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 ...

Duncan Sayre MacInnes (21 February 1860 – 23 May 1918) was a Canadian soldier and engineer who served in South Africa before, during and after the

Second 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 Sout ...

. Before and during

World War I 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 ...

, MacInnes played a key role in the establishment and development of the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

. He was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918.

Education

Duncan Sayre MacInnes entered the

Royal Military College of Canada '') , established = 1876 , type = Military academy , chancellor = Anita Anand ('' la, ex officio, label=none'' as Defence Minister) , principal = Harry Kowal , head_label ...

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 ...

in 1887, cadet # 236. He graduated with distinction in 1891 and was awarded the sword of honour. He was later awarded the Governor-General gold medal.Richard Preston 'Canada's RMC: A History of the Royal Military College' (Toronto, University of Toronto Press)

Family

His father was Senator Donald MacInnes from

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...

, and his mother was the fourth daughter of

Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto Sir John Beverley Robinson, 1st Baronet, (26 July 1791 – 31 January 1863) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Upper Canada. He was considered the leader of the Family Compact, a group of families which effectively controlled the ea ...

. Duncan Sayre MacInnes married May Millicent Wolferstan Thomas, the daughter of a prominent Montreal banker, Francis Wolferstan Thomas, and his first wife, Harriet, daughter of The Hon.

George Jervis Goodhue George Jervis Goodhue (1 August 1799 – 11 January 1870) was a Canadian merchant, landowner, and politician. Born in Putney, Vermont, the son of Josiah Goodhue and Rachel Burr, Goodhue came to Canada in 1820. A merchant in London, Ontario, he ...

on 22 October 1902. They had one daughter and one son.

Career

MacInnes was commissioned a second lieutenant in the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

on 16 July 1891. Promoted

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

on 18 July 1894, he served in the

Ashanti expedition The Anglo-Ashanti wars were a series of five conflicts that took place between 1824 and 1900 between the Ashanti Empire—in the Akan interior of the Gold Coast—and the British Empire and its African allies. Though the Ashanti emerged victorio ...

of 1895–96. He erected a fort at the Ashanti capital of

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

(in modern-day

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

). After the outbreak of the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, he was appointed principal staff officer to Lieutenant-Colonel

Robert Kekewich Major-General (United Kingdom), Major-General Robert George Kekewich, Order of the Bath, CB (17 June 1854 – 5 November 1914) was a Victorian era British Army officer. Early life Kekewich was the second son of Trehawke Kekewich, of Peamore Hou ...

, who commanded the garrison during the siege of the town of

Kimberley, South Africa Kimberley is the capital and largest city of the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It is located approximately 110 km east of the confluence of the Vaal and Orange Rivers. The city has considerable historical significance due to its ...

. Between May and November 1900 MacInnes was engaged in field operations in the

Orange River Colony The Orange River Colony was the British colony created after Britain first occupied (1900) and then annexed (1902) the independent Orange Free State in the Second Boer War. The colony ceased to exist in 1910, when it was absorbed into the Unio ...

. He was appointed a Companion of the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

(DSO) in 1901 for his work in the war. On 1 April 1902 he was 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 ...

. Following the end of the war in May 1902, he served as assistant director of works to the South African Constabulary in the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when i ...

. In 1904, he and other Canadians celebrated Dominion Day at a banquet in

Johannesburg, South Africa Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

. He served as deputy assistant quartermaster general at

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348,634 people in its urban area. The ...

in 1906, turning over the fortress and garrison to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. From September 1907 he was deputy assistant adjutant-general, Maritime provinces. On 31 March 1908, he went to England where he attended the

British Army Staff College Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which ...

. In 1910, he was gazetted a general staff officer in the Directorate of Military Training at the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

. Early in 1912 he became secretary and one of the three main contributors to an advisory committee on military aviation of the Committee of Imperial Defence whose recommendations led to the establishment of the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

World War I

In 1913, he was posted to the staff at Camberley, where he remained until the outbreak of

in August 1914. He was in command of the 54th field company of Royal Engineers, part of the 7th Division, participated in the

retreat from Mons The Great Retreat (), also known as the retreat from Mons, was the long withdrawal to the River Marne in August and September 1914 by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army. The Franco-British forces on the Western Fr ...

, and in late November received a wound which permanently restricted the use of fingers on his right hand. Promoted Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel on 29 November 1915, he went back to the War Office as assistant director of military aeronautics. In 1916, he was appointed director of aircraft equipment, in charge of design, supply, and maintenance, and subsequently made a temporary brigadier-general. Faced with extraordinary demands for more and better aircraft, an overwhelmed system of procurement, and malicious attacks from superiors, an overworked MacInnes suffered a breakdown in the fall of 1916 and he left the directorate in early 1917. Retiring by nature and uninterested in honours, he was rewarded with a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on 1 January 1917. He went back to the Western Front to become commanding Royal Engineer to the 42nd Division, in the substantive rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. During the war he was mentioned in Despatches twice. He was awarded the Russian Order of St Stanislaus, with the French Legion of Honour (Croix d'Officier) in 1917. In January 1918 he was appointed inspector of mines at general headquarters in Montreuil, France, and restored to the rank of

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 ...

. MacInnes was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918, possibly as a result of his work with mines, and he was buried at Étaples, France on 25 May 1918.

Legacy

Colonel C.S. MacInnes instituted the Duncan Sayre MacInnes Memorial Scholarship in 1951 in memory of his brother the late Brigadier-General Duncan Sayre MacInnes, CMG, DSO, Royal Engineers. The scholarship is awarded to the Fourth Year cadet at the

who is considered the most deserving of those who accept a regular commission in the military occupation of Aerospace Controller by reason of academic standing, character, and proficiency in classification training.http://www.rmc.ca Royal Military College of Canada

References

Bibliography

External links

Canadian Forces RecruitingCanadian Forces and Department of National DefenceWar Graves Commission
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macinnes, Duncan Sayre 1860 births 1918 deaths British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army generals of World War I Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Distinguished Service Order British military personnel of the Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Royal Military College of Canada alumni British military personnel killed in World War I Accidental deaths in France Royal Engineers officers Canadian military personnel from Ontario Academics of the Staff College, Camberley