General Sir Frank Walter Messervy, KCSI, KBE, CB, DSO & Bar (9 December 1893 – 2 February 1974) was a British Indian Army officer in the First and Second World Wars.

[15] In September 1939, Messervy was promoted to colonel[15] and became a General Staff Officer Grade 1 (GSO1) of the 5th Indian Infantry Division, which was about to be formed at Secunderabad.

During the ensuing East African campaign, Messervy commanded Gazelle Force with notable success, latterly attached to the Indian 4th Infantry Division.

During Operation Crusader in November that year, 4th Indian Division, dug in on the Egypt–Libya border, played a key role in repelling Rommel's tanks after they had defeated the British armour at Sidi Rezegh.

The division's battle groups took part in the Eighth Army's pursuit when Rommel withdrew from his defensive positions at Gazala in December, ending the year at Benghazi.

[23] In early January 1942 Messervy had received orders to depart for India where he would assume command of the 31st Indian Armoured Division.

[24] He was instead appointed to replace Major General Herbert Lumsden, the wounded commander of the 1st Armoured Division which had recently arrived in the desert.

[25][26] During Rommel's attack from El Agheila in late January 1942, the division was outmatched by the Axis armour and heavily defeated.

[28] Much to his horror, Messervy was then made Director of Armoured Fighting Vehicles, General Headquarters, India, in 1943, where he argued successfully against the then prevailing view that anything other than light tanks could not be used in Burma.

This all changed in the summer of 1942 when serious training began to take place and which started to absorb the many lessons learned from fighting in the jungle and the Japanese.

By May, the whole division was back in the front line in the Kohima sector, fighting a key five-day battle at the Naga Village.

[30] In December 1944, Messervy was appointed to command IV Corps, which he led in the 1945 offensive during which, he captured the key communications centre at Meiktila in Burma and advanced to Rangoon between February and April.

[32] On 20 August, a letter signed by Messervy went out to all the brigade headquarters in northwest Pakistan, attaching plans for a certain Operation Gulmarg.

[36][c] Pakistani officers narrate that both Messervy and Gracey were involved in running the day-to-day operations of Pakistan's Kashmir War.