Gilbert ‘Gillie’ Howe
NCO who showed courage under fire in Malaya and Borneo
COLOUR SERGEANT GILBERT “GILLIE” HOWE, who has died aged 87, was one of the most bemedalled and respected members of the Royal Marines and Special Boat Service.
Howe was a 21-year old acting corporal when, in the falling light of February 21 1951 and in dense jungle along the Perak river in Malaya, a subsection of 40 Commando was ambushed by bandits.
When his officer was severely wounded, Howe immediately assumed command and pressed home an attack, killing one enemy and wounding others. He reorganised the subsection and held his position until at first light a heavy counter-attack developed.
By his skill and leadership Howe prevented further casualties, and when reinforcements arrived, he advanced with his subsection, forcing the bandits to flee.
Howe was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his outstanding leadership and bravery.
Some years later, now serving with 42 Commando in Borneo, Howe’s courage under fire was again demonstrated. He had devised jungle tracker teams which used dogs and Iban tribesmen, and was a sergeant in command of a team which met a party of terrorists outnumbering his patrol by four to one.
He held his ground doggedly in the face of three attempts to dislodge him. When six of his team became separated and ammunition began running low, he fought an orderly withdrawal. His cool and resolute handling of a very difficult situation led to the award the Military Medal for gallant and distinguished services.
Gilbert Rex Howe was born on December 22 1928 at Stradbroke, east Suffolk, and from an early age he wanted to join the Royal Marines. Having enlisted in 1946, he served in the cruiser Sheffield in the West Indies and in Belize, before joining 40 Commando in Malta and moving with them to Malaya, then the most troubled part of the postwar empire.
In 1952 he was Corporal of the Gangway in the battleship Vanguard before joining the SBS.
A complete professional, he also made his job into his hobby and his prowess as a canoeist enabled him to win five Devizes to Westminster canoe marathons, and to play a major role in the development of a new folding canoe, the Klepper, which replaced a wartime model and is still widely in use today. His particular expertise was close quarters fighting and small arms technology, and he was a lifelong member of the Christchurch Gun Club.
At the end of a long and distinguished career he was awarded the BEM and the even rarer Meritorious Service Medal.
Howe retired in 1978 to settle at Tuckton, Bournemouth, where he ran a gun shop and continued to participate in many shooting competitions, winning awards at longrange pistol shooting. Despite the difficulties of changing legislation on private small arms, he continued to offer sound advice and good service to his clientele.
Howe was an innovator who contributed much to his profession in a career of more than 30 years. His awards for gallantry and exceptional service gave him a position of respect and affection, while his feats of endurance, expertise and enthusiasm significantly influenced the way the SBS went about its business. He was also modest and selfeffacing. Nevertheless the service’s motto “By strength and guile” was sometimes rendered as “By strength and Gillie”.
In 1958 Gilbert Howe married Rita Zanders, whom he met while serving in HMS Royal Prince, the Royal Navy’s Rhine Squadron based at Krefeld. She predeceased him in 2005 and he is survived by their daughter.