Lieutenant-Colonel H.A. Borradaile
5th Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment
7th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry

Quiet, almost studious in manner, he never raised his voice, but no one had any doubt about who was in charge. As a CO he once displayed impressive stamina by accepting the hospitality of all 11 of the Battalion cookhouses in success on a festive occasion.

 (Daily Telegraph, 30 Dec 1993, 21)

Born on 22 June 1907 in Exeter, Devon, Hugh Alastair Borradaile was commissioned into the Devonshire Regiment after graduating from RMC, Sandhurst in 1926. Eager to service overseas, he was seconded to the 4th Battalion, King’s African Rifles from 1931 to 1937. He afterwards completed staff college and became an instructor at Camberley in 1940. Following a posting as a military attaché to Dublin, he served as a general staff officer with the West Africa headquarters until 1943.

In 1944, he was appointed commanding officer of 5th Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment, which deployed to Normandy with the 59th Division. After two months in the line, the division was disbanded to provide much needed reinforcements. Borradaile transferred to the 7th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry in the 43rd Division in September, becoming their fifth CO of the campaign.

Over the next four months, a D.S.O. citation read, “he showed himself to be a cool, brave and determined leader who by his personal gallantry raised and maintained a high degree of fighting morale in his Bn.” In January 1945, he was appointed GSO1 for XXX Corps under Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks, who Borradaile called “a human dynamo; he never stopped, never relaxed.”

From 1946 to 1948, Borradaile commanded the 1st Battalion, the Devonshire Regiment in the Far East. He retired from the army in 1963 and was colonel of the Devon and Dorset Regiment until 1967. He died on 13 December 1993 in Langport, Somerset.