Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Francis John Duncan (16 May 1870 – 1960) was a senior

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 ...

officer.

Military career

Educated at

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...

, Duncan was commissioned into the

Royal Scots The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment), once known as the Royal Regiment of Foot, was the oldest and most senior infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, having been raised in 1633 during the reign of Charles I of Scotland. The regimen ...

on 21 September 1889. After serving in 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 ...

, he became military commandant at

Edenburg Edenburg is a town situated about south of Bloemfontein in the Free State province of South Africa. , it had a population of 14,566. Background Edenburg was proclaimed a town in 1863 and received municipal government in 1891. The town is 85 ...

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 ...

. During 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 ...

he was deployed as a staff officer with the British Expeditionary Force and then became commander of the 165th Brigade in France January 1916, commander of the 214th Brigade in the UK in April 1917 and commander of 60th Brigade in France in October 1917. He went on to be General Officer Commanding

61st (2nd South Midland) Division The 61st (2nd South Midland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army raised in 1915 during the Great War as a second-line reserve for the first-line battalions of the 48th (South Midland) Division. The division was sent to the W ...

in 1918.

Family

In 1905 he married Lili Linder.

References

1870 births 1960 deaths British Army generals of World War I Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Royal Scots officers British Army major generals {{British-Army-bio-stub