Backhouse/Wynter/Gratze

From The Golden Falcon

Brigadier General Sir Ormond de l’Epée Winter (1875-1662), KBE, CB, CMG, DSO married Lady Margaret Effie Bowes-Lyon (1890-1982), grand daughter of the 13th earl of Strathmore & Kinghorn (relative of the Queen Mother whose father was the 14th earl) in 1927 but had no issue. His Will made 154.4.1951 was proved 24.5.1962. His brother Colonel Clifford Boardman Winter (1869-1930) had 3 daughters. The Brigadier published a book "Winter's Tale".
Sir Ormond l'Epée Winter's career was truly worthy of a descendant of a medieval mercenary and of the family of which 3 members fought the Spanish Armada, not forgetting a leaping cavalier. His obituary in "The Times" dated 15.2.1962 reads:
Sir Ormond Winter - A spirited military career. Brigadier-General Sir Ormond de l’Epée Winter, KBE, CB, CMG, DSO who died in a Worthing nursing home on Tuesday at the age of 87, was a gunner officer and, for a long period, very prominent as a gentleman rider in Indian racing circles. Of dapper appearance and striking personality his devotion to horses was allied with marked capacity in his profession; during the First World War, he served in the Dardanelles, in Egypt, and on the Western front, commanding in turn a battery, an artillery brigade and the artillery of a division.

The son of W. H. Winter of Chiswick, he was born on January 11th 1875, and went to Cheltenham before passing into the Royal Military Academy. He was gazetted second lieutenant in the Royal Artillery in November, 1894, got his first step three years later, was promoted captain in February, 1901, and reached the rank of major in July, 1911. He saw no active service during these years, which were almost wholly spent in India where he became so well known on the Turf.

At the outbreak of the First World War, he was commanding the 10th Battery, RFA at Barrackpore and brought it home to England to be included in 29 Division and sent to the Dardanelles. Thus he was at the landing on the peninsula and served throughout the Gallipolli campaign, acting as GS02 on the staff of 13 Division from October 1915 until the evacuation and being awarded the DSO.

When 11 Division was moved from Egypt to France in July 1916, he accompanied RFA having received his regimental promotion to lieutenant-colonel in April. He served in the later stages of the Somme offensive of 1916, and in the Flanders offensive of the following year, at the end of which he was appointed to command the artillery of 11 Division with the temporary rank of brigadier-general;. During the final victorious advance in September 1918, he was called upon to command the division itself for a month, leading it at the Battle of the Canal du Nord and the Battle of Cambrai. Upon his share in these operations, he was wont to look back with justifiable satisfaction.
In July 1917, he was awarded a bar to his DSO for extinguishing at great personal risk with the aid of another officer, a blazing ammunition dump, thereby saving many lives. He was created CMG in 1917 and his services were mentioned 6 times in dispatches. He received his promotion to colonel in April 1920.
His next appointment took him to Ireland in 1920 as Deputy Chief of Police and Director of Intelligence and while employed in this thankless and uneasy work, he was shot at and wounded. After the recognition of the Irish Free State at the beginning of 192, he served under the Irish Office as Director of Resettlement, being created KBE in that year. In January 1923, he went on half-pay and retired from the Army with the honorary rank of brigadier-general in February of the following year.
In 1938-39 he was director of communications on the International Board for Non-Intervention in Spain. The following year he joined the British contingent of the International Volunteer Force for Finland and proceeded to Finland in March.
Sir Ormond published a volume upon the shoeing of horses and his "History of Racing in India" contained the fruits of nearly 20 years experience there as an amateur jockey. In 1955 he published his autobiography "Winter's Tale" a forceful and highly readable account of a spirited career.
He married Mrs Marjorie Effie Pinder, second daughter of the Hon. Ernest Bowes-Lyon in 1927".
Another tribute in "The Times" dated 20.2.1962 this time from a colleague read:
"Sir Ormond de l’Epée Winter - Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Hutton writes:
"May one who served for some time in France as a battery commander under Ormond de l’Epée Winter pay a brief tribute to his memory? He was, I think the bravest man I have ever known, he really seemed to enjoy war and yet was one of the most considerate of commanders. In the attack he usually arrived on the final objective before his FOO (forward observation officer) and is reported on one occasion to have led an infantry attack in trench warfare mounted on a horse. Sometimes his brigade headquarters was to be found practically in the front line, but there was always an excellent meal and a bottle of wine for his visitors, besides some very good if somewhat Rabelaisian anecdotes.
His attitude to his superiors was nonetheless fearless and on one occasion, he obtained the cancellation of a suicidal attack on uncut wire by refusing to fire his guns in support of it, hence perhaps his failure to secure the high promotion he deserved.
One of his proudest boasts was that in his youth he had been tried for murder and needless to say, acquitted. He went to Ireland during the troubles with the avowed intention of avenging the cold-blooded murder of one of his best friends, an action very typical of his nature. He had many of the qualities of a gentleman adventurer of the Middle Ages, who feared neither God nor man, who had no mercy for his enemies but who would die happily for a friend or a cause in which he believed. With all these qualities he combined a brilliant and original mind which made him a most inspiring commander and gained the affection and respect of all who served under him".
The "Weston Mercury" of 24.10.1980 had an article about Ellen Winter (d. 1940) aged 90, cousin of Sir Ormond and of Dr. Essex Winter of Newbury. She was the youngest of 7 daughters of John Seagar Winter and had one brother.