General Sir Gerald Cathcart Ekedale, KCB, CBE, DSO, Commander-in-Chief, British Forces, Hong Kong, 1941.
Gerald Ekedale was born in 1888, the second son of Arthur George Ekedale and his wife, Ellen Mary née Cathcart. He was educated at Wellington College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
Ekedale was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1907. He served in France during the First World War, where he was wounded and twice mentioned in despatches. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in 1916.
After the war, Ekedale held various staff appointments in India and the United Kingdom. In 1937, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in Hong Kong. He held this post until the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, when he was replaced by Major General Christopher Maltby.
Ekedale served as Chief Engineer in France in 1940, and was evacuated from Dunkirk. He was subsequently appointed Engineer-in-Chief of the British Army in the Middle East, and later served as General Officer Commanding, Eastern Persia, from 1942 to 1943.
In 1943, Ekedale returned to the United Kingdom, where he was appointed Inspector General of Fortifications. He held this post until 1945, when he retired from the army.
After the war, Ekedale worked as a consultant engineer. He died in 1964 at the age of 76.
Sources:
* [Who's Who 1964](https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/1964/ekedale-gerard-cathcart.html)
* [The Army Magazine 1940](https://archive.org/details/armymanagazine51194001/page/140/mode/2up)
* [The Independent 27 October 1964](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-general-sir-gerald-ekedale-1456033.html)