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 normall ...

Sir Fenton John Aylmer, 13th Baronet, (5 April 1862 – 3 September 1935) was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

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 and a recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

. He was in command of the first failed efforts to break the

siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000-strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army (1861–1922), Ottoman Ar ...

in 1916. From a military background, Aylmer was commissioned into the Indian Army, and immediately involved in fierce fighting on the north-west frontier. In a singularly heroic action, still in his twenties, he helped rescue Townshend's garrison at

Chitral Chitral () is a city situated on the Kunar River, Chitral River in northern area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Lower Chitral District, and was previously the capital of Chitral District, and before ...

, spearheading the relief column. For his valorous conduct he was awarded the Victoria Cross, and rapid promotion through the officer class.

Early career

Born the son of Captain Fenton John Aylmer and Isabella Eleanor Darling. Aylmer attended the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of Officer (armed forces), commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers o ...

, as a Gentleman Cadet, in the same class as

Reginald Wingate General Sir Francis Reginald Wingate, 1st Baronet (25 June 1861 – 29 January 1953) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator in Egypt and the Sudan. He served as Governor-General of the Sudan (1899–1916) and High Commissioner in ...

, and was promoted

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 27 July 1880. He took part in the Burma expedition between 1886 and 1887.

Victoria Cross

Fenton was 29 years old, and a

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 ...

in the

Corps of Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

and

Bengal Sappers & Miners The Bengal Engineer Group (BEG) (informally the Bengal Sappers or Bengal Engineers) is a military engineering regiment in the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The unit was originally part of the Bengal Army of the East India Company's Ben ...

(

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

),The Royal Engineers Museum – Victoria Crosses held by the Royal Engineers Museum
/ref> during the

Hunza–Nagar Campaign The Hunza-Nagar Campaign was an armed conflict in 1891 fought by troops serving the British Raj against the princely states of Hunza and Nagar in the Gilgit Agency (now part of the Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan). It is also known in Pak ...

, India when he won the

in 1891 for the following deed: He was promoted

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

on 18 October 1893 in recognition of his services during the Hunza-Nagar Expedition, and was part of the

Chitral Expedition The Chitral Expedition (Urdu:چترال فوجی مہم) was a military expedition in 1895 sent by the British authorities to relieve the fort at Chitral, which was under siege after a local coup following the death of the old ruler. An interve ...

in 1895. Further service with the Royal Engineers saw him promoted a brevet Lieutenant-colonel. In July 1901 he was appointed Assistant Quartermaster general in India, and promoted to the substantive rank of

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 ...

. In August 1904 he was made a colonel on the staff. In June 1907 he was made a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

in the 1907 Birthday Honours. In March 1912, having been promoted to major general in February 1909, he became adjutant general, India, taking over from Lieutenant General

Sir Arthur Barrett Field Marshal Sir Arthur Arnold Barrett, (3 June 1857 – 20 October 1926) was a British officer of the Indian Army. He saw action at the Siege of the Sherpur Cantonment in December 1879 and at the Battle of Kandahar in September 1880 during t ...

. In 1913 he married Lady Risley, the widow of Sir

Herbert Hope Risley Sir Herbert Hope Risley (4 January 1851 – 30 September 1911) was a British ethnographer and colonial administrator, a member of the Indian Civil Service who conducted extensive studies on the tribes and castes of the Bengal Presidency. He ...

, head of the Indian Civil Service. She was born Elsie Julie Oppermann, daughter of Friedrich Oppermann.

First World War

Sir Fenton John Aylmer - Golders Green Crematorium

Having been promoted to

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 ...

on 11 June 1915, Aylmer was sent to Mesopotamia to take over command of the

7th (Meerut) Division The 7th (Meerut) Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army and, before 1895, the Bengal Army, that saw active service during World War I. Pre-1857 The Meerut Division first appeared in the Indian Army List in 1829, under the comman ...

. However, shortly after his arrival, he was put in charge of the

Tigris Corps The III Corps is a formation of the Indian Army that was formed during World War I in Mesopotamia during its respective campaign. Prior to the reorganization of the British and Indian forces in Mesopotamia, it was designated as the Tigris Corps. ...

that was assembled as the first effort to end the

. Tigris Corps comprised the Meerut Division, the

12th Indian Division The 12th Indian Division was formed in March 1915 from units of the British Indian Army. It formed part of the Tigris Corps, for service during the Mesopotamia Campaign of World War I. The Division arrived in Mesopotamia in April 1915 and remai ...

, and a number of other smaller military units. All told he had more than 20,000 men. They left

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

in late December 1915 and arrived at Sheikh Sa'ad on 3 January 1916.Tucker, p. 1,233 While the 12th Indian Division (under command of General

George Gorringe Lieutenant General Sir George Frederick Gorringe, (10 February 1868 – 24 October 1945) served as an active field commander in the British Army during the Anglo-Boer War and the First World War, on the Palestine and Western Fronts. Early ...

) made a diversionary move near Nasiriyeh, the 7th (under the command of General Younghusband) staged a direct assault on the Ottoman positions on 6 January (the

Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad The Battle of Sheikh Sa'ad (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Sağ Sahil'') occurred between 6–8 January 1916 during the Mesopotamian Campaign of the First World War. The battle took place along the banks of the Tigris, Tigris River between the Angl ...

). After two days of fighting, the Ottoman army withdrew. The British sustained approximately 4,000 casualties – much more than the medical units could cope with. The Ottoman troops, under the generalship of Baron von der Goltz only withdrew some six miles up river and occupied another defensive position near the edge of the Suwaikiya Marshes. A British assault on this position on 13 January was partially successful, the position was carried but again with significant losses (some 1,600 casualties) (the Battle of Wadi). By now, a third division had been added to Aylmer's Tigris Corps, the

3rd (Lahore) Division The 3rd (Lahore) Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army and before 1895, the Bengal Army, first organised in 1852. It saw service during World War I as part of the Indian Corps in France before being moved to the Middle East where ...

. This new division, along with the weakened 7th Division, attacked Ottoman defensive works at Hanna on 21 January (the

Battle of Hanna The First Battle of Hanna ( Turkish: ''Felahiye Muharebesi'') was a World War I battle fought on the Mesopotamian front on 21 January 1916 between the Ottoman Army and Anglo-Indian forces. Prelude After the Ottoman Empire's entry into the First W ...

). This assault was a complete failure. The Ottoman troops held their trench lines while some 2,700 British soldiers were killed or wounded. General Aylmer was reinforced with another division, the

13th (Western) Division The 13th (Western) Division was one of the Kitchener's Army divisions in the First World War, raised from volunteers by Lord Kitchener. It fought at Gallipoli, in Mesopotamia (including the capture of Baghdad) and Persia. War service 1914–191 ...

. The next month was spent resting the troops and probing the Ottoman defensive positions. With time running out on Major-General Townshend's garrison in

Kut Kūt (), officially Al-Kut, also spelled Kutulamare, Kut al-Imara, or Kut Al Amara is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about south east of Baghdad, and the capital of the Wasit Governorate. the estimated populatio ...

, Aylmer finally launched a two pronged attack on the Ottoman positions, one attack at the Sinn Abtar Redoubt, the other attack at the Dujaila Redoubt. The attacks were launched on 7 March 1916. Both attacks failed due to lack of initiative and an inability to coordinate the timing of the assaults: they ended up being sequential, not simultaneous as was intended. The British lost some 4,000 casualties. Fenton Aylmer was replaced by the former commander of the 12th Indian division, Major-General Gorringe. He did not command in battle again, but served as a divisional commander in India from 1915 to 1917 before retiring from the British Army in 1919.

Final years

From 1922 till his death he was a

colonel commandant Colonel commandant is a military title used in the armed forces of some English-speaking countries. The title, not a substantive military rank, could denote a senior colonel with authority over fellow colonels. Today, the holder often has an honor ...

of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

. Following his death in 1935 he was cremated at the

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and is one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £136,000 in 2021), ...

, where his ashes remain. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the

Royal Engineers Museum The Royal Engineers Museum, Library and Archive is a military engineering museum and library in Gillingham, Kent. It tells the story of the Corps of Royal Engineers and British military engineering in general. History The museum is housed in ...

Chatham, Kent Chatham ( ) is a town within the Medway unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Gillingham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham. In 2020 it had a population of 80,596. Th ...

, England.

References

Sources

* *

Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross List of Irish Victoria Cross recipients lists all recipients of the Victoria Cross (post-nominal letters "VC") born on the island of Ireland, together with the date and place of their VC action. The Victoria Cross is the highest war honour of ...

(Richard Doherty & David Truesdale, 2000) *

Monuments to Courage David Charles Harvey (29 July 1946 – 4 March 2004) was a British historian and author. He is notable for his seminal work, ''Monuments To Courage'', which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task that took ...

(David Harvey, 1999) *

The Register of the Victoria Cross ''The Register of the Victoria Cross'' is a reference work that provides brief information on every Victoria Cross awarded until the publication date. Each entry provides a summary of the deed, along with a photograph of the recipient and the f ...

(This England, 1997) *

The Sapper VCs The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

(Gerald Napier, 1998)

External links

Royal Engineers Museum
Sappers VCs

"Golders Green Crematorium, London"

"Royal Engineers Museum, Gillingham"

– from The Long, Long March website, downloaded January, 2006. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Aylmer, Fenton 1862 births 1935 deaths 19th-century Anglo-Irish people 20th-century Anglo-Irish people Baronets in the Baronetage of Ireland Military personnel from Hastings British recipients of the Victoria Cross British Army generals of World War I British military personnel of the Chitral Expedition Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Engineers officers Bengal Sappers and Miners personnel British military personnel of the Hunza-Naga Campaign British Army recipients of the Victoria Cross Golders Green Crematorium British Army lieutenant generals Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Military personnel from East Sussex