Lieutenant Colonel John Barstow

Obituary for Lieutenant Colonel John Barstow

Lieutenant Colonel John Barstow died on 26 April 2017. This is a Tribute given by his close friend and brother officer, Brigadier Michael Aris CBE DL at the Burial Service held at St George’s Church, Kencot on 9 May 2017.

I look upon it as a great privilege to have been asked by Marjorie and her family to speak for a short time about John’s military career.

I have been most fortunate to have been able to read his memoirs. And I will find it difficult to do justice to such a full and interesting life in so many parts of the world.

John was educated at Stamford School in Lincolnshire and at St Edmund’s Hall at Oxford where he read history.

But after a year, in 1943, he came down from Oxford, to join the Army. He enlisted in the Royal Artillery and after training saw active service in Normandy, Belgium, Holland and Germany and this included the ill fated Parachute Division operation at Arnhem.

John was commissioned into the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment in 1945 and this was immediately followed by him serving in various places both in India and Malaya.

In his memoirs these journeys, and the various appointments which he held in those countries, read like a fascinating adventure story at a time when England was relinquishing its Empire.

John briefly left the Army in 1947 but, after toying with ideas of farming, he was recommissioned into his County Regiment.

However almost at once he was sent to Sierra Leone and served there in that terrible debilitating climate for 18 months. Granted a regular commission in 1952 he joined the 1st Battalion of the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment in Goslar in Germany.

I would also mention that subsequently John was sent to Iserlohn to gain staff experience and there met his future wife Marjorie who was a teacher at the Army Children’s School.

Soon afterwards in 1955 the Battalion moved to Malaya for 3 years on active service. John commanded a Rifle Company on jungle operations against the Communist Terrorists and was Mentioned in Despatches for his outstanding service there.

I first met him towards the end of our tour there after he was appointed Battalion Adjutant, the man responsible for all the staff work and total administration of the Battalion.

Over many years, in various difficult countries, he had developed sound and well proven skills, and these were tested to the full and put into effect, in the move of the Battalion by troop ship to Aden Then, after a short operational stay there, back to England.

He then mounted the smooth move of the Battalion, over 600 soldiers and some 200 families, to Minden in Germany. This arduous and efficient work was very much appreciated and admired by all of us. The Battalion had simply and totally depended on his ability to do all this.

At the end of our tour in Minden, John prepared the Battalion for a further move to Watchet in Somerset in order that the Regiment could amalgamate with the Northamptonshire Regiment.

The fact that all these complex and detailed individual and unit moves from Minden were successful was entirely due to John’s sterling work, total commitment, attention to enormous detail and the exacting standards which he set himself.

John’s ability to train both Officers and soldiers alike was fully realized when he was made responsible for the training of a wide spread TA Battalion in Lincolnshire.

He carried out this arduous and difficult work with quiet skill and imagination and most importantly an ability to lead, guide, motivate and encourage part time Lincolnshire soldiers.

An appointment of enormous responsibility is that of Second in Command of a regular infantry battalion and John was appointed as such in 2nd Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment. His first task was to move this battalion from Felixstowe to Cyprus in 1964.

There he was not only responsible for the overall training in the Battalion, but also its operational role in that politically difficult island.

Suffice to say that John carried out these many roles in a most effective and efficient manner and thus enhanced his already high reputation.

The highest point in an Officer’s career is to be selected to command a battalion and John possessed the proven ability to lead, train and administer both regular and TA officers and men.

He was therefore, rightly rewarded, by his appointment to command a TA Battalion situated across the County of Essex.

John was highly respected as a Commanding Officer who set and obtained sound and lasting results in the development and training of Officers and Soldiers alike. He could look back on this period in command and all he achieved with great pride.

After command he carried out various successful senior staff appointments in the area of Army and then Joint Services Works Study.

This entailed examining the methods and systems used in the Services, and which in some cases might well be changed or improved. John decided to retire in 1979.

Perhaps John could best be described as one of the former dedicated Regimental Officers who are now seldom found.

He was highly motivated in everything he did, most calm under pressure, gave sound practical advice and total commitment. Throughout his career he always put the needs of the soldier first.

He was a modest man, kind and friendly, generous and approachable with a sense of humour and fun. Wherever he served and whatever appointments he held John was highly respected.

John and Marjorie have always kept in close touch with their many friends in the County Regiment. We all looked upon John as the last member of the old regiment.

I would also like to mention the enduring support he received throughout his life from Marjorie.

Wherever John’s career has taken him she has quickly made a home in various parts of the world, sometimes in very difficult places and circumstances. Marjorie has always been a most popular person and a tower of strength.

I could not end without mentioning two examples of personal kindness which my wife Sheila and I have received from John and Marjorie.

In Minden, frequently, John used to ask me to go and see him in the early evening and for an hour or two would talk to me and discuss the role and responsibilities of an Adjutant. This was invaluable help and advice which served me well in the future.

When Sheila and I became engaged John and Marjorie invited her to stay with them and thus see and experience something of Army life. We shall never forget their kindness.

It has been a great privilege for us to have known Marjorie and John and to be their close friends.

I count myself very fortunate indeed to have served with him in the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment. John will always be remembered and very sadly missed by his many friends.

Very sadly John’s wife Marjorie died suddenly on 2 September 2017. She had given her husband continuous support throughout his career. As a regimental wife Marjorie was highly respected by everyone and made a lasting impact on all those she helped and supported. She was a tower of strength and a popular member of the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment.