Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Carew Pole
5th Battalion, Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry
2nd Battalion, Devonshire Regiment

At one time his wireless was knocked out, but he continued to personally direct the advance from a tank despite the fact that they were under very accurate fire from enemy A tk guns. His courage was an inspiration to all.

(D.S.O. citation, 1 Mar 1945)

Born on 4 March 1902 in London, John Gawen Carew Pole was educated at Eton College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was the son of Lieutenant-General Reginald Pole-Carew (1849–1924), and became 12th Baronet of Shute House in 1926. Commissioned into the Coldstream Guards since 1923, Carew Pole served as aide-de-camp to the commander-in-chief, India in 1925 and aide-de-camp to the commander-in-chief, South Africa in 1935. He retired from the Guards in July 1939.

In August 1939, Carew Pole took command of the 5th Battalion, Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry in the 43rd Wessex Division. He filled this role until January 1944, when he was given a general staff appointment and promoted to colonel. When Lieutenant-Colonel Cosmo Nevill of 2nd Battalion, Devonshire Regiment  was wounded in action in mid-July 1944, Carew Pole applied for the vacancy. Although over forty and with limited combat experience from the Arab Revolt of 1936, he was assigned to take over the 2nd Devons in the 50th Division.

For action on 11 August at Les Forges, he earned the D.S.O.: “Throughout this long day he was always in the forefront of the battle. It was greatly due to his initiative, determination and courage that the battalion was able to gain such a signal success, despite very stubborn resistance and heavy fire by the enemy.”

In November 1944, Carew Pole was posted to 101 Reinforcement Group to the “great regret” of the battalion. He was succeeded by Lieutenant-Colonel P.H.W. Brind and the next month the 2nd Devons left the 50th Division to join 7th Armoured Division. Carew Pole ended the war on the general staff of Second British Army.

He subsequently commanded 4th/5th Battalion, DCLI in the postwar Territorial Army. From 1950 to 1972, he was a Gentleman of HM Bodyguard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms. As a prominent Cornish landowner and county squire, he was chairman of Cornwall County Council from 1952 to 1963 and Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall from 1962 to 1977.

Carew Pole died on 26 October 1993 at the age of ninety-one.