Major General Sir William George Gentry, (20 February 1899 – 13 October 1991) was a professional soldier in the New Zealand Military Forces who served during the Second World War. He was Chief of the General Staff of the New Zealand Military Forces from 1952 to 1955.
Born in 1899 in London, United Kingdom, Gentry's family emigrated to New Zealand in 1910. He joined the New Zealand Military Forces in 1916 as a cadet. Following graduation from the Royal Military College in 1919, he was posted to the New Zealand Staff Corps and held a number of staff positions in New Zealand and abroad. He saw active service during the Second World War as part of the 2nd New Zealand Division, initially as a staff officer but later on as a brigade commander. After the cessation of hostilities in 1945 he held senior staff positions in the New Zealand Military Forces. From 1952 Gentry served as Chief of the General Staff until his retirement in 1955. He died in 1991 in Lower Hutt.
Early life
Gentry was born in London on 20 February 1899 to Frederick Gentry, a leather salesman, and his wife, Eliza . When he was 11 years old, his family emigrated to New Zealand, settling in Wellington. Educated at Wellington College, he was one of the limited number of New Zealand entrants in 1916 who enrolled in the Royal Military College at Duntroon in Australia.
Military career
Gentry graduated from Duntroon in 1919 and was posted to the New Zealand Staff Corps. He was seconded to the British Indian Army for two years, serving on the North-West Frontier during the Waziristan campaign and the Moplah rebellion. On returning to New Zealand, he held a number of staff positions in the Central Military District and was promoted to captain in 1926. In 1934 he was sent to England on attachment to the Corps of Royal Engineers for 18 months and also attended engineering courses. He then served at General Headquarters in Wellington as staff officer, Engineers, before returning to England to attend the Staff College at Camberley, graduating in 1939. He was also, much later, awarded the Greek Military Cross.
In October 1941, after the departure of Stewart to take up the position of Deputy Chief of Staff in New Zealand, Gentry became GSO1 of the 2nd New Zealand Division. In this role, he served under Major-General Bernard Freyberg, who commanded the division, and developed a relationship where he could question Freyberg "without arousing impatience or irritation". He earned a Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his conduct during the First Battle of El Alamein. The citation for his award read:
In September 1942, he was promoted to brigadier and appointed commander of the 6th Infantry Brigade, the previous commander having been made a prisoner of war. Despite having no experience in commanding infantry, he led the brigade well until August 1943, at which time he replaced Stewart as Deputy Chief of Staff to Lieutenant General Edward Puttick. He served in this role for nearly 18 months before rejoining the 2NZEF. Command of his brigade was passed to Stewart on 10 November 1945 and Gentry returned to New Zealand. He was discharged from the 2NZEF in March 1946. In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal.
Promoted to major general, from 1952 to 1955 Gentry served as Chief of the General Staff of the New Zealand Military Forces. He represented New Zealand in ANZUS and was involved in planning for the defence of Southeast Asia. In the 1954 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath. The following year he retired from the military. In a break with convention he was not rewarded with a knighthood for his services. This may have been due to some ill-feeling within the Government regarding his work developing proposed plans for New Zealand's Middle East deployment. He was appointed knighted three years later by the newly elected Labour Government in the 1958 Queen's Birthday Honours.
In his retirement Gentry had a strong relationship with the Boy Scouts Association and served as its New Zealand president from 1957 to 1967.