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 ...

Sir Wilkinson Dent Bird, (4 May 1869 – 6 January 1943) was an officer 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 ...

during the late-19th century and 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 ...

Early career

Dent was born in 1869, the son of J.D. Bird, a captain in the 20th Hussars. After studying at

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

, he took a commission 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 ...

in the

Queen's Royal Regiment The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Ar ...

on 22 August 1888. He was promoted to

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 1 December 1890, and 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 21 April 1897. That year, he served with the Niger Expedition, where 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 promotion In many of the world's military establishments, a brevet ( or ) was a warrant giving a commissioned officer a higher rank title as a reward for gallantry or meritorious conduct but may not confer the authority, precedence, or pay of real rank. ...

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 ...

on 6 June 1897. His next posting took him to the North-Western Frontier of India.''Who Was Who'' He served with his regiment 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 ...

, where he was present at the

Relief of Mafeking The siege of Mafeking was a 217-day siege battle for the town of Mafeking (now called Mafikeng) in South Africa during the Second Boer War from October 1899 to May 1900. The siege received considerable attention as Lord Edward Cecil, the son of ...

and was again mentioned in despatches, but was severely wounded and returned home in 1900. For his service, he was awarded 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).

Staff duties and regimental command

He was back as a regular captain in his regiment in July 1902. From 1903 to 1905 he was chief instructor at the

School of Musketry The Small Arms School Corps (SASC) is a small corps of the British Army, established in 1853 by Lord Hardinge. Its personnel provide advice and instruction to infantry weapon trainers throughout the army, in order to maintain proficiency in th ...

, and from 1905 to 1909 a lecturer at the Staff College, India. He was promoted to a brevet lieutenant-colonelcy in 1909, and appointed a General Staff Officer, Grade 2, at the War Office the following year. In 1913 he was transferred to command the 2nd Battalion,

Royal Irish Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...

, and promoted to Colonel. He was in command of the battalion at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, when it was sent to France with 7th Brigade, 3rd Division. On 26 August, at the

Battle of Le Cateau The Battle of Le Cateau was fought on the Western Front during the First World War on 26 August 1914. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the French Fifth Army had retreated after their defeats at the Battle of Charleroi (21–23 A ...

, he assumed command of the 7th Brigade when its commander, Brigadier

McCracken McCracken may refer to: People *McCracken (surname), people with the surname McCracken Places *McCracken County, Kentucky, a county located in western Kentucky, USA *McCracken, Kansas, a city in Rush County, Kansas, USA *McCracken, Missouri, an un ...

, was disabled by an artillery shell. He was severely wounded at the

First Battle of the Aisne The First Battle of the Aisne (french: 1re Bataille de l'Aisne) was the Allied follow-up offensive against the right wing of the German First Army (led by Alexander von Kluck) and the Second Army (led by Karl von Bülow) as they retreated a ...

, on 15 September; his leg had to be amputated as a result, and on recovery he returned to the general staff rather than regimental service. He was made a General Staff Officer, Grade 1 in 1915, and appointed Director of Staff Duties in 1916. In 1918, he took up the post of lieutenant-governor of the

Royal Hospital, Chelsea The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse, the ancient sense of the word "hospital", it is a site located on Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea. It is an ...

, and retired in 1923, having received a promotion to major-general in 1921. He was appointed the

Lees Knowles Lecturer The Lees Knowles Lectureship was established at Trinity College, Cambridge in 1912 and first started in 1915. Lectures are given by distinguished experts in military and naval history and selection for this lectureship is considered one of the hig ...

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

for the year 1927.Home > About Trinity > Public Lectures > Lees Knowles Lectures > Past Lees Knowles Lecturers

. From 1929 to 1939, he served as the

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

of the

Family

Bird married Winifred Barker in 1902; the couple had two daughters.

Notes

References

*''

History of the Great War The ''History of the Great War Based on Official Documents by Direction of the Committee of Imperial Defence'' (abbreviated to ''History of the Great War'' or ''British Official History'') is a series of concerning the war effort of the Britis ...

: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1914'', by

J. E. Edmonds Brigadier-General Sir James Edward Edmonds (25 December 1861 – 2 August 1956) was an officer of the Royal Engineers in the late-Victorian era British Army who worked in the Intelligence Division, took part in the creation of the forerunner ...

. Macmillan & Co., London, 1922
Digitised copy
*"BIRD, Major-General Sir Wilkinson Dent". (2007). In ''Who Was Who''. Online edition. *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Wilkinson 1869 births 1943 deaths Queen's Royal Regiment officers Royal Ulster Rifles officers British Army major generals People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Companions of the Distinguished Service Order British Army generals of World War I Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Order of the Bath British amputees Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst