Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Harry Claude Moorhouse, (30 January 1872 – 16 December 1934) was an officer in the British Army who saw action in West Africa. After retiring from the army, Moorhouse served as Chief Assistant to the Colonial Secretary and later as Provincial Commissioner in Nigeria. During the First World War he returned to service with the army. He also played first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club during the first decade of the 20th century.

Army career

Moorhouse joined the Royal Garrison Artillery as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

on 4 November 1891, and was promoted to lieutenant on 4 November 1894. He saw service in Uganda in 1898, 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 ...

(supernumerary) on 25 November 1899, and was in Ghana in 1900. The following year he was Chief Transport Officer to the British troops in the

Aro-Anglo war The Anglo-Aro War (1901–1902) was a conflict between the Aro Confederacy in present-day Eastern Nigeria, and the British Empire. The war began after increasing tension between Aro leaders and the British after years of failed negotiations. Cau ...

in Southern Nigeria (November 1901 to March 1902), for which he was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

, and received a

brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...

promotion as

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 ...

dated 17 April 1902. He received a regular commission as captain in the Royal Garrison Artillery in May 1902, but was again seconded to serve in Nigeria in September 1902. He took part in the Kano-Sokoto expedition (1903) and the Onitsha hinterland expedition (1904–05), and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and appointed a Companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

(CMG) and was

on several occasions. During the First World War he served at

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

Colonial career

He was Lieutenant-Governor of Nigeria from 1921 to 1925 and served as special commissioner to the Solomon Islands from 1928.

References

Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers 1872 births 1934 deaths Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Royal Artillery officers Companions of the Distinguished Service Order British Army personnel of World War I English cricketers People of colonial Nigeria {{England-cricket-bio-1870s-stub