Lt. Roderick (‘Roddy‘) Hawes was born in 1905 in Chislehurst, Kent and was educated at Eton and Trinity College Oxford. He had joined the Territorial Army in 1937 while working as a broker at Lloyds of London.
Lt R.T. Hawes in 1939
In 1940 Hawes, aged 35 years, was attached to 367 Battery as a Transport Officer. There are no accounts of his escape from Cassel; his role as Transport Officer may have meant that he was away from the front line at the time of the Breakout. In ‘Grand Party‘ Lt. Col. Brooks described Lt. Hawes as the only 367 Battery officer to have safely returned, described him as ‘imperturbable’ and instrumental in helping him rebuild the Regiment post-Dunkirk. Hawes was to later re-form 367 Battery.
Roddy Hawes had a distinguished military and post-war career. In 1944 he was promoted to Lt. Colonel and commanded 216 Civil Affairs Detachment.
In 1945 Hawes was awarded the French Croix de Guerre in recognition of his bravery at Normandy in 1944. His nomination reads: ‘…from 17-19 August 1944 he waited with the forward troops during the battle round THIRY HARCOURT, so that he might enter the town and assist the civil population at the earliest opportunity. He went in with the leading reconnaissance units and gave immediate assistance to the remaining civilians, two of whom were wounded. He repeated similar courageous performances on many other occasions. His work has been outstanding and a splendid example to all ranks‘.
Post-war, Hawes returned to the insurance industry and became Chairman of the Lloyds Insurance Brokers Association in 1964 and Chairman of Price, Forbes & Co, a company that exists to this day. He was Chairman of the Royal Humane Society between 1966 and 1977.
Roderick T. Hawes CBE TD died in 1980 at age of 75 years.