Logan Scott-Bowden - Early Life

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 (née Logan).

He was educated at Malvern College and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers on 3 July 1939 and rose steadily through the ranks.

At midnight 31 December 1943, with' Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith, as members of the Combined Operations Pilotage Parties (COPP), during Operation Bell Push Able, he landed on one of the Normandy beaches (Gold Beach) that were planned to be used for the D Day landings 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 UK that allowed planners to cope with the weaker than expected beaches. In Jan 1944, under the command of Lt Cdr Nigel Wilmott in an X-Craft submarine, he and Sgt Ogden-Smith took part in a 4 day covert reconnaissance of Omaha Beach. On D Day both Sgt Ogden-Smith and Maj Scott-Bowden assisted in piloting the american initial landings on Omaha. He then went onto command 17 Field Squadron for the remainder of the War. Post WW 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. In retirement he became a farmer.

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.