Logan Scott-Bowden


Logan Scott-Bowden, was a British army officer. A Royal Engineers officer during World War II, he was the first commander of the Ulster Defence Regiment. Retiring as a Major General in 1974, he served as the Colonel-Commandant of the Royal Engineers from 1975 to 1980.

Early life

Scott-Bowden was born in Whitehaven, Cumbria on 21 February 1920, the son of Lt.Col. Jonathan Scott-Bowden, OBE, TD, and Mary Scott-Bowden. He was educated at Malvern College and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers on 3 July 1939.

Military career

Scott-Bowden saw early service in Norway in 1940, before joining the 53rd Infantry Division as an Adjutant in 1941. During 1942 and 1943 he served on liaison duty with Canadian and American forces. In late 1943 Scott-Bowden joined the reconnaissance unit tasked with scouting the beaches for the D Day landings. At midnight 31 December 1943, with another Royal Engineer, Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith, as members of the Combined Operations Pilotage Parties, during Operation Bell Push Able, he landed on Gold Beach to take samples of the material from the beach. They found that the sand, in places, was thin and supported by weak peat material. They took samples back to the United Kingdom that allowed planners to cope with the weaker than expected beaches. On D Day both Sgt. Ogden-Smith and Maj. Scott-Bowden assisted in piloting the initial American landings on Omaha Beach. He then went on to command 17 Field Squadron for the remainder of the War.
After World War II, he had operational service in Burma, Palestine, Korea, Aden and lastly in Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland he was given the challenging task of forming the Ulster Defence Regiment. His final appointment in the Armed Services, on promotion to Major General, was as Head of the British Defence Liaison Staff, India. After retirement from active service Scott-Bowden served as the Colonel-Commandant of the Royal Engineers from 1975 to 1980.

Personal life

In 1950 he married Helen Jocelyn, daughter of late Major Sir Francis Caradoc Rose Price, 5th Bt, and late Marjorie Lady Price. They had three sons and three daughters.

Honours

He held a number of appointments throughout his career including:

Ranks