Orders, Decorations and Medals

A post-war C.B. and Second World War C.B.E. group of nine awarded to Major-General William Lionel Douglas Veitch, Royal Engineers

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, C.B. (Military) Companion’s neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, C.B.E. (Military) Commander’s 2nd type neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, O.B.E. (Military) Officer’s 2nd type breast badge, silver-gilt; India General Service 1908-35, 1 clasp, North West Frontier 1930-31, incorrect M.I.D. oak leaf (Lieut., R.E.) official correction to surname; India General Service 1936-39, 1 clasp, North West Frontier 1936-37, M.I.D. oak leaf (Capt., R.E.); Defence and War Medals (Lt/Col. W. L. D. Veitch, C.B.E., R.E.); Coronation 1953 (Maj/Gen. W. L. D. Veitch, C.B., C.B.E.); Pakistan Independence Medal 1947 (Maj/Gen. W. L. D. Veitch, C.B., C.B.E.), last four with same style naming, the group of nine mounted court style for display, nearly extremely fine (9) £1200-1600

William Lionel Veitch was born in Belhaven, East Lothian, on 21 November 1901. He was educated at the Edinburgh Academy and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. On 13 July 1921 he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers and was promoted Lieutenant in July 1923. The following year he joined the King’s Own Sappers and Miners. In 1930 he was posted to the Military Engineering Service as Garrison Engineer of the Wana Road Project at Tanai in Waziristan - gaining the I.G.S. Medal and being mentioned in despatches. Returning to duty with the Sappers and Miners, he was promoted to Captain in July 1932. As Company Commander of No. 5 Field Company he returned to Waziristan in 1937 and was involved in road construction work, for which he was awarded the I.G.S. Medal, was again mentioned in despatches and awarded the O.B.E.

With the onset of the Second World War he was Officer in Charge of the Workshops at Roorkee. Soon after he was appointed Commander of the Training Battalion at Roorkee and in 1941 he was posted Commander, R.E. of the 19th Indian Division, then in training in Southern India. In 1942 he was appointed Commandant of No. 1 Engineer Group, Royal Indian Engineers, at Lahore, and during 1944-46 Veitch was Commandant of the Bengal Sappers and Miners and he later became Deputy Chief Engineer, Northern Army, India, which appointment he was holding at the time of the independence of India. After independence he became Deputy Engineer-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army and in 1950 was appointed Engineer-in-Chief with the rank of Major-General. He was forced to retire in 1953 due to ill-health. For his wartime and post-war services he was advanced to the C.B.E. in 1944 and awarded the C.B. in 1952. Major-General Veitch died in Edinburgh on 13 December 1969.

With a quantity of copied research.