Hugh Seagrim - Revision history

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← Older revision		Revision as of 10:02, 21 November 2022
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	{{short description\|Recipient of the George Cross}}		{{short description\|Recipient of the George Cross}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}
	{{Use British English\|date=October ~~2022~~}}		{{Use British English\|date=October 2018}}
	{{Infobox military person		{{Infobox military person
	\|name= Hugh Seagrim		\|name= Hugh Seagrim
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	==Early life and military career==		==Early life and military career==
	Seagrim was born in [[Ashmansworth]], [[Hampshire]], England, on 24 March 1909. He was educated at [[Norwich School]], graduated from the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], and joined the [[British Indian Army]], becoming an officer in the [[19th Hyderabad Regiment]]. He was later seconded to the [[20th Burma Rifles]] with the temporary rank of major, becoming an expert in several Burmese languages. When the [[Imperial Japan\|Japanese]] invaded Burma, he was given the task of raising irregular guerrilla forces from the [[Karens]] and other groups.<ref name="KarenHeritage">{{cite web \| url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/docskaren/Karen%20Heritage%20Web/historymonths/septemberstruggle.html \| title=Karen Heritage: Major Seagrim and The Karen Resistance \|publisher=Karen History and Culture Preservation Society (KHCPS)\| accessdate=18 March ~~2022~~}}</ref>		Seagrim was born in [[Ashmansworth]], [[Hampshire]], England, on 24 March 1909. He was educated at [[Norwich School]], graduated from the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], and joined the [[British Indian Army]], becoming an officer in the [[19th Hyderabad Regiment]]. He was later seconded to the [[20th Burma Rifles]] with the temporary rank of major, becoming an expert in several Burmese languages. When the [[Imperial Japan\|Japanese]] invaded Burma, he was given the task of raising irregular guerrilla forces from the [[Karens]] and other groups.<ref name="KarenHeritage">{{cite web \| url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/docskaren/Karen%20Heritage%20Web/historymonths/septemberstruggle.html \| title=Karen Heritage: Major Seagrim and The Karen Resistance \|publisher=Karen History and Culture Preservation Society (KHCPS)\| accessdate=18 March 2013}}</ref>

	The British were driven from Burma by May 1942, and Seagrim and his force were isolated for a long time. Eventually [[Force 136]] dropped agents and wireless operators who made contact with his guerrillas in October 1943.		The British were driven from Burma by May 1942, and Seagrim and his force were isolated for a long time. Eventually [[Force 136]] dropped agents and wireless operators who made contact with his guerrillas in October 1943.

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2022-11-21T04:32:09Z

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← Older revision		Revision as of 10:02, 21 November 2022
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	{{short description\|Recipient of the George Cross}}		{{short description\|Recipient of the George Cross}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=April ~~2012~~}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=April 2022}}
	{{Use British English\|date=October ~~2018~~}}		{{Use British English\|date=October 2022}}
	{{Infobox military person		{{Infobox military person
	\|name= Hugh Seagrim		\|name= Hugh Seagrim
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	\|commands=		\|commands=
	\|battles= [[Second World War]]		\|battles= [[Second World War]]
	*[[~~Pacific War]]~~		* [[Burma campaign (1944–1945)]]
	**[[Burma campaign]]
	***[[Burma campaign 1944–45\|Burma campaign ~~1944~~]] ~~{{POW}} {{Executed}}~~
	\|awards= [[George Cross]]<br/>[[Distinguished Service Order]]<br/>[[Member of the Order of the British Empire]]		\|awards= [[George Cross]]<br/>[[Distinguished Service Order]]<br/>[[Member of the Order of the British Empire]]
	\|relations= [[Derek Seagrim]] (brother)		\|relations= [[Derek Seagrim]] (brother)
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	==Early life and military career==		==Early life and military career==
	Seagrim was born in [[Ashmansworth]], [[Hampshire]], England, on 24 March 1909. He was educated at [[Norwich School]], graduated from the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], and joined the [[British Indian Army]], becoming an officer in the [[19th Hyderabad Regiment]]. He was later seconded to the [[20th Burma Rifles]] with the temporary rank of major, becoming an expert in several Burmese languages. When the [[Imperial Japan\|Japanese]] invaded Burma, he was given the task of raising irregular guerrilla forces from the [[Karens]] and other groups.<ref name="KarenHeritage">{{cite web \| url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/docskaren/Karen%20Heritage%20Web/historymonths/septemberstruggle.html \| title=Karen Heritage: Major Seagrim and The Karen Resistance \|publisher=Karen History and Culture Preservation Society (KHCPS)\| accessdate=18 March ~~2013~~}}</ref>		Seagrim was born in [[Ashmansworth]], [[Hampshire]], England, on 24 March 1909. He was educated at [[Norwich School]], graduated from the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], and joined the [[British Indian Army]], becoming an officer in the [[19th Hyderabad Regiment]]. He was later seconded to the [[20th Burma Rifles]] with the temporary rank of major, becoming an expert in several Burmese languages. When the [[Imperial Japan\|Japanese]] invaded Burma, he was given the task of raising irregular guerrilla forces from the [[Karens]] and other groups.<ref name="KarenHeritage">{{cite web \| url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/docskaren/Karen%20Heritage%20Web/historymonths/septemberstruggle.html \| title=Karen Heritage: Major Seagrim and The Karen Resistance \|publisher=Karen History and Culture Preservation Society (KHCPS)\| accessdate=18 March 2022}}</ref>

	The British were driven from Burma by May 1942, and Seagrim and his force were isolated for a long time. Eventually [[Force 136]] dropped agents and wireless operators who made contact with his guerrillas in October 1943.		The British were driven from Burma by May 1942, and Seagrim and his force were isolated for a long time. Eventually [[Force 136]] dropped agents and wireless operators who made contact with his guerrillas in October 1943.
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	[[Category:1909 births]]		[[Category:1909 births]]
	[[Category:1944 deaths]]		[[Category:1944 deaths]]
			[[Category:Military personnel from Hampshire]]
	[[Category:People from Ashmansworth]]		[[Category:People from Ashmansworth]]
	[[Category:People educated at Norwich School]]		[[Category:People educated at Norwich School]]
	~~[[Category:Indian Army personnel of World War II]]~~
	[[Category:British Indian Army officers]]		[[Category:British Indian Army officers]]
	[[Category:British recipients of the George Cross]]		[[Category:British recipients of the George Cross]]

>GrahamHardy: removed Category:People from Basingstoke and Deane; added Category:People from Ashmansworth using HotCat

2021-05-04T19:08:46Z

removed Category:People from Basingstoke and Deane; added Category:People from Ashmansworth using HotCat

New page

{{short description|Recipient of the George Cross}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2012}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2018}}
{{Infobox military person
|name= Hugh Seagrim
|image=
|image_size=
|alt=
|caption=
|nickname= Grandfather Longlegs
|birth_date= {{birth date|1909|03|24|df=yes}}
|birth_place= [[Highclere]], [[Hampshire]], England
|death_date= {{Death date and age|1944|09|22|1909|03|24|df=yes}}
|death_place= [[Rangoon]], Burma
|placeofburial= [[Rangoon War Cemetery]]
|allegiance= United Kingdom
|branch= [[British Indian Army]]
|serviceyears= 1928–1944
|rank= [[Major (British Army)|Major]]
|servicenumber= 49359
|unit=
|commands=
|battles= [[Second World War]]
*[[Pacific War]]
**[[Burma campaign]]
***[[Burma campaign 1944–45|Burma campaign 1944]] {{POW}} {{Executed}}
|awards= [[George Cross]]<br/>[[Distinguished Service Order]]<br/>[[Member of the Order of the British Empire]]
|relations= [[Derek Seagrim]] (brother)
|laterwork=
}}
'''Hugh Paul Seagrim''', {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100|sep=,|GC|DSO|MBE}} (24 March 1909 – 22 September 1944), nicknamed "Grandfather Longlegs", was a [[British Indian Army]] officer notable for his leadership of [[Karen people|Karen]] rebels in fighting Japanese invaders in [[Burma]] during the [[Second World War]].

Seagrim's brother was [[Derek Seagrim]], a recipient of the [[Victoria Cross]]. He and his brother have the distinction of being the only siblings awarded the [[Victoria Cross]] and the [[George Cross]], both posthumously.<ref name=Brown2009p11>{{cite book|title=Wartime Courage: Stories of Extraordinary Courage by Exceptional Men and Women in World War Two|first=Gordon|last=Brown|authorlink1=Gordon Brown|date=2009|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|pages=[https://archive.org/details/wartimecouragest0000brow/page/11 11, 141]|isbn=978-0747597414|url=https://archive.org/details/wartimecouragest0000brow/page/11}}</ref>

==Early life and military career==
Seagrim was born in [[Ashmansworth]], [[Hampshire]], England, on 24 March 1909. He was educated at [[Norwich School]], graduated from the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], and joined the [[British Indian Army]], becoming an officer in the [[19th Hyderabad Regiment]]. He was later seconded to the [[20th Burma Rifles]] with the temporary rank of major, becoming an expert in several Burmese languages. When the [[Imperial Japan|Japanese]] invaded Burma, he was given the task of raising irregular guerrilla forces from the [[Karens]] and other groups.<ref name="KarenHeritage">{{cite web | url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/docskaren/Karen%20Heritage%20Web/historymonths/septemberstruggle.html | title=Karen Heritage: Major Seagrim and The Karen Resistance |publisher=Karen History and Culture Preservation Society (KHCPS)| accessdate=18 March 2013}}</ref>

The British were driven from Burma by May 1942, and Seagrim and his force were isolated for a long time. Eventually [[Force 136]] dropped agents and wireless operators who made contact with his guerrillas in October 1943.

Seagrim led Karens in a campaign of sabotage against the occupation. His force enjoyed much support from Karen civilians despite a series of brutal Japanese reprisal killings against Karen villages. His force was gradually wiped out by a concentrated Japanese manhunt. To prevent further bloodshed Seagrim surrendered himself to the Japanese forces on 15 March 1944.<ref>[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56530332 Find A Grave]</ref> He and eight of his Karen companions were executed by the Japanese on 22 September 1944 in [[Rangoon]]. For gallantry under captivity, he was posthumously awarded the George Cross in 1946.<ref>[http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2261215 CWGC entry]</ref>

==George Cross citation==
[[File:George Cross.jpg|thumb|right|75px|[[George Cross]] and its [[ribbon bar]]]]
Seagrim's George Cross citation appeared in the ''[[London Gazette]]'' on 12 September 1946:

{{Quotation|Awarded the George Cross for most conspicuous gallantry in carrying out hazardous work in a very brave manner. Major Seagrim was the leader of a party which included two other British and one Karen officer working in the Karen Hills of Burma. By the end of 1943 the Japanese had learned of this party who then commenced a campaign of arrests and torture to determine their whereabouts. In February 1944 the other two British officers were ambushed and killed but Major Seagrim and the Karen officer escaped. The Japanese then arrested 270 Karens and tortured and killed many of them but still they continued to support Major Seagrim. To end further suffering to the Karens, Seagrim surrendered himself to the Japanese on 15th March 1944. He was taken to Rangoon and together with eight others he was sentenced to death. He pleaded that the others were following his orders and as such they should be spared, but they were determined to die with him and were all executed.|''London Gazette''}}

==Notes==
Seagrim was {{convert|6|feet|4|in|m}} tall, and sometimes referred to as "Grandfather Longlegs".

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* Allen, Louis, [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=cdKIvgAACAAJ ''Burma: The Longest War''] (Orion Publishing, 2000)
* [[Philip Davies|Davies, Philip]], [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xw7HjwEACAAJ ''Lost Warriors: Seagrim and Pagani's Burma: The Last Great Untold Story of WWII''] (Atlantic Publishing, 2017)
* [[Ian Morrison (journalist)|Morrison, Ian]], [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1CEgAAAAMAAJ ''Grandfather Longlegs: The Life and Gallant Death of Major H.P. Seagrim''] (Faber & Faber, 1947)

==External links==
*[http://karennews.org/2015/09/karen-remember-world-war-ii-hero/ "Karen Remember a World War II Hero"], karennews.org. Originally published in ''[[The Washington Post]]'', 15 August 2015.
* [https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-44582731 "Searching for Burma's forgotten World War Two heroes"], bbc.com.
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xszsAzbHcPE "One Thousand Miles to Freedom, by [Mark Felton] describing the extraordinary story of British NCO Roy Pagani who met and served Maj Seagrim"

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seagrim, Hugh}}
[[Category:1909 births]]
[[Category:1944 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Ashmansworth]]
[[Category:People educated at Norwich School]]
[[Category:Indian Army personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:British Indian Army officers]]
[[Category:British recipients of the George Cross]]
[[Category:Companions of the Distinguished Service Order]]
[[Category:Indian Army personnel killed in World War II]]
[[Category:20th-century executions by Japan]]
[[Category:Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst]]
[[Category:Executed people from Hampshire]]