Arthur Edward Potts

"General Potts" redirects here. For other uses, seeGeneral Potts (disambiguation).

Arthur Edward Potts
Colonel Potts
Born	24 October 1890 Northumberland,England
Died	September 1983 (aged 92) Kingston, Ontario,Canada

Major GeneralArthur Edward PottsCBE,ED(24 October 1890 – September 1983) was aCanadiangeneral officer,active in bothWorld War IandWorld War II.

Early life

Born on 24 October 1890, Potts was educated atGeorge Heriot's Schoolin Edinburgh and subsequently studied at theUniversity of Edinburgh(bachelor of science) andCornell University(master's degree in agriculture). He worked as an instructor atAmes CollegeinIowa.

World War I

In 1915, Potts left Ames College to enlist in the Second Universities Company atMcGill Universityand was attached to the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry as a private. This unit was sent to France where Potts fought in the trenches and was wounded. In September 1916, he was promoted to lieutenant. At the end of 1917, Potts was sent to the education office, to give lectures to soldiers about agriculture.He soon rejoined his battalion. After being wounded on 7 September 1918, he was sent to England for convalescence. Potts was still recuperating from his wounds when the war ended.

Interwar period

After the war, Potts joined theUniversity of Saskatchewanas head of the dairy department. Besides his normal work as "Professor of Dairying",he served in the Canadian militia and took over the university's officer training corps, reorganizing it and training personnel. Potts was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1934. In the same year, he became commander of the Saskatoon Non-Permanent Active Militia garrison and officer commanding of the 19th Infantry Brigade.

World War II

Shortly after the outbreak ofWorld War II,Potts received a request from then Major-GeneralAndrew McNaughtonto accept demotion and take over theSaskatoon Light Infantry.Potts accepted and took the unit to Europe in December 1939. In July 1940, he was promoted tobrigadierand took over the command of the2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade.He led the brigade inOperation Gauntlet,the commando raid atSpitsbergen

In May 1942, he became General Officer Commanding6th Infantry Divisionwith the rank of major-general. That appointment took him from the United Kingdom to the Pacific shores inBritish Columbia.In 1943 he was appointed commander ofMilitary District 2inToronto.He stayed there till the end of the war.

Later life

Potts participated in 1943 in the filming ofCommandos Strike at Dawn,as technical adviser

After the war Potts joined theDepartment of Veterans Affairs.He moved to Kingston, Ontario in 1949, to become the Department's district administrator.

Potts and his wife, the former Mary Ann Rattray Stewart, had six children including two sets of twins. He retired in 1955 and died in September 1983.

Positions held

From	To	Unit	Role	Rank
1916	1918	7th Canadian Infantry Brigade		Lieutenant
1934	14-01-1936	Saskatoon Non-Permanent Active Militia garrison/19th infantry brigade (militia)	commander/officer commanding	Colonel
15-01-1936	29-11-1939	19th Infantry Brigade(militia)	Commanding Officer	Colonel
30-11-1939	09-07-1940	1st Saskatoon Light Infantry	Commanding Officer	Lieutenant-Colonel
20-07-1940	19-05-1942	2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade	Officer Commanding	Brigadier
15-11-1941	22-12-1941	1st Canadian Infantry Division	Acting General Officer Commanding	Brigadier
20-05-1942	11-10-1943	6th Canadian Infantry Division	General Officer Commanding	Major-General
12-10-1943	31-08-1945	HQ Military District 2	District Officer Commanding	Major-General

External links

• A Brief Account of the University of Saskatchewan Contingent, Canadian Officers Training Corps By D. F. Robertson
• Generals of World War II