Major-General Charles William Drury (1865-1913) was a Canadian General often credited as the "Father of Modern Artillery in Canada" and briefly in command of the Canadian Artillery in South Africa during the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

Early life and education

Drury was born in 1856 in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

and was the son of Ward Chipman Drury and Charlotte Augusta Hayne, daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel R.A Hayne.

Career

Drury was commissioned in January 1874 into the New Brunswick Garrison Artillery Brigade out of

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of Ki ...

, switching to the Regular Force in 1877 in 1885, Drury, now a Captain would command the Field Artillery of "A" Battery Royal Canadian Artillery (RCA), where he would implement forward thinking indirect fire techniques. In 1893, Drury became the Commandant of the Royal School of Canadian Artillery, in which he would apply British

Fire Discipline Fire discipline is a system of communication in the military, primarily for directing artillery. By definition, fire discipline is the language of fire control. It consists of words, phrases, rules, and conventions which have specific meanings ...

he learned while studying at the Imperial Institute in London. He would use these techniques and more to transform the elements of the Royal Canadian Artillery into a modern fighting force. Drury would command the Canadian Field Brigade of Artillery as part of the 1st Canadian Contingent of the

. Eventually the brigade was split-up to act in individual of separate British units during the conflict, seeing Drury and "C" Battery work under Major-General Robert Baden Powell for his operations in the western Transvaal. After the Boer War, Drury as the Military Commander of the Maritime Provinces, would take control of the

Halifax Citadel Citadel Hill is a hill that is a National Historic Site in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Four fortifications have been constructed on Citadel Hill since the city was founded by the English in 1749, and were referred to as Fort George—but only ...

, from British control seeing the last of the permanent British garrison in Canada. In 1912, Drury would be promoted to the rank of Major-General, one year before his death.

Family

He married Mary Louise Henderson in 1880, daughter of James Alexander Henderson, QC DCL, LL B, and had the following issue: * Victor Montague Drury (1884–1962) ** Brigadier-General Charles Mills Drury, PC, OC,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, DSO, QC * Gladys Henderson Drury (1885–1927), Married

William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (25 May 1879 – 9 June 1964), generally known as Lord Beaverbrook, was a Canadian-British newspaper publisher and backstage politician who was an influential figure in British media and politics o ...

PC, ONB ** Janet Gladys Aitken (1908 –1988), Married firstly,

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, secondly, Hon. William Drogo Sturges Montagu, son of

George Montagu, 9th Earl of Sandwich George Charles Montagu, 9th Earl of Sandwich (29 December 1874 – 15 June 1962), known as George Montagu until 1916, was a British Conservative politician. Sandwich was the son of Rear-Admiral the Hon. Victor Alexander Montagu, second son of ...

, and thirdly, Major Thomas Edward Dealtry Kidd

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

. ** Sir John William Maxwell Aitken, 2nd Baron Beaverbrook, DSO, DFC

Honours

He was appointed a Companion of the

Most Honourable Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as on ...

for his services in South Africa. Major-General Drury Miniature Medals

Other: * The Wing of the Royal Canadian Artillery School is named "Drury Wing" in his honour frameless, 362x362px

References

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