David Willison Lieutenant - General Sir David Willison KCB , OBE , MC ( 25 December 1919 – 24 April 2009 ) was a British soldier who served with the Royal Engineers between 1939 and 1963 , from when he served in a series of military intelligence roles until his retirement from the army in 1975 . Willison then became Director - General of British Intelligence until 1978 . Family and private life . Willison was born in Camberley . Before attending Wellington College , David Willison lived in Egypt , where his father , Brigadier A C Willison served . David Willison was married twice . First , in 1941 to Betty Vernon Bates with whom he had three children ( a son and two daughters ) ; after Betty ' s death , he married Trisha Clitherow in 1994 . Army career . After Wellington College , Willison came first in the Army entrance exam and attended the Royal Military Academy , Woolwich , passing out top of his year and winning the Pollock Medal for the highest academic achievement of his term . He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1939 and in 1942 he was an instructor at the School of Military Engineering ( specialising in bailey bridge s ) . Willison ' s first active service was briefly at Sword Beach at Ouistreham in Normandy on D - Day . He was in command of 17th Field Company , attached to the 3rd Division al engineers and , during fighting at Bénouville on the evening of D - Day , he was seriously wounded by shrapnel and did not return to service until the following August . The wound caused pain for much of his life . On his return to the 3rd Divisional engineers , Willison took command of 246 Field Company , near Venray in the Netherlands . In March , 1945 , during the advance on Bremen , his company had to reopen a mined road and a demolished bridge through flooded low - lying lands , in preparation for an assault . Working under heavy shelling , he supervised the installation of a bailey bridge and the clearance of mines and obstructions . In particular , he personally made safe a naval mine , for which he was awarded the Military Cross . Over the following several postwar years , Willison attended the Staff College , Camberley ( where he was judged to be one of the most outstanding students ) , served as brigade major with 1 Indian Infantry Brigade as part of the reoccupation force in Java , served as a staff officer at HQ Malaya Command , posted to the War Office in London and took command of 16 Field Company , Royal Engineers , stationed in Egypt . In 1953 , he was posted to Berlin to command the Royal Engineers there . While in Berlin , Willison assisted with a clandestine Anglo - American effort to tap a major Russian military telephone cable , by constructing an underground facility ( the Russians discovered the security breach a few months later ) . After a spell from 1955 to 1958 as an instructor at the Staff College , Camberley , Willison was posted to Aden where he supported the Special Air Service ' s assistance to the Sultan of Oman in the Djebel Akhdar during a pro - Nasser rebellion . He subsequently commanded 38 Engineer Regiment from 1960 . This unit was part of the Strategic reserve , with detachments in several trouble spots ; this gave Willison additional international experience . In 1963 , Willison was appointed as Colonel MI4 at the War Office with assessments of Middle Eastern issues as his main concern . Key Intelligence appointments followed his acknowledged success at MI4 : Brigadier Defence Intelligence in 1967 , Assistant Chief of Staff ( Intelligence ) in Northern Army Group in 1970 , Director of Service Intelligence in 1971 and finally Deputy Chief of Defence Staff ( Intelligence ) in 1972 . Later career . Willison retired from the Army in 1975 , but stayed within public service . He was immediately appointed as Director - General of Intelligence ( equivalent to a Deputy Under Secretary of State ) until retirement in 1978 . During this period , the Labour Government of the day was persuaded to increase defence spending and renew the British nuclear deterrent , against official Labour Party policy . During his period in intelligence , Willison built an international reputation for himself . After retirement , Willison became a consultant , first to the National Westminster Bank and then to County NatWest Investment Bank , until 1991 . David Willison died on 24 April 2009 . Assessment . Willison was a highly capable man with a rapid grasp of complex issues and the ability to express them clearly and simply . He was blessed with a good memory and wide breadth of knowledge . His abilities showed themselves during the various professional courses he undertook and he either passed out top or impressed as a brilliant student . He demanded high standards of those around him and his abrupt manner made uncomfortable to subordinates and superiors alike , but he would be loyal to those who achieved such standards and supportive of those afflicted by tragedy . Honours . Apart from his Military Cross , Willison was appointed OBE in 1958 and knighted in 1973 . He assumed the honorary roles of Colonel Commandant , Royal Engineers ( 1973 – 1982 ) and of Chief Royal Engineer ( 1977 – 1982 ) and Freeman of the City of London in 1981 . References . Information has been obtained from the following obituaries :