Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Sir Warren Hastings Anderson, (9 January 1872 – 11 December 1930) was a senior

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer who served as

Quartermaster-General to the Forces The Quartermaster-General to the Forces (QMG) is a senior general in the British Army. The post has become symbolic: the Ministry of Defence organisation charts since 2011 have not used the term "Quartermaster-General to the Forces"; they simply ...

from 1927 to 1930.

Military career

Anderson was born the first son of General David Anderson, Colonel-in-Chief of the Cheshire Regiment, and his wife, Charlotte Christina (''née'' Anderson). Educated at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...

,Hastings Anderson at ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''
/ref> Anderson was commissioned into the

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence ...

as a second lieutenant on 8 October 1890,Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> and promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 9 January 1894.Hart′s Army list, 1903. BEF commanders and chiefs of staff 1918

Anderson was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

on 18 December 1899, as he left for South Africa and the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. Serving first in a staff position in 1900 as deputy assistant adjutant general on the staff of the military governor in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, he returned to his regiment to become adjutant of the 2nd Battalion on 21 April 1901. The battalion served in South Africa throughout the war, which ended in June 1902. Anderson returned home with other officers and men of the battalion on the SS ''St. Andrew'' leaving

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

in early October 1902, and was subsequently stationed at

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

. Anderson also took part in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, joining the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and serving with the 8th Division as its first general staff officer, grade 1 from 22 September 1914. In June 1915 he was made a brevet colonel. From October 1915, after being made a temporary brigadier general, he was BGGS with the

XI Corps 11 Corps, 11th Corps, Eleventh Corps, or XI Corps may refer to: * 11th Army Corps (France) * XI Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XI Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...

, then with the XV Corps and finally with the First Army of the BEF. In June 1915 he was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel. In February 1917 he was promoted to the temporary rank of major general and succeeded Major General George Barrow as major general, general staff of the First Army. As MGGS he was, effectively,

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the First Army, commanded by General Sir Henry Horne throughout Anderson's service with it, and it was his task to prepare for the assault on Vimy Ridge in April 1917. In June 1918 his rank of major general became substantive. After the war, Anderson became

commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

at the Staff College in Camberley until 1922 when he moved to army headquarters in India. He was appointed

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

Baluchistan District in 1924 and became

in 1927, when he was promoted to lieutenant general in March that year. He was also

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

of the

from 1928 to 1930. Anderson died on 11 December 1930.Burkes Landed Gentry: Anderson of Northfield

Family

Anderson was the elder brother of Admiral Sir David Murray Anderson. He married Eileen Hamilton in 1910; they had no children.

References

Bibliography

* ''Outline of the development of the British Army: Up to the commencement of the Great War, 1914'' Notes for four lectures delivered at the Staff College by Lieutenant General Sir Hastings Anderson , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Hastings 1872 births 1930 deaths Military personnel from Aldershot British Army lieutenant generals Cheshire Regiment officers Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath People educated at Marlborough College British Army generals of World War I British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Commandants of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst