Major-General William Frederick Cavaye (15 February 1845 – 30 January 1926) was a British military officer and

Municipal Reform Party The Municipal Reform Party was a local party allied to the parliamentary Conservative Party in the County of London. The party contested elections to both the London County Council and metropolitan borough councils of the county from 1906 to 1945 ...

politician.

Early life

He was the eldest son of General William Cavaye (d.1896) and his wife Isabella née Hutchinson, and was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland. His father retired to 12 Royal Circus in the Stockbridge district around 1860. Following schooling at

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is an Independent school (United Kingdom), independent day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in the city's New Town, Edinburgh, New Town, is now part of the Se ...

and in Charlton he entered 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 ...

Military career

In 1865 Cavaye was commissioned as an ensign into the 107th Regiment of Foot. He rose through the officer ranks to become a

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 9 March 1867, a

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 13 December 1874, and a

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 1 July 1881, having served with distinction in the

Anglo-Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, coupl ...

of 1879. The 107th Foot became the 2nd Battalion of the

Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...

under the

Childers reforms The Childers Reforms of 1881 reorganised the infantry regiments of the British Army. The reforms were done by Secretary of State for War Hugh Childers during 1881, and were a continuation of the earlier Cardwell Reforms. The reorganisation was ...

of 1881: Cavaye became the battalion's commanding officer with the rank of lieutenant-colonel on 15 August 1883. Cavaye was further promoted, becoming

Assistant Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

and Chief of Staff of the Southern District with the rank of Colonel. He served "on special service" 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 ...

of 1899 – 1902, and was mentioned in dispatches. He was placed on half-pay on 24 March 1902, and retired from the army on 15 December 1902. Following the outbreak of 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 returned to active service. He was appointed commanding officer of the

2nd East Anglian Division The 2nd East Anglian Division was a 2nd Line Territorial Force Division (military), division of the British Army in World War I. The division was formed as a duplicate of the 54th (East Anglian) Division in November 1914. As the name suggests, t ...

in November 1914 with the rank of brigadier-general. The division did not serve abroad, but Cavaye subsequently served on "special service" with the British Expeditionary Force in France from 1917 – 1919, and was raised to the rank of major-general. From 1919 – 1920 he was a

King's Messenger The Corps of King's Messengers (or Corps of Queen's Messengers during the reign of a female monarch) are couriers employed by the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). They hand-carry secret and important documents to Br ...

Local government

In 1906 he began his involvement in local government, when he was elected to

Kensington Borough Council The Metropolitan Borough of Kensington was a Metropolitan borough in the County of London from 1900 to 1965, which since 1901 was known as the Royal Borough of Kensington, following the death of Queen Victoria, in accordance with her wishes. His ...

, in the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

. He was one of nine councillors for the Brompton

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

of the royal borough, all members of the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

-backed Municipal Reform Party. He was mayor of the borough for two consecutive terms in 1907 – 1909. He remained a member of the borough council until his death, latterly as an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

. In 1910 he was elected to the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

as a Municipal Reform councillor for

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

. He held the seat for fifteen years before retiring from the LCC at the 1925 election due to ill-health.

Family

In 1862 Cavaye married Ada Mary Barttelot, youngest daughter of

Walter Barttelot Sir Walter Barttelot, 1st Baronet, (10 October 1820 – 2 February 1893) was a Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament for several con ...

, member of parliament for

West Sussex West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...

. He died at his London home, 6 Neville Terrace, SW7, on 30 January 1926. He was buried, following a military funeral, at

Stopham Stopham is a hamlet and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England, about west of Pulborough on the A283 road. It is in the civil parish of Fittleworth. The parish has a land area of . The 2001 Census recorded 87 peo ...

, Sussex. In 1937 two Kensington streets, Chelsea Grove and Clifton Place, were combined into a single thoroughfare named "Cavaye Place" in honour of the general.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cavaye, William Frederick Members of London County Council 1845 births 1926 deaths Burials in Sussex British Army major generals Royal Sussex Regiment officers British Army generals of World War I Scottish generals Military personnel from Edinburgh People educated at Edinburgh Academy Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst British Army personnel of the Anglo-Zulu War British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Municipal Reform Party politicians Members of Kensington Metropolitan Borough Council