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 ...

George Stuart Tuxford, (7 February 1870 – 1942) was a pioneer of the Buffalo Pound Lake District,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, and later a senior officer in the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

(CEF). During the First World War he served first as officer commanding the 5th (Western Cavalry) Battalion and later as general officer commanding 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade,

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ''1re Division du Canada'' ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short ...

Early life

Born at Penmorfa, Carnarvonshire, North Wales, on 7 February 1870 to a Lincolnshire couple, Tuxford grew up in the English countryside before immigrating to Canada in the 1880s. Major G.S. Tuxford was appointed as the first commanding officer of the independent D Squadron, a sub-unit of the 16th Mounted Rifles, the later being first militia unit to be raised in Saskatchewan since the

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. Later promoted to lieutenant colonel, Tuxford became the first commanding officer of the newly formed 27th Light Horse with its regimental headquarters located in Moose Jaw. The current D Squadron served as the foundation for this unit. Its establishment was approved by Minister of Militia, Brigadier General

Sam Hughes Sir Samuel Hughes, (January 8, 1853 – August 23, 1921) was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I. He was notable for being the last Liberal-Conservative cabinet minister, until he was dismissed from his cabinet post ...

, and Commanding Officer Militia District 10, Colonel

Sam Steele Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele (5 January 1848 – 30 January 1919) was a distinguished Canadian soldier and police official. He was an officer of the North-West Mounted Police, most famously as head of the Yukon detachment during the ...

First World War

At the outbreak of war, Lieutenant Colonel Tuxford attested for overseas service with the

and was appointed to command the 5th (Western Cavalry) Battalion at

Camp Valcartier Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), now re-designated 2 Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, north northwest of Quebec ...

. He took his unit overseas and led it during the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pre ...

in April 1915, as well at the

Battle of Festubert The Battle of Festubert (15–25 May 1915) was an attack by the British army in the Artois region of France on the western front during World War I. The offensive formed part of a series of attacks by the French Tenth Army and the British ...

. In March 1916 he was promoted

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 ...

and appointed to the command of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade, which he led during the battles of

Mount Sorrel The Battle of Mont Sorrel (''Battle of Mount Sorrel'', ''Battle of Hill 62'') was a local operation in World War I by three divisions of the British Second Army and three divisions of the German 4th Army in the Ypres Salient, near Ypres, Bel ...

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Courcelette Courcelette () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Courcelette is situated on the D929 and D107 crossroads, some northeast of Amiens. History Courcelette was a major tactical objective in the ...

Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

Hill 70 The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and five divisions of the German 6th Army. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France b ...

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, which forms part of the regions of France, region of Hauts-de-France; before the regions of France#Reform and mergers of ...

, and

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...

. Following the armistice in November 1918, his formation participated in the march to the Rhine and served as part of the occupation force in Germany until all Canadian units were returned home.

References

* Saskatchewan Provincial Archives. Memoirs of Brigadier General George S. Tuxford CB CMG DSO ED. 4 Volumes. * Andrew B. Godefroy, "Portrait of a Battalion Commander: Lieutenant Colonel George Stuart Tuxford at the Second Battle of Ypres, April 1915", in Colonel Bernd Horn ed. Intrepid Warriors: Perspectives on Canadian Military Leaders. (Kingston and Toronto: CDA Press and Dundurn Group, 2007), pp. 59–74. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tuxford, George 1870 births Canadian Militia officers Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Canadian generals of World War I 1942 deaths Canadian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Canadian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Canadian Companions of the Order of the Bath English emigrants to Canada 14th Canadian Hussars officers 16th/22nd Saskatchewan Horse Saskatoon Light Infantry North Saskatchewan Regiment