 He served in the First World War, and was awarded the Military Cross (MC) in 1917.In December 1941, Paris was in command of the 12th Indian Infantry Brigade, part of the Singapore Garrison.When the battle started in northern Malaya, Paris's 12th Brigade was sent to protect the retreat of the Indian 11th Infantry Division, which it did successfully, to the extent that it surprised the Japanese, inflicting high casualties on some of their more overconfident units.