Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

Philip Walhouse Chetwode, 1st Baron Chetwode, (21 September 1869 – 6 July 1950), 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. He saw action during 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 ...

, during which he was present at the Siege of Ladysmith in December 1899. He saw action again during

World War I 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 ...

on the Western Front, taking part in the First Battle of Ypres, and then in the Sinai and Palestine campaign during which he led his corps at the First Battle of Gaza in March 1917, at the Battle of Beersheba in October 1917 and the Battle of Jerusalem in November 1917. After the War he held a series of senior military appointments including Adjutant-General to the Forces and then Commander in Chief Aldershot Command. He went on to be Chief of the General Staff in India in 1928 and Commander in Chief in India in 1930 and was much concerned with the modernisation and "Indianisation" of the army in India.

Early life and education

Born the son of Sir George Chetwode, 6th Baronet, and Alice Jane Bass (daughter of Michael Thomas Bass the brewer), Chetwode was educated at Eton, where he was an athlete of some distinction, and entered the

through the

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

with his first commission being as a second lieutenant in the 3rd (Militia) Battalion of the Oxfordshire Light Infantry (later the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry) on 11 April 1888. He then received a commission in the

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a ...

, still holding a second lieutenant's rank, with the 19th Hussars on 20 November 1889.

Military career

Chetwode Chauvel Royston in Egypt 1917 AWM A00049

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 6 August 1890, Chetwode first saw active service in the Chin Hills expedition in Burma from 1892 to 1893 and was promoted to captain on 7 February 1897. He served in the

where he took part in the actions at Reitfontein in October 1899, Ladysmith in December 1899, Laing's Nek in June 1900 and Belfast in August 1900: he was twice mentioned in despatches and was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

. Promoted to major on 21 December 1901, he stayed in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

until the end of hostilities. The war ended in late May 1902, and the following month Chetwode returned home in the ''SS Tagus'', arriving at

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

in July. He succeeded as 7th Baronet in 1905. In 1906, Chetwode became assistant military secretary to Lieutenant General Sir John French and on 3 January 1908 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel on appointment as commanding officer (CO) of the 19th Hussars. He commanded the regiment for the next four years, during which time he was promoted to

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 ...

, backdated to 4 October 1911, and was placed on the half-pay list from 3 January 1912. On 1 April he reverted to normal pay and succeeded Colonel Thomas Calley as commander of the London Mounted Brigade, a Territorial Force (TF) formation. During the Curragh incident in March 1914 Chetwode was offered command of the 3rd Cavalry Brigade when Brigadier General Hubert Gough threatened to resign. He knew that he would be "looked upon by all his brother officers as a scab” but thought it "his duty as a soldier to do as he was ordered & not to meddle in politics". In the event Gough kept his command and Chetwode remained with the London Mounted Brigade, but his willingness to replace Gough caused some ill feeling. Promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general on 15 May, he was given command of the 5th Cavalry Brigade in August 1914, the same month of the British entry into World War I. British generals Jerusalem 1918 AWM A02746A

British generals Jerusalem 1918 AWM A02746A

During the war, Chetwode served on the Western Front: his 5th Cavalry Brigade helped cover the retreat from the frontier, and checked the pursuing Germans at Cerizy on 29 August 1914. After taking part in the First Battle of Ypres in October 1914, he was appointed general officer commanding (GOC) 2nd Cavalry Division, and along with it came a temporary promotion to major general on 15 July 1915 and to substantive major general on 1 January 1916. With the war on the Western Front bogged down in

trench warfare Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising Trench#Military engineering, military trenches, in which combatants are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from a ...

, Chetwode was transferred to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

where he was given command of the Desert Column and promoted to temporary

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 ...

with effect from 22 November 1916. He led the corps at Rafa in January 1917 and at the First Battle of Gaza in March 1917. When General Sir Edmund Allenby, a fellow cavalryman, took command of the Allied forces in Palestine in June 1917, Chetwode was promoted to command of XX Corps. He led his corps to military success at the Battle of Beersheba in October 1917 and at the Battle of Jerusalem in November 1917. During the Sinai and Palestine campaign he was mentioned in despatches eight times.

Service in India and after

After the war, and following promotion to the permanent rank of lieutenant-general on 1 January 1919, Chetwode was appointed to a number of senior military appointments serving as military secretary from 1919, Deputy Chief of the Imperial General Staff from October 1920, Adjutant-General to the Forces from September 1922 and Commander in Chief Aldershot Command from March 1923. He was promoted to full

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

on 1 June 1926. Chetwode became Chief of the General Staff in India in 1928 and Commander-in-Chief, India, in November 1930. He was promoted to

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

on 13 February 1933. In his tenure as Commander-in-Chief, India, Chetwode was an opponent of replacing horses with tanks; he "made the surprising pronouncement that the Army in India would be unlikely to adopt tanks for a very long time, and then only to keep up the momentum of horsed cavalry." He was much concerned with the modernisation and "Indianisation" of the army in India. The main building and its central hall at the Indian Military Academy is named after him. The credo of the academy, engraved on the entrance to the central hall, is a passage from his address delivered at the formal inauguration of the academy in 1932: This is known as the "Chetwode Motto" and is the motto of the officers passing out from the academy. Chetwode returned from India in May 1934. He was Constable of the Tower from 1943 to 1948 and also President of the Royal Geographical Society as well as the recipient of an Honorary DCL from Oxford University. He had been appointed a deputy lieutenant of Buckinghamshire on 6 March 1919. He was created Baron Chetwode, of Chetwode in the County of Buckingham, on 10 July 1945 and died in London on 6 June 1950.

Family

Chetwode married Hester (Star) Alice Camilla Stapleton Cotton and had a son Roger and a daughter Penelope. * Roger Chetwode married Honourable Molly Berry, daughter of the 1st Viscount Camrose. He was killed on active service on 14 August 1940 at age 34, leaving two sons: Philip, the 2nd Baron Chetwode, and Christopher. * Honourable Penelope Chetwode married John Betjeman the poet (later Poet Laureate) and had a son Paul and daughter Candida Lycett Green. Chetwode's sister Florence was married to General Noel Birch.

Honours and awards

British

*DSO : Companion of the Distinguished Service Order – ''20 November 1900'' – for services during the operations in South Africa (

) *KCMG : Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George – ''4 June 1917'' *GCB : Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) – ''3 June 1929'' **KCB : Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath – ''11 January 1918'' **CB : Companion of the Order of the Bath – ''18 February 1915'' *KJStJ : Knight of Justice of the Venerable Order of St. John – ''23 December 1930'' *GCSI : Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India – ''4 June 1934'' *OM : Member of the Order of Merit – ''1 January 1936''

Foreign

* Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France) – ''21 May 1917'' * Order of the Nile, 2nd Class (Egypt) – ''9 November 1918''

Notes

References

* * *

External links

Generals of World War II
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