Bill Stirling (British Army officer)

Lieutenant Colonel William Joseph "Bill" Stirling of Keir (9 May 1911 – 1 January 1983) was a Scottish officer of the British Army who served during the Second World War.

[1] He was, however, removed from his command of 2 SAS by Frederick "Boy" Browning two days before D-Day because they clashed over how best to deploy his unit, thereby ending his army career.

[5] He was educated at Ampleforth College, an all-boys independent Catholic boarding school in Yorkshire, where he "shone academically and on the sports field".

[2] Stirling achieved the rank of cadet serjeant in the Ampleforth College contingent of the Junior Division, Officers' Training Corps.

[3][13] In April 1940, he was part of a six-man sabotage team tasked with guerrilla warfare on mainland Europe, but the operation was aborted when their submarine hit a mine on the way to Norway.

[6] After this idea received support from Winston Churchill, the War Office requisitioned Inverailort House in the Scottish Highlands and the Special Training Centre opened in June 1940.

[9]: 8  With Peter Fleming, elder brother of the creator of James Bond, he was tasked with attempting to raise a battalion of anti-fascists from Italian prisoners of war in North Africa; they did not succeed.

[9]: 8  However, Bill was called back to the UK on 3 November,[9]: 8  leaving his brother and their recruits to undertake their first, disastrous raid; of the 55 men who participated, only 21 returned alive to the rendezvous point and without firing a shot.

[9]: 8  Following March-Phillipps' death on 12 September 1942 during the disastrous Operation Aquatint, leadership of the unit briefly fell to its second in command, Captain Geoffrey Appleyard.

[5] Stirling argued with senior army officers including Frederick "Boy" Browning about how best to use the SAS during the up coming Allied invasion of Europe; Stirling wanted his troops dropped far behind the front to continue their disrupting tactics, while Browning wanted the SAS to join other airborne troops landing just behind the front line and to act as standard parachute infantry.

He could have lived a life of luxury, but as it states in his obituary in The Times; "Born to huge possessions he could have sat still and enjoyed good fortune but there was in his character a streak of the Scottish adventurer scorning ease and plenty".

[23] In late December 1982, Stirling fell and broke a leg at his home in Park Lane, London; he lay undiscovered for at least 36 hours.

[24] On 8 March 1983, a requiem mass was held for him at the Guards' Chapel, Wellington Barracks in London; this was attended by representatives of the royal family, nobility and veterans who had served with him.