Lt Col Karl Beale
Led patrols and ambushes in the hot, dense jungles of Malaya
LIEUTENANTCOLONEL KARL BEALE, who has died aged 89, won an MC in Malaya during the Emergency and subsequently commanded the Sultan of Oman’s Special Forces.
In February 1951 Beale sailed for Malaya with the Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment (QORWKR). Based in central Malaya, its operational area consisted mostly of thick jungles with rubber estates and some tin mines.
Patrols chopping their way through thickets in the heat and high humidity could take an hour to cover a mile. Trailing vines ripped skin and uniforms and the dense overhead foliage blocked out most of the light. At night, there were leeches, red ants and mosquitoes.
After a spell as battalion intelligence officer, Beale commanded a platoon. In the course of the next three years he led a great many patrols and set up ambushes in operations against the communist terrorists (CTS).
In December 1952 he had only six men with him when he spotted a CT camp. He placed five of the group where they could cover the escape routes. Taking his Bren gunner, he stalked the sentry. He got within 15 yards before he was forced to open fire and kill the man.
Two months later, he was leading a small patrol when he was fired on at close range by three CTS. He returned fire and wounded one but two others escaped. The wounded man hurled a grenade which landed almost at Beale’s feet but failed to explode.
Beale charged up a slope, killed the wounded man and organised the pursuit of the others. The next day he returned to the same area and killed another CT.
Having already received a Mention in Despatches, he was awarded an MC. The citation stated: “He is an inspired leader of men, of dauntless courage and determination who has shown quite exceptional powers of leadership, bravery and endurance over a long period.”
Karl Saxon Beale was born at Tunbridge Wells in Kent on May 12 1929 and educated at Cranbrook School. After attending Sandhurst, in 1949 he was commissioned into the QORWKR. He was subsequently seconded to the Parachute Regiment and took part in the operational
parachute assault at Suez in 1956 as a captain in 3 Para. When his OC was wounded, he commanded the company.
The next year, he transferred to the Paras and was later adjutant of 3 Para and then a company commander. After a spell with 16 Independent Parachute Company, followed by attendance at Staff College, he had a staff job at 24 Infantry Brigade.
In 1963 he was posted to Kenya as Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General at HQ East Africa Command and then at HQ British Land Forces. After commanding a company of 2 Para in Borneo he was appointed second-in-command. A posting to the MOD and then to HQ Special Forces Strategic Command was followed by an appointment as second in command of 22 SAS Regiment at Hereford.
After promotion to lieutenant-colonel, in 1970 he was seconded to the Sultan’s Armed Forces in Oman and commanded the Northern Frontier Regiment. He established an airstrip and a base known as Karlsberg which became a launching point for many of the operations in the Western Area.
In 1972 Beale returned to England and served as chief of staff at HQ SAS Group. He returned to the MOD for two years, and in 1978 went back to Oman to take command of the Sultan of Oman’s Special Forces. His last appointment was that of Military Adviser to the Omani government.
In retirement in Devonshire and, later, Warwickshire, he enjoyed ornithology, reading and gardening.
In 1960 Karl Beale married Janet Campbell. They divorced, and he is survived by their son and daughter.
Lt Col Karl Beale, born May 12 1929, died April 12 2019