forced from their position. An extract from the citation for his Military Cross reads: " During the action this officer's example, leadership and determination were largely responsible for the success of the action and were an inspiration to the men under him. "

North-West Europe 1944-45

He served with the 2nd Ox and Bucks in the Ardennes and Holland from December 1944 to February 1945. Scott took part in Operation Varsity: the air assault landing over the Rhine on 24 March 1945 and in the advance across Germany to the Baltic Sea.

Post war

Following the Second World War he served in Palestine and was then demobilised from the Army.

Scott later worked for British American Tobacco and was based in Penang, Malaya. After a period in South Africa he returned to England and managed a marketing research company and lived near Chichester. He later lived in Bognor Regis, Sussex.

References

• Obituary The Daily Telegraph 26 April 2011
• Obituary The Scotsman 30 April 2011
• Obituary Herald Scotland 7 May 2011
• The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (The 43rd/52nd Regiment of Foot) Philip Booth (1971)
• The Pegasus Diaries John Howard and Penny Bates (2006)
• Go To It! An Illustrated History of 6 Airborne Division Peter Harclerode (2000).

Persondata
Name	Scott, Freddie
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Date of birth	31 January 1922
Place of birth
Date of death	15 April 2011
Place of death