Brigadier Sherwood Lett
South Saskatchewan Regiment
4th Infantry Brigade

And this is the man I first saw one rainy day in the First World War, welcoming us to a rat-infested land of death and destruction. Sherwood Lett, an ordinary Canadian officer in 1915, has come a long way … Surely, here is one Canadian who has had, and is still having a full life. As a politician, he might well have been a Prime Minister of Canada.

(Jim Greenblatt, Star-Phoenix, 10 Aug 1963, 15)

Born on 1 August 1895 in Iroquois, Ontario, Sherwood Lett was a University of British Columbia graduate, a decorated First World War veteran, a Rhodes Scholar a t Oxford, and a lawyer in Vancouver. He had served as a captain with the 46th (Saskatchewan) Battalion in France and earned the Military Cross for conspicuous gallantry under heavy fire. Commanding officer of the Irish Fusiliers from 1932 to 1937, Lett volunteered again and went overseas as brigade major with the 2nd Canadian Division.

In December 1941, he transferred from general staff officer with the 2nd Division to take over the South Saskatchewan Regiment from Lieutenant-Colonel J.E. Wright. The replacement of the popular native Saskatchewan colonel with an outsider came as unwelcome news to many in the battalion. One officer wrote:

I do not like the attitude that the new Col. has taken. He came to see the men at Xmas dinner. He just stood there by the serving table and never said a word. Not like Col. [Wright] who used to go out among the men and talk with them … He did not even wish them a Merry Xmas, boy you should have heard what the boys said when he went out. He certainly lost their respect right there and then. That is one of the reasons I have asked for a transfer. I do not wish to serve under a man that has lost the respect of the troops.

Perhaps to the relief of other SSR officer, Lett’s tenure would be brief. In March 1942 he was promoted to take over the 4th Infantry Brigade from Brigadier A.E. Potts. Five months later, he commanded the brigade during the Dieppe Raid of 19 August 1942.

As the raiding force came under heavy enemy fire, Brigadier Sherwood Lett, attempted to land. “For Christ’s sakes don’t. It’s bloody hopeless!” Lieutenant-Colonel R.R. Labatt of Royal Hamilton Light Infantry warned. Severely wounded when a mortar struck his landing craft, Lett handed command of the 4th Brigade on the beach to Labatt.

Although the raid ended in failure with the battalions of the 4th Brigade virtually decimated, Lett’s leadership while wounded was recognized with the Distinguished Service Order:

In spite of this he continued to direct his brigade for the rest of the action, his thoughts being entirely for the units and individuals of his command. His soldierly handling of a difficult situation and cheerful, confident, effective leadership under stress were decidedly noteworthy and impressed all ranks.

He returned home to recover from his wounds in late 1942. By May 1943, he would be named deputy chief of the general staff with National Defence Headquarters. He held the post for under a year when he returned overseas in March 1944. He resumed command of the 4th Infantry Brigade during the Normandy invasion. Wounded again on 18 July 1944, Lett was soon replaced by Brigadier Ed Ganong and returned to Canada.

He declined a nomination from the Liberals to run in the next federal election and resumed his law practice. Lett was Chancellor of UBC from 1951 to 1957, Chief Justice of the British Columbia Supreme Court from 1955 to 1963, and Chief Justice for the BC Court of Appeals until his death on 24 July 1964 in Vancouver.