#484, Reynold Chevallier COBBOLD

Typically for a professional soldier Reynold's life included many postings and accordingly many homes. Educated at Westminster School during the First World War he joined the Army in 1920 and was commissioned 2nd Lt. By 1928 he was ADC to the District Commander in India and in the summer of 1929 he married Betty Lindner, the eldest of 5 children of Frederick Lindner of The Old Manor House, Upperwick, Worcestershire. They were married at St. George?s, Sansome Place, Worcester by Rev. R Gibb, with her sisters, Barbara and Bee as her bridesmaids and Lt. Col. Noel Preeston DSO #2999, his uncle, as his Best Man.

In 1932 he was posted first to Long Moor in Hampshire and later to Shoeburyness in Essex. The following year saw him as Adjutant to 4th Heavy Anti-Aircraft (AA) Brigade in Edinburgh, a posting he held for 5 years. Their next home, Constance aged 8 and Richard 7, was on Spike Island in Cork Harbour in Ireland, originally a monastery in the 7th century the British Government retained sovereignty there until 11th July 1938 and it is likely that Reynold?s job included supervision of our departure. He was promoted Major, posted back to Shoeburyness followed by Plymouth in Devon and then Shrivenham in Wiltshire. A spell at the War Office in 1941 was followed by postings to a number of places, in particular Felixstowe in Suffolk where he commanded an AA Regiment to shoot down Flying Bombs on route to London. The end of the war in 1945 marked a move to Taunton, Somerset where he was responsible for demobilization of soldiers. Promotion to Lt. Col. was confirmed in August 1946 and he served with the occupation forces in Germany and then in Palestine at the beginning of the Jewish/Arab conflict of 1946-48. He was promoted again to Temporary full Colonel in November 1947 and posted to Fayid on the Suez Canal in Egypt. Whilst in Egypt Reynold was diagnosed with Diabetes which resulted in a move to Cheltenham as Officer Commanding a Territorial Association (TA) regiment in 1948. Two years later he retired with the honorary rank of full Colonel and was put in charge of an Army weekend training centre just north of Bristol (120 WETC, Cribbs Causeway). They moved for the last time to Combe Lane in Stoke Bishop, Bristol.