Airey was married on 1 November 1933 in Egypt to Constance Hedley,[1] who bore him a son named John Francis St George Airey. This marriage was dissolved in 1947, when he married secondly Bridget Georgiana Vesey,[1] a daughter of Colonel the Hon. Thomas Eustace Vesey and Lady Cecilia Kathleen Browne, daughter of the 5th Earl of Kenmare. Lady Airey died in 2006.
In June 1944, Airey was promoted major general and was later appointed Assistant Chief of Staff to General Harold Alexander.[3] In this capacity, he flew to Switzerland with Lyman Lemnitzer, both disguised as Irish businessmen, to meet Allen Dulles. Airey's cover was as a Mr MacNeilly who claimed to be on a business trip to buy a German dachshund called Fritzel.
The three met the SS General Karl Wolff, with Airey trying to negotiate a meeting between Wolff and General Alexander to discuss the surrender of German forces in Italy. He did not, however succeed in arranging the meeting, and when the Soviets found out, the United States and United Kingdom were accused of going behind their allies' backs. Wolff was later protected by Dulles and Lemnitzer, much to Airey's disdain. The Karl Wolff affair would later be known as Operation Sunrise, but at the time was codenamed Operation Fritzel.
Postwar service
After the war, Airey served for a year as Chief of Staff to Commander-in-Chief of Central Mediterranean Forces and was for a time Acting Deputy Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean Theatre.[3]
In 1947, he was appointed Commander and Military Governor of the Anglo-American Zone, Trieste,[3] which was later handed over to the Italians and Yugoslavs. The position was originally intended to be only temporary, but Airey continued in it until 1951. He helped restore stability to a war-battered area, particularly in the harbour and in re-opening trade routes. Before Airey arrived, the area had been under the power of a Communist 'shadow government' which assassinated its political opponents. He is said to have been dearly missed by the people of Trieste.[citation needed]
After his service at Trieste, Airey was appointed Assistant Chief of Staff, Intelligence, to General Dwight D. Eisenhower at Supreme Allied Headquarters.[3]
In August 1956, he was appointed delegate-general of the European Foundation of Culture, which sought to revive the idea of Europe as a single cultural community.
Airey is known[citation needed] to have attended early meetings of the Bilderberg Group and was a member of the Group's European Steering Committee.
terence, airey, lieutenant, general, terence, sydney, airey, kcmg, july, 1900, march, 1983, officer, british, army, major, general, inborn, 1900, july, 1900king, lynn, norfolk, england, died26, march, 1983, 1983, aged, fritton, norfolk, englandallegiance, unit. Lieutenant General Sir Terence Sydney Airey KCMG CB CBE 9 July 1900 26 March 1983 was an officer in the British Army Sir Terence AireyMajor General Sir Terence Airey inBorn 1900 07 09 9 July 1900King s Lynn Norfolk England 1 Died26 March 1983 1983 03 26 aged 82 Fritton Norfolk EnglandAllegiance United KingdomService wbr branch British ArmyYears of service1919 1954RankLieutenant GeneralService number20246UnitDurham Light InfantryCommands heldBritish Forces in Hong Kong 1952 54 Battles warsSecond World WarAwardsKnight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St GeorgeCompanion of the Order of the BathCommander of the Order of the British EmpireMentioned in Despatches 3 Officer of the Legion of Merit United States Officer of the Legion of Honour France Croix de guerre France 1 Contents 1 Family and education 2 Military career 2 1 Before the Second World War 2 2 Second World War 2 3 Postwar service 3 Retirement 4 References 5 Bibliography 6 External linksFamily and education EditAirey was the son of Sydney Airey 1 He was educated at Gresham s School Holt and the Royal Military College Sandhurst Airey was married on 1 November 1933 in Egypt to Constance Hedley 1 who bore him a son named John Francis St George Airey This marriage was dissolved in 1947 when he married secondly Bridget Georgiana Vesey 1 a daughter of Colonel the Hon Thomas Eustace Vesey and Lady Cecilia Kathleen Browne daughter of the 5th Earl of Kenmare Lady Airey died in 2006 Military career EditBefore the Second World War Edit After passing out from Sandhurst Airey received a commission in the Durham Light Infantry on 16 July 1919 over eight months after the First World War had ended 2 3 He later went on to serve as a staff officer in the Sudan in 1929 and on the British Military Mission to the Egyptian Army 3 Returning to England he attended the Staff College Camberley from 1935 to 1936 4 Second World War Edit Airey was still involved in military affairs at the outbreak of the Second World War by which time he was a lieutenant colonel 4 In 1941 he was serving under General Sir William Platt in Abyssinia after which he returned to General Headquarters in Cairo there he was appointed Director of Special Operations and later Director of Military Intelligence 3 During the latter part of the Tunisian campaign Airey served as a Brigadier General Staff in the 18th Army Group 3 In June 1944 Airey was promoted major general and was later appointed Assistant Chief of Staff to General Harold Alexander 3 In this capacity he flew to Switzerland with Lyman Lemnitzer both disguised as Irish businessmen to meet Allen Dulles Airey s cover was as a Mr MacNeilly who claimed to be on a business trip to buy a German dachshund called Fritzel The three met the SS General Karl Wolff with Airey trying to negotiate a meeting between Wolff and General Alexander to discuss the surrender of German forces in Italy He did not however succeed in arranging the meeting and when the Soviets found out the United States and United Kingdom were accused of going behind their allies backs Wolff was later protected by Dulles and Lemnitzer much to Airey s disdain The Karl Wolff affair would later be known as Operation Sunrise but at the time was codenamed Operation Fritzel Postwar service Edit After the war Airey served for a year as Chief of Staff to Commander in Chief of Central Mediterranean Forces and was for a time Acting Deputy Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean Theatre 3 In 1947 he was appointed Commander and Military Governor of the Anglo American Zone Trieste 3 which was later handed over to the Italians and Yugoslavs The position was originally intended to be only temporary but Airey continued in it until 1951 He helped restore stability to a war battered area particularly in the harbour and in re opening trade routes Before Airey arrived the area had been under the power of a Communist shadow government which assassinated its political opponents He is said to have been dearly missed by the people of Trieste citation needed After his service at Trieste Airey was appointed Assistant Chief of Staff Intelligence to General Dwight D Eisenhower at Supreme Allied Headquarters 3 His last military appointment was as Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong from February 1952 to 1954 3 He retired from military service in 1954 3 and served as honorary Colonel of the Regiment of the Durham Light Infantry until 1956 Retirement EditIn August 1956 he was appointed delegate general of the European Foundation of Culture which sought to revive the idea of Europe as a single cultural community Airey is known citation needed to have attended early meetings of the Bilderberg Group and was a member of the Group s European Steering Committee He lived in Fritton in South Norfolk 5 References Edit a b c d e British Army officer histories Unit Histories Retrieved 22 August 2022 No 31305 The London Gazette Supplement 12 August 1919 p 10343 a b c d e f g h i j Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives a b Smart 2005 p 3 Allen W Dulles Papers Princeton University Library Digital Initiatives Retrieved 2018 01 17 Bibliography EditSmart Nick 2005 Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War Barnesley Pen amp Sword ISBN 1844150496 External links EditBritish Army Officers 1939 1945 Generals of World War IIMilitary officesPreceded bySir Geoffrey Evans Commander of British Forces in Hong Kong1952 1954 Succeeded bySir Cecil SugdenHonorary titlesPreceded byJohn Churchill Colonel of the Durham Light Infantry1952 1956 Succeeded bySir Nigel Poett Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Terence Airey amp oldid 1116209162, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
