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 ...

Stuart Peter Rolt (29 July 1862 – 8 May 1933) was a British Army officer who became Commandant of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.

Military career

Stuart Rolt was the son of

Peter Rolt Peter Rolt (1798 – 3 September 1882) was a British businessman and Conservative Party politician. The son of John David Rolt of and his wife Sophia ''née'' Butt, he was born in Deptford. Both of his grandfathers held senior positions in the t ...

, a Conservative Member of Parliament.ROLT, Brig.-Gen. Stuart Peter. (2008). In ''Who Was Who 1897–2007''. He was commissioned into the York and Lancaster Regiment as a lieutenant on 30 January 1884, 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 28 April 1890, and saw service in the Second Boer War, commanding the Rhodesia Regiment, where he was wounded in action. Promotion 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 ...

came while in South Africa, on 21 February 1900, followed by promotion to the

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 ...

rank of lieutenant-colonel on 29 November 1900. After his return to the United Kingdom, he was appointed an Assistant Inspector of Gymnasia at Aldershot on 5 February 1901. In 1911 he was appointed to command of 14th Infantry Brigade, in

5th Division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions *5th Division (Australia) * 5th Division (People's Republic of China) *5th Division (Colombia) *Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) *5th Light Cavalry Division (France) *5th Moto ...

; when the First World War broke out in July 1914, he took it to France as part of the British Expeditionary Force. 14th Brigade saw heavy action in the early stages of the war, being almost constantly engaged in combat for two months. In October, he was recalled from command on the grounds of exhaustion – though the corps commander was at pains to note that no stigma was to be placed on this move, and that he had in no way failed. He did not receive a new field command, but was instead became Commandant of the Royal Military College Sandhurst until August 1916, when he was appointed to command 170th Brigade in the 57th Division, a position he held until it was sent overseas. He retired in December 1918.Stuart Peter Rolt
by John Bourne. Centre for First World War Studies.

Personal life and family

Stuart Peter Rolt married Evelyn Roylance Court, daughter of William Roylance Court and Mary Carlaw Walker, in 1912. They had four children, Pamela Rolt, Suzanne Phyllis Rolt, Sybil Mary Rolt and Tony Rolt, later a racing driver.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rolt, Stuart Peter 1862 births 1933 deaths People from Marylebone British Army generals of World War I British military personnel of the Second Boer War British colonial army officers Commandants of Sandhurst York and Lancaster Regiment officers Companions of the Order of the Bath British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Military personnel from Middlesex British Army brigadiers