Sir William Henry Rycroft (1861 – 1925) was a British army officer who rose to the rank of Major-General, and colonial governor of British North Borneo.

Biography

Rycroft was the second of six children of Sir Nelson Rycroft, 4th Baronet, and his wife Juliana Ogilvy. His elder brother Richard became the 5th baronet. Rycroft was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

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 enlisted in the British Army in 1871. In 1879 he was appointed to the

71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot The 71st Regiment of Foot was a Highland regiment in the British Army, raised in 1777. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot to become the 1st Battalion, Highland Light Infantry in 1881. History ...

which became part of the

Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First and Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to form the Royal Highland Fusi ...

in 1881. He took part in the

Gordon Relief Expedition The Nile Expedition, sometimes called the Gordon Relief Expedition (1884–85), was a British mission to relieve Major-General Charles George Gordon at Khartoum, Sudan. Gordon had been sent to the Sudan to help Egyptians evacuate from Sudan af ...

in 1884–85. He transferred to the

7th Dragoon Guards The 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688 as Lord Cavendish's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as the 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards for Princess Charlotte in 1788. ...

in 1886, attended the

Staff College, Camberley Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which i ...

, 1891–1892, was Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at York 1895–1896, served on the North-West Frontier in India 1897–1898 and served on the Staff during the

South African 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 ...

1899–1900. He served in

Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...

from 1902 to 1905, was regimental commander of the

11th Hussars The 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army established in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the First World War and Second World War but then amalgamated with the 10th Royal Hussars (Pri ...

from 1904 to 1908, was in South Africa again from 1911 to 1912 and was Assistant Quartermaster general (QMG) in Southern Command from 1913 to 1914. He fought in the First World War and 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 ...

seven times. He was General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 32nd Division 1915–16. He was Major-General of Administration in the Army of the Black Sea 1918–20, then Major-General of the HQ Irish Command 1920–21. A year later he retired from the army and served as

governor of North Borneo The Governor of North Borneo was the appointed head of the government of North Borneo. Originally the Governor was appointed by the North Borneo Chartered Company, which was responsible for the administration of the protectorate. Upon North Bor ...

from 1922 until his death. After his death, his predecessor Aylmer Cavendish Pearson took over the governorship for the second time.

Honours

Rycroft was appointed CB in the

1910 Birthday Honours The 1910 Birthday Honours for the British Empire were announced on 24 June, to mark the occasion of the day set apart to celebrate the birthday of the late King Edward VII, who had died on 6 May. In the circumstances, the list was notably shorter ...

, CMG "in recognition of meritorious services during the war" in 1915, and knighted

KCMG KCMG may refer to * KC Motorgroup, based in Hong Kong, China * Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, British honour * KCMG-LP, radio station in New Mexico, USA * KCMG, callsign 1997-2001 of Los Angeles radio station KKLQ (FM) ...

"for services rendered in connection with Military Operations in the Field" in the

1918 New Year Honours The 1918 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were published in ''The London Gazette'' and ''The Times'' in Ja ...

. After the war he was awarded the additional knighthood of KCB "for valuable services rendered in connection with Military Operations in the Balkans" in the

1919 Birthday Honours The 1919 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were ...

; made Grand Commander of the Greek

Order of the Redeemer The Order of the Redeemer ( el, Τάγμα του Σωτήρος, translit=Tágma tou Sotíros), also known as the Order of the Saviour, is an order of merit of Greece. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the ...

and awarded the Greek Medal of Military Merit; awarded the Serbian Order of the White Eagle, 2nd Class (with Swords); made ''commandeur'' of the French

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

; and made a Grand Officer of the Order of the Star of . He was a Knight of Grace of the Order of the Hospital of St John of JerusaJem.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rycroft, William Henry 1861 births 1925 deaths People educated at Eton College Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst British Army major generals British Army personnel of the Mahdist War British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army generals of World War I Governors of North Borneo Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Recipients of Greek civil awards and decorations Recipients of the Medal of Military Merit (Greece) Commanders of the Legion of Honour Knights of Grace of the Order of St John