Lieutenant-General Patrick Oswald Dunn (29 May 1911–16 September 1977) was an Indian Army general. He commanded the I Corps during the Indo-Pak War of 1965 for which he was awarded the third-highest award of India - the Padma Bhushan.


Patrick Oswald Dunn
Born(1911-05-29)29 May 1911[1]
Died16 September 1977(1977-09-16) (aged 66)[2]
Allegiance British India (1938-1947)
 India (1947-1967)
Service / branch British Indian Army
 Indian Army
Years of service1938–1967
Rank Lieutenant-General
Service numberIC-193
Unit10th Baluch Regiment
3rd Gorkha Rifles
Battles / warsWorld War II
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
AwardsPadma Bhushan

Personal life

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Dunn was an Anglo-Indian.[3][4] Dunn took a law degree from Cambridge University.[1] He was married to Bonny, who passed away in the early 1970s.[5]

Career

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Pre-Independence

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He was commissioned in the British Indian Army on 15 July 1938.[1] He was a King's Commissioned Indian Officer, from the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.[6] As was customary, on 10 August 1938 he was attached to a battalion of a regular British Army regiment, the 2nd Worcestershire Regiment, for a period of one year prior to his official appointment to the Indian Army.[7]

He served in 7/10 Baluch during the Burma Campaign.[4] He was mentioned in dispatches during his time in Burma.[8]

Dunn attended Staff College, Camberley in 1945, and commanded a Gorkha battalion from November 1946.[1]

Post Independence

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As 10 Baluch was allocated to the Pakistan Army following Indian independence and Partition, he transferred to the 3rd Gorkha Rifles, and became officiating commander of an infantry brigade in January 1949.[1]

On 20 August 1955, Dunn, now an acting colonel, was given command of an infantry brigade.[9] He was appointed Commandant of the Infantry School on 16 September 1959.[10]

General officer

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In September 1961, he was promoted to the acting rank of major general and appointed Chief of Staff, Southern Command.[1] On 17 December 1962, he was given command of an infantry division.[11][12] In January 1964, he was appointed Deputy Chief of General Staff (DCGS),[1] serving for one year until the post was abolished on 15 January 1965.[13] He was then appointed Director of Staff Duties (DSD) from that date until April 1965,[14] when he commanded troops in the Rann of Kutch following Pakistan's Operation Desert Hawk.[1]

At the end of May, Dunn was appointed GOC of the newly raised I Corps,[13] which he commanded during the conflict between India and Pakistan that August. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his service, and voluntarily retired from the Army on 19 May 1967, after nearly 29 years of service.[15]

Dates of rank

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Insignia Rank Component Date of rank
  Second Lieutenant British Indian Army 15 July 1938
  Lieutenant British Indian Army 29 November 1939[16]
  Captain British Indian Army 10 October 1940 (acting)[16]
10 January 1941 (temporary)[16]
16 March 1942 (war-substantive)[16]
29 August 1945 (substantive)[17]
  Major British Indian Army 10 January 1941 (acting)[16]
16 March–12 May 1942 (temporary)[16]
  Lieutenant-Colonel British Indian Army 12 February 1942 (acting)[16]
12 May 1942 (temporary)[16]
  Captain Indian Army 15 August 1947[note 1][18]
  Lieutenant-Colonel Indian Army 1947 (temporary)[note 1]
  Brigadier Indian Army 1949 (acting)[note 1]
  Captain Indian Army 26 January 1950 (recommissioning and change in insignia)[18]
  Major Indian Army 29 August 1950[19]
  Lieutenant-Colonel Indian Army 29 August 1951[20]
  Colonel Indian Army 29 August 1955[21]
  Brigadier Indian Army 20 August 1955 (acting)[9]
29 August 1960 (substantive)[22]
  Major General Indian Army September 1961 (acting)
16 April 1963 (substantive)[23]
  Lieutenant General Indian Army 29 May 1965 (acting)[13]
8 June 1966 (substantive)[24]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c Upon independence in 1947, India became a Dominion within the British Commonwealth of Nations. As a result, the rank insignia of the British Army, incorporating the Tudor Crown and four-pointed Bath Star ("pip"), was retained, as George VI remained Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Armed Forces. After 26 January 1950, when India became a republic, the President of India became Commander-in-Chief, and the Ashoka Lion replaced the crown, with a five-pointed star being substituted for the "pip."


References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Press Note" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India – Archive. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  2. ^ "Sainik Samachar". Vol. 24. 1977. p. 16. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  3. ^ O'BRIEN, BARRY. "Remembering Anglo-Indian Courage For The Motherland". Rediff. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  4. ^ a b Palit, Maj Gen DK (2004). Musings & Memories: Vol (I). Lancer Publishers. p. 158. ISBN 978-81-7062-275-8.
  5. ^ Randle, John (19 September 2004). Battle Tales from Burma. Grub Street Publishers. ISBN 978-1-78340-948-8.
  6. ^ Randle, John (19 September 2004). Battle Tales from Burma. Grub Street Publishers. ISBN 978-1-78340-948-8.
  7. ^ Supplement to the Indian Army List: January 1939. New Delhi: Government of India. 1939.
  8. ^ Anthony, Frank (1969). Britain's Betrayal in India: The Story of the Anglo-Indian Community. Allied Publishers. p. 133.
  9. ^ a b "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 15 October 1955. p. 200.
  10. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 17 October 1959. p. 256.
  11. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 19 January 1963. p. 19.
  12. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 13 April 1963. p. 126.
  13. ^ a b c "Maj. Gen. Dunn Promoted as Corps Commander" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India – Archive. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 6 February 1965. p. 73.
  15. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 24 June 1967. p. 499.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h Indian Army List: October 1945. New Delhi: Government of India. 1945.
  17. ^ Indian Army List: Special Edition (August 1947). New Delhi: Government of India. 1947. p. 236.
  18. ^ a b "New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 August 2017.
  19. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 13 January 1951. p. 6.
  20. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 1 December 1951. p. 236.
  21. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 3 November 1956. p. 216.
  22. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 24 December 1960. p. 335.
  23. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 1 June 1963. p. 185.
  24. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 27 August 1966. p. 500.
Military offices
New title
First holder
General Officer Commanding I Corps
May 1965 - January 1967
Succeeded by
Jahangir Sataravala