Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

Sir Claud William Jacob, (21 November 1863 – 2 June 1948) was a

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

officer. He served in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

as commander of the Dehra Dun Brigade, as General Officer Commanding 21st Division and as General Officer Commanding

II Corps 2nd Corps, Second Corps, or II Corps may refer to: France * 2nd Army Corps (France) * II Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * II Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French ...

in the Fifth Army. During the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

, his corps undertook the British attack during the

Battle of Thiepval Ridge The Battle of Thiepval Ridge was the first large offensive of the Reserve Army (Lieutenant General Hubert Gough), during the Battle of the Somme on the Western Front during the First World War. The attack was intended to benefit from the Four ...

in September 1916 and the subsequent assault on St Pierre Divion during the

Battle of the Ancre The Battle of the Ancre was fought by the British Fifth Army (Lieutenant-General Hubert Gough), against the German 1st Army (General Fritz von Below). The Reserve Army had been renamed the Fifth Army on 30 October. The battle was the last ...

in November 1916. He remained in command of II Corps for the

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

in Autumn 1917. After the War he commanded a corps of the British Army of the Rhine during the occupation there and then served as Chief of the General Staff in India. He went on to be General Officer Commanding Northern Command in India before temporarily becoming

Commander-in-Chief, India During the period of the Company rule in India and the British Raj, the Commander-in-Chief, India (often "Commander-in-Chief ''in'' or ''of'' India") was the supreme commander of the British Indian Army. The Commander-in-Chief and most of his ...

and then taking over as

Military Secretary to the India Office The Military Secretary to the India Office was responsible for the recruitment of British and other European nationals to the officer ranks of the Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian A ...

Military career

Jacob was born on 21 November 1863, at Mahidpur in the

Bombay Presidency The Bombay Presidency or Bombay Province, also called Bombay and Sind (1843–1936), was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India, with its capital in the city that came up over the seven islands of Bombay. The first mainl ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, to Major-General William Jacob and Eliza Jacob. Educated at

Sherborne School (God and My Right) , established = 705 by Aldhelm, re-founded by King Edward VI 1550 , closed = , type = Public school Independent, boarding school , religion = Church of England , president = , chair_label = Chairman of the governors , ...

, he passed into Sandhurst and was commissioned into the

Worcestershire Regiment The Worcestershire Regiment was a line infantry regiment in the British Army, formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot and the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot. The regimen ...

on 9 September 1882. On 16 December 1884, stationed at

Quetta Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه‎) is the tenth List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in Geography of Pakistan, south-west of the country close to the ...

, he secured his transfer from the Worcestershire Regiment to the Indian service and, in July 1886, he became adjutant of the 30th Regiment (Jacob's) Bombay Native Infantry also known as 3rd Belooch Regiment (now 12 Baloch).Heathcote, p. 190 He first saw action with the Zhob Valley expedition of 1890 after which he was posted to the 24th (Baluchistan) Regiment of Bombay Infantry (now 6 Baloch) in 1891. Promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 9 September 1893 and to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on 10 July 1901, he was selected to command the Zhob Levy Corps, which kept the peace in the

North West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ps, شمال لویدیځ سرحدي ولایت, ) was a Chief Commissioner's Province of British India, established on 9 November 1901 from the north-western districts of the Punjab Province. Followin ...

along the Waziristan and Southern

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

border. He took part in the blockade of the Mahsud Waziri tribe at the end of 1901. Promoted to

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

on 1 October 1904, he was given command of the

106th Hazara Pioneers The 106th Hazara Pioneers was a pioneer infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They were formed in 1904 at Quetta from Hazara people. They were disbanded in 1933. Establishment The first contact between the British and the Hazaras was jus ...

. Promoted to brevet colonel on 1 October 1908 and to full

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

on 1 January 1911, he was appointed

GSO1 A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

of the Meerut Division on 2 September 1912. General Sir Claud William Jacob, Kcb Art

At the outbreak of the

in 1914, Jacob went with the Meerut division, part of the Indian corps, to the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

. He saw action at the closing stages of the Battle of La Bassée in October 1914. Promoted to temporary

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

on 5 January 1915, he was appointed to command the Dehra Dun Brigade, and led the brigade at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle in March 1915 and the Battle of Aubers Ridge in May 1915. Promoted to temporary major-general on 7 September 1915, he became General Officer Commanding the Meerut division and led the division at the Battle of Loos in October 1915. With the Indian Corps was preparing to leave the Western front, he was appointed to take over the 21st Division of the "New Armies" on 18 November 1915. Promoted to the substantive rank of major-general on 1 January 1916 and despite being wounded in March 1916,Heathcote, p. 191 he was promoted to temporary

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

on 28 May 1916 and appointed to command

in the Fifth Army in September 1916. During the

, his corps undertook the British attack during the

in September 1916 and the subsequent assault on St Pierre Divion during the

in November 1916. He remained in command of II Corps, having been promoted to the substantive rank of

on 3 June 1917, for the

in Autumn 1917. Jacob commanded a corps of the British Army of the Rhine during the occupation there. He became Chief of the General Staff in India in January 1920 and was then both promoted to full

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

and appointed Aide-de-Camp to

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

on 31 May 1920. He returned home to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in 1924, and in November of that year was given the Northern Command in India. When Lord Rawlinson died in March 1925, he acted temporarily as

, until

Sir William Birdwood Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951) was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener. He saw action again in the First World War ...

took over that role in August 1925 and Jacob returned home again. He took up the appointment of

in April 1926 and, having been promoted

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

on 30 November 1926, he remained at the India Office until he retired in May 1930. In retirement Jacob became

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

of the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

. He was also Colonel of 2nd Battalion The Baluch Regiment (now 7th Battalion The Baloch Regiment), Colonel of the

and Colonel of the

. In January 1936 he attended the funeral of

and in May 1937 he attended the coronation of

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

. He died at King's College Hospital in London on 2 June 1948 at the age of eighty-four.

Family

In 1894, he married Clara Pauline Wyatt, daughter of the Reverend J. L. Wyatt, well known as a missionary and student of oriental languages in India, and also a lecturer in Tamil at

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

from 1895 to 1929. The couple had one son, Edward Ian Claud Jacob, who later became Assistant Military Secretary of the War Cabinet and Director-General of the BBC.

Honours

British * KCMG – 1 January 1919 * GCSI – 3 June 1930 (KCSI – 1 January 1924) * GCB – 3 July 1926 (KCB – 1917; CB – 1915) * Knight of Grace of the

Venerable Order of Saint John The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

– 19 June 1926 Foreign *Grand Officer of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) – 11 March 1918 *Grand Officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

(France) – 15 December 1919 *

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

(France) – 7 January 1919 *

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

(United States) – 12 July 1919

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

Images of Claud JacobProfile on Worcestershire Regiment site
, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacob, Claud 1863 births 1948 deaths Foreign recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (United States) Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Worcestershire Regiment officers British field marshals British Commanders-in-Chief of India Indian Army generals of World War I Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George People educated at Sherborne School Constables of the Tower of London Military personnel of British India British Indian Army generals Members of the Council of the Governor General of India