Brigadier Austin Henry Williams (11 February 18905 September 1973) was a British polo champion and officer in the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

. He was born in

Felsted Felsted (sometimes spelt Felstead) is a village and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Bannister Green, Bartholomew Green, Causeway End, Coblers Green, Cock Green, Frenches Gre ...

in Essex, England. He was educated at

Felsted School (Keep your Faith) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Chris Townsend , r_head_l ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

, from where he was commissioned a second lieutenant on the Unattached List for the Indian Army on 8 September 1909. After a year attached to a British regiment he was appointed to the Indian Army and the 38th Central India Horse on 4 December 1910. He was promoted to lieutenant on 8 December 1911. In August 1914 he was on leave in England and rejoined his regiment in the field in France in early January 1915. He served with his regiment in France and Palestine, being appointed Adjutant in April 1916 and promoted Captain in July 1916, until he was sent back to India in August 1918. He was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

as recorded in the

London Gazette London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

of 1 January 1919. When the 38th & 39th Central India Horse were amalgamated in 1921 to form the 21st Central India Horse he was again appointed Adjutant. He was promoted to major on 9 September 1925. Before his transfer to the 16th Light Cavalry in 1933 at various times he served as an instructor at the Equitation School at

Saugor Sagar is a city, municipal corporation and administrative headquarter in Sagar district of the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India. Situated on a spur of the Vindhya Range, above sea-level. The city is around northeast of state capital ...

and Military Advisor to Jodhpur State. He participated in the 1927

International Polo Cup The International Polo Cup, also called the Newport Cup and the Westchester Cup, is a trophy in polo that was created in 1876 and was played for by teams from the United States and United Kingdom. The match has varied in length over the years ...

. He was appointed a Squadron Commander in the 21st Central India Horse on 15 April 1931. He transferred to the 16th Light Cavalry as the second in command on 9 April 1933, and was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and appointed commanding officer on 31 October 1934, a position he held until 30 October 1938. He was appointed officiating commandant of the Equitation School at Saugor as of 25 October 1938, then promoted to colonel and appointed commandant on 25 January 1939, a position he held until 31 August 1939 when the school was closed. He went on to be the commandant of the Small Arms School India at Saugor from November 1939 until he retired. He had been promoted to acting brigadier on 21 August 1941 and temporary brigadier on 21 February 1942. He was an ADC to the King from 6 April 1943 to 4 September 1944, appointed a Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire in 1944 and retired a Colonel with the honorary rank of Brigadier on 4 September 1944. He moved to South Africa in 1948 with his wife Eva Albanesi (daughter of composer

Carlo Albanesi Carlo Albanesi (born 22 October 1858; died 26 September 1926) was an Italian-born composer, pianist, teacher and examiner who spent most of his working life in England. His ''Exercises for Fingering'', first published in the early 1900s, are sti ...

and novelist Effie Rowlands) whom he had married in 1927. There was a daughter (Meg Hartman) and four grandchildren. He died on 5 September 1973 in

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

in South Africa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Austin Henry 1890 births 1973 deaths English polo players International Polo Cup British Indian Army officers British people in colonial India