Noel Irwin Lieutenant General Noel Mackintosh Stuart Irwin ( 1892 – 1972 ) was a British soldier , who played a prominent role in the British Army after the Dunkirk evacuation , and in the Burma Campaign . He was also instrumental in some reforms to the training and equipment of British soldiers after the defeat in France in 1940 , intended to meet the demands of modern warfare . Early life and family . Noel Irwin was the eldest son of William Stuart Irwin of Motihari , Bihar and Orissa , India . He was educated at Marlborough College , before entry into the Royal Military College Sandhurst . He was married twice ; first in 1918 to Margaret Maud Bavin who died in 1963 , and in 1966 to Mrs Elizabeth Collier ( née Fröhlich ) . He had one son by his first wife . First World War . Irwin graduated from Sandhurst in 1912 and was appointed as a second lieutenant in the Essex Regiment . During the later years of the First World War , Irwin saw action in France , serving as the commanding officer of the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Lincolnshire Regiment and the 8th Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment . Inter - war period . Following the end of the war , Irwin attended the British Army Staff College , Camberley . Between 1920 and 1932 , he served in regimental and depot duties . In 1933 , he was appointed as Chief Instructor at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst serving for three years . In 1937 , he served briefly as General Staff Officer , Grade 1 ( GSO1 ) for British troops stationed in China . Second World War . At the start of the Second World War , Irwin headed the British 6th Infantry Brigade , part of the 2nd Division . On 20 May 1940 , he took command of the division during the retreat to Dunkirk in the Battle of France . Following the Dunkirk evacuation in May 1940 , Irwin commanded the 38th Division in Britain . From November 1941 he commanded the XI Corps , which was based in East Anglia and had substantial responsibilities for the defence of Britain in the event of a German invasion . He was transferred to the Middle East in 1942 , to command of the IV Corps in Iraq . The Corps HQ was subsequently transferred to India after the Japanese conquest of Burma . Irwin became General Officer Commanding - in - Chief Eastern Army in India in July 1942 . Eastern Army had wide responsibilities for defending eastern frontier of India against the Japanese , and maintaining security in large areas of India . For the minor attack in Arakan late in 1942 , Irwin and Eastern Army HQ bypassed XV Corps HQ after disagreements with the local commander , Bill Slim , and took command of the operation . The attack failed , with severe effects on Allied morale and prestige . On 6 April 1943 , Irwin gave a press conference in which he criticised the equipment , training and motivation of the Allied armies in India . Although his observations were admitted to be largely correct , Irwin ' s refusal to admit that any blame attached to himself and his staff was resented . He was relieved of his appointment and returned to Britain on sick leave . In 1944 , he was appointed the General Officer commanding the East Scotland District in his substantive rank of major - general ( a significant step - down from his previous three jobs ) , and remained in this post until the end of the war . After three years as commander - in - chief of British forces of the West Africa Command , during which time he was promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant - general , he retired to private life in 1948 . Honours and awards . During his career , Irwin was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath , was awarded the Military Cross and the Distinguished Service Order with two bars . He was Mentioned in Despatches four times but significantly , he never received the knighthood which would normally be expected to accrue to an officer of substantive lieutenant - general rank . Further reading .