This portrait of Brigadier William Wallace Southam, DSO, ED was donated to the 48th Highlanders in 2003 and hangs in the Officers’ Mess, Moss Park Armoury.  Brigadier Southam was Commanding Officer of the 48th Highlanders of Canada, 1st Battalion from August 1940 to January 1942. After graduating from Royal Military College in 1922, Southam joined the 48th Highlanders at age 22 rising through roles as Signal Officer, Adjutant and Officer Commanding B Company. When war was declared in September 1939 he enlisted and went overseas with the battalion as Second in Command. Appointed Commanding Officer in August 1940 he had high expectations and standards believing that the greatest security he could offer his soldiers was to have them well trained and self assured.  He was liked by his fellow officers and respected by his men who nicknamed him “Pegleg” because of his uneven gait which was most notable on the forced marches he led for battlefield hardening. Well regarded by General Bernard Montgomery, Southam was promoted in January 1942 as Brigadier of the 6th Brigade, 2nd Canadian Division, comprised of the South Saskatchewan Regiment, Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders and Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal. On August 16 , 1942 he and his brigade participated in the ill-fated Dieppe raid. Declining evacuation, Southam remained with his brigade and was captured on the beach. He was transferred to OFLAG VII B, Eichstatt, Germany where he remained a prisoner until the end of the war.

Done in acrylic, the portrait shows Brigadier Southam in a traditional three-quarter pose of formal portraiture. The figure, looking over his left shoulder, is placed over a representational background of the Dieppe beach landing. The background shows the cliffs of Dieppe. Burning of the shoreline is an assault landing craft. To the bottom right is an infantryman with a Thompson submachine gun at the edge of a seawall at the Promenade leading up to the town. To the bottom left are two soldiers, one wounded yet continuing to fire and the other creating a defensive position. The figure of Brigadier Southam is shown in Service Dress with Sam Browne. On his sleeve is the blue patch of the Canadian 2nd Division. Southam wears a Davidson kilt, leather sporran, Officer’s tie and glengarry showing his long service as a 48th Highlander. Ribands above the left pocket are: Distinguished Service Order, The 39/45 Star, The Defence Medal, Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Maple Leaf, The War Medal 1939 – 1945, King George V Silver Jubilee Medal – 1935 and Canadian Efficiency Decoration. The Dieppe Bar, worn only on the medal rib and of the VSM, is not shown on the tunic riband.

Although the figure is place symbolically over the Dieppe background, the artist has chosen to integrate significant elements to show the importance of the event. The tails of Southam’s glengarry are lifted by a breeze that the heat of the day creates and bounces of the cliffs at noon even though the sea was calm. The stern expression on the face of Southam and the manner in which he grips and bends his swagger stick illustrate his understanding of the magnitude of the disaster yet his determination to remain in support of his troops.

Artist – Jessie Gledhill, Hand of Man Studio Gallery in Windsor, Ontario, a graduate of the University of Toronto, is a member of the Ontario Society of Artists. He developed his skills during years of world travel, several of which he spent painting in Spain. Jesse states, “My work portrays the human experience.” He has had solo exhibitions in Ottawa, Toronto, Bermuda and Michigan and in group exhibitions across Canada and the US, winning several awards including the Scarab  Club in Detroit, Toronto Outdoors Art Exhibition and the Tom Thompson Memorial Art Gallery in Owen Sound, Ontario. Private commissions are in Canada, Washington, Bermuda, Europe and South America including public municipal collections in Ottawa, the County of Essex and the AIDS organization of Canada. The commission for the portrait of Brigadier Southam followed interviews with portrait artists in Southern Ontario and recommendations from other portrait artists in the community.