A Man of Steel Who Served His Kingdom Well

David Hume looks at the career of General James Stuart Steele
NEW ULSTER SPRING 1993

It was 1939. Britain had declared war on Nazi Germany and its fanatical leader, Herr Hitler. For the next few years the United Kingdom would need 'men of steel' to defend her, fight for her and in so many cases, die for her. Many of those who volunteered for war service and who saw action in Europe and elsewhere were, of course, Ulstermen. The senior officer who took his pen and signed the order for Britain's forces to mobilise, was an Ulsterman, called, appropriately enough, General James Steele.

James Stuart Steele was born at Leefield Farm, Ballycarry, Co. Antrim, in 1894. In later years when he recalled his childhood, memories would return of the National School at Hillhead (from which he tried to run away on his first day there), the local Presbyterian Church, his widowed mother and the villagers with whom he came into contact - and who helped shape the character of the young James Steele.

In the 1960's, when General Sir James Steele recalled those times, it was with clear admiration for the qualities of life in an Ulster village. Names may vary in other areas, but the essential character of the people was not much different across this small province. The people of his village were widely different - from the clay-pipe smoking Jane and Margaret Ann Magill to the highly religious Mr. Howard - but they all played a part in moulding the community, as the General recognised. His memories included that of how one man - the Mr. Howard referred to earlier - maintained the old Presbyterian tradition of standing during the prayers at the Hillhead Church.

Then there was the choir, which, conducted by a Mr. Erskine, did not engage the aid of any musical instrument. There was the minister, Rev. Thomas Bartly who preached sermons that lasted 45 minutes, often resorting to the world of nature to illustrate points. This was the man, Steele acknowledged, who probably had more influence on his life and development than anyone apart from his own mother. Writing in 1963, the General reminisced: I don't suppose you ever see nowadays scarves hanging over the pulpit: the sign of the funeral of a member of the congregation in the preceding week. You could learn a lot from the colour and the makeup of those scarves.

Recalling village life in his day, Steele continued:

...the village of Ballycarry had a distinct atmosphere about it. It was closely knit and friendly and yet there was the undercurrent of past factions, of theological differences, of political preferences which gave it personality. Insincerity was quickly detected and debunked: sincerity and simplicity were noted and approved. The very position of the village, with its unbeatable view, turned the people's eyes to distant horizons and far flung places.

But other places were beckoning James Steele. He left school in Ballycarry to attend the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, before progressing to the Queen's University of Belfast.

Church
If the war had not broken out in 1914, James Steele (then training for the ministry) might have settled in a country church similar to that in Ballycarry. But as a member of the Queen's University Training Corps, James Steele applied for a Temporary Commission in the army. On 26 September 1914 he was given the position of a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Irish Rifles. It was to be the begining of a life-long career in - and service to - the Crown Forces. Towards the end of 1915 Steele was in France and saw service in the Battles of Messines, the Somme and Third Ypres - being awarded the Military Cross for bravery. In June 1916, a Regular Commission in the Royal Irish Rifles was granted to the Co. Antrim officer.

The details of Steele's subsequent career are lengthy indeed. They include his posting on secondment to the Indian Army (where he saw action on the North-West Frontier in 1920/21) and service in Egypt. He served not only with the Royal Ulster Rifles, but also with the Sherwood Foresters.

When war broke out again in 1939 his hand signed the Mobilisation order, but Steele was not to delay long in the Mobilization Branch of the War Office. He took command of an Infantry Brigade and went with it to France, subsequently being among those evacuated from Dunkirk.

Having served as Deputy Chief of General Staff in the Middle East (1942-43) he returned to the War Office, where he was deeply involved with the planning and operation of the highly successful D-Day landings in Normandy in 1944.

Austria

After the war, James Steele became High Commissioner of Austria, signing an international treaty with Marshall Tito in that capacity during his term of office. It was all a long way from the small farm on the coastal hills of Antrim but not so far removed to be forgotten.

In the post-war period James Steele continued his devotion to the army, undertaking vital and sterling work in helping the army cope with the new challenges of peace-time. He also firmly established the Army Benevolent Fund, which pays out to dependents of those who fall in the line of duty.

Retiring from the regular army in 1950, Steele became Colonel of the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1945 to 1957. Re was also a National President of the Dunkirk Veteran's Association and in 1966 became chairman of the Somme Committee established by the Northern Ireland government and that year led the 50th anniversary pilgrimage to France. Speaking at the time he underlined how the memory of the Somme would never fade in Ulster, because of the great sacrifice which had been undertaken there by so many of her sons.

The period at Queen's University and his subsequent wartime enlistment had brought about the breaking of the physical ties with Ballycarry. James Steele had found himself in many parts of Europe and further afield; he married in England and raised two daughters there. But the General never forgot his roots which was clearly illustrated in his 22 writings and when the occasion allowed, he always tried to fit in a visit home. Sometimes it would come about because he was undertaking Remembrance Day duties in neighbouring towns like Carrickfergus, yet the opportunity was never missed to visit relatives and friends from the past.

The General's scrapbooks are deposited in the Royal Ulster Rifles' Museum, Belfast. Contained therein are photographs of Steele with the Rifles; receiving the Freedom of the City of Belfast; photographs with Marshab Tito; with Lord Brookeborough and touchingly enough a snapshot of the General walking along the main street in Ballycarry surrounded by children and wellwishers, on one of his visits home.

Freeman

In March 1950, Sir James Steele became Larne's fourth Freeman. Three years earlier, unable to extend such an honour, the people of Ballycarry and district presented him with an illuminated address as a token of their esteem. The photograph was carefully placed into the General's album and the address given a place of honour over his desk at his other home in England.

James Steele passed away in 1975.

The news of the death of the man known affectionately as 'Daddy Steele' was relayed to the 5th Battalion of the Royal Ulster Rifles as pipers were playing The South Down Militia at a guest night in their camp.

There were many within the army who wanted to put on record their appreciation of his service. Writing in the London Times, Major-General Eric Goldsmith said that:

'Daddy Steele' was truly a father to those who served him. He demanded high standards and he attained them by guidance, by kindness and by good humour. He will be rememhered.'

The funeral was impressive. 1,000 men escorted the coffin. In its scale the event was similar to the funeral of Winston Churchill.

But the final chapter had not yet been written. They did not bury James Stuart Steele in England. They brought his ashes home... home to Ballycarry.