Tabloid salutes UAE's very own officer and gentleman — Brigadier Freddie De Butts.
Brigadier Freddie De Butts when he was Commander of the Trucial Oman Scouts. |
When Freddie De Butts became an officer in the British Army, he undoubtedly had ambitions to emulate the success of his father, who ended his career as a brigadier.
However, the brigadier rank that De Butts carried into retirement was not one conferred by his home country's army, but instead was given by the UAE.
Freddie De Butts — who was British despite his Dutch name — was the first-ever chief of staff of the UAE armed forces.
The officer, who died last month aged 89, was called out of retirement to act as chief of staff of the Union Defence Forces, selected because of an earlier three-year stint as commander of the Trucial Oman Scouts (TOS) before British withdrawal.
While De Butts commanded the UAE military for one-and-a-half years between 1971 and 1972, a navy and air force was added to the fledgling nation's army.
For this and his other achievements, De Butts is remembered as one of the most significant British figures involved in the creation of the UAE.
His son David De Butts, 54, said his father was "very proud" to be called out of retirement to return to the Arabian peninsula.
The call came from Sir William Luce, who had been appointed by Britain's Foreign Secretary to come up with policies to ensure stability after British withdrawal, to act as director of his Military Liaison Office.
A new chapter
De Butts became chief of staff when the UAE was founded, on December 25, 1971.
In this role, he worked with General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Defence Minister and now also Crown Prince of Dubai.
As well as helping to establish the navy and air force in 1972, De Butts set up the country's first military academy in Abu Dhabi where Arab officers were trained.
His son said the brigadier was particularly pleased to return to the region since his time as commander of the TOS — created to maintain stability in what was then the Trucial States — between 1964 and 1967 had been very fulfilling.
"It was his best job in the British Army. He loved it. He was the main man in the place. It was in the days when communications were much less developed than they are now, so he was much more his own boss.
"He was in a position where there was something to be done and he had the authority and commanded the respect to go ahead and do it," he said.
The UAE of the late 1960s was very different to the advanced nation it is now, according to De Butts's son, who visited his father during school holidays.
"It was amazing really because Sharjah at that time was a very simple place. There were no buildings more than two storeys high."
De Butts, born in 1916, came from what is described as "a very military family". At least five previous generations of De Butts's family were in the British Army and at least two of his forebears were generals.
After boarding schools in England, De Butts studied modern history at Oriel College, Oxford, before joining the army.
He was posted to India but when the Second World War broke out he was sent to Egypt, where he served mainly as an intelligence officer. De Butts saw further wartime action in Italy, France and Germany.
Overseas postings after the war included stints in India and Malaysia, during which there was a peaceful transfer of power to a non-Communist Malaysian government.
In 1953, De Butts was returning home when the troopship Windrush sank after her boilers exploded. Along with his wife, son and daughter, De Butts sought refuge in the ship's lifeboats.
Two years later, De Butts was sent to Cyprus on anti-terrorist operations and, after a posting back in England, he was sent to Aden where his command of the Third Battalion of the Aden Protectorate Levies earned him an Order of the British Empire (OBE).
His time as TOS commander came after several years in the UK and was followed by his final British Army appointment, as defence attaché in Cairo. He retired from the British Army as a colonel.
Tributes galore
"He was a most remarkable person. I don't think I ever heard him raise his voice and yet he had more respect than anybody I have known."
"At his funeral, one of his men who served in Arabia with him said he was the best commander he ever had because not only was he totally respected, but you also felt he was your friend. That's a very difficult balance to achieve," said his daughter-in-law Barbara De Butts.
In retirement, De Butts remained very active on several fronts, acting as Commissioner of the Hertfordshire Scouts, chairman of a school's board of governors, a district councillor, chairman of the Hertfordshire Society and a Deputy Lieutenant of Hertfordshire.
De Butts often took guides and scouts, as well as his own grandchildren, on outdoor expeditions.
"He would take them skiing and mountain climbing and he never lost patience with them. They admired him and he loved young people."
"He had very high standards and he expected his grandchildren to behave properly when they saw him, but when he was with the scouts he softened considerably," Barbara De Butts said.
De Butts is survived by his wife Simone, his children David and Caroline, and six grandchildren.
