William Rous (British Army officer)


The Hon. Sir William Edward Rous was a British Army officer who served as Quartermaster-General to the Forces.

Early life and education

Rous was the second son of Hon. Keith Rous and Pamela Catherine Mabell Kay-Shuttleworth, only daughter of Capt. Hon. Edward James Kay-Shuttleworth. His mother was the granddaughter of Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth, 1st Baron Shuttleworth and sister of the 4th Baron.
His parents divorced in 1940 after five years of marriage. His father remarried, in 1943, to April Mary Asquith, daughter of Brig-Gen. Hon. Arthur Asquith, and had one more son and four daughters. He was educated at Harrow School and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
In 1983, his father succeeded his elder brother, John Rous, 4th Earl of Stradbroke, as the 5th Earl of Stradbroke but lived only four days as earl before his own death.

Military career

Rous was commissioned into the Coldstream Guards in 1959.
He was appointed General Officer Commanding 4th Armoured Division in 1987 and then selected to be Commandant of the Staff College, Camberley in 1989.
In 1991, he was appointed Military Secretary and in 1994 he went on to be Quartermaster-General to the Forces. He retired in 1996.
He was also Colonel of the Coldstream Guards.

Personal life

In 1970, Rous married Rosemary Persse, only child of Maj. Jocelyn Arthur Persse, and Joan Shirley. They had two sons: James Anthony Edward and Richard William Jocelyn.
In retirement, he was Chairman of Kingston Hospital. He died of cancer in May 1999 and the cancer unit at the hospital is named after him.