Hendrik Balzazar Klopper | |
|---|---|
 Major General Hendrik Klopper in June 1942 | |
| Born | 25 September 1903 |
| Died | 30 December 1977 (aged 74) |
| Allegiance | South Africa |
| Service | South African Army |
| Years of service | 1924–1958 |
| Rank | General |
| Service number | 279249[1] |
| Commands | Commandant General of the Union Defence Force (1956–58) Army Chief of Staff (1950–53) Northern Command (1945–50) South African Army College (1944–45) 2nd Infantry Division (1942) 3rd Infantry Brigade (1942) 1 Special Service Battalion (1938–39) |
| Battles / wars | Second World War |
| Awards |  |
General Hendrik Balzazar Klopper (also Balthazar), DSO[2] was a South African military commander. He commanded the 3rd Infantry Brigade and was later promoted to command the 2nd Infantry Division during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. He is best known for surrendering the Division to Rommel after the failed defence of the Tobruk harbour in June 1942. After the war, he became Army Chief of Staff from 1950 to 1953, and Commandant General of the Union Defence Force from 1956 until his retirement in 1958.
- ^ "No. 35697". The London Gazette. 8 September 1942. p. 3948.
- ^ "KLOPPER H.B. 1903–1977". eGGSA Library. The Genealogical Society of South Africa:eGGSA Branch. 24 February 2003. Retrieved 3 October 2014.