Walter Campbell (British Army officer) explained

Honorific Prefix:Sir
Walter Campbell
Birth Date:30 July 1864
Birth Place:County Antrim, Ireland
Death Place:Merstham, Surrey
Branch: British Army
Serviceyears:1887–1927
Rank:Lieutenant General
Battles:Second Boer War
First World War
Awards:Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Distinguished Service Order
Order of the White Eagle, 2nd Class (Serbia)

Lieutenant General Sir Walter Campbell, (30 July 1864 – 11 August 1936) was a British Army officer who served as Quartermaster-General to the Forces.

Early life and education

Campbell was born in County Antrim, Ireland, the son of John Campbell of Rathfern, White Abbey, Belfast. He was educated at Wellington College and Trinity College, Cambridge, but left university after three years for Sandhurst when he decided upon a military career.

Military career

Campbell was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Gordon Highlanders on 5 February 1887,[1] promoted to lieutenant on 5 December 1890, and saw early service with the Waziristan Field Force and the Chitral Relief Force (1895). He was promoted to captain on 11 January 1897, served in the Tirah Expeditionary Force (1897–98), and received a brevet promotion to major on 20 May 1898.[2] [1] In 1899–1900 he served in the Second Boer War, for which he was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in November 1900. He then became Brigade Major for the Highland Brigade serving in South Africa. The war ended with the Peace of Vereeniging in late May 1902, and the following month Campbell returned home in the SS Tagus, arriving at Southampton in July.[3] Following his return, he was on 19 October 1902 appointed Deputy Assistant Adjutant-General (DAAG) to the 3rd Army Corps, stationed in Ireland.

He served in the First World War becoming Deputy Quartermaster-General to the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force taking part in the evacuation at Gallipoli.[4] By June 1918 he was Quartermaster-General with the Imperial Camel Corps in Jordan.[5] According to The Times, Campbell's "genius for administration made him an outstanding figure of the War."

In 1918, he was sketched by artist James McBey, the official war artist to the Palestine Expeditionary Force.[6]

He was appointed Quartermaster-General to the Forces in 1923; he retired four years later and died on 11 August 1936.[7] [1]

References

|-

Notes and References

  1. http://www.kcl.ac.uk/lhcma/locreg/CAMPBELL18.shtml Sir Walter Campbell
  2. Hart's army list, 1903
  3. The Army in South Africa - Troops returning Home . 5 July 1902 . 8 . 36812.
  4. http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1030000969 Private papers of Lieutenant General Sir Walter Campbell KCB KCMG DSO
  5. http://telawrence.net/telawrencenet/works/spw/sp_08_095.htm Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence, Book 8, Chapter 95
  6. McBey, James General Sir Walter Campbell KCMG CB DSO, 1918 Imperial War Museum Collection Search. Accessed 30 June 2012
  7. News: Obituary: Lt.-Gen. Sir Walter Campbell – A Great Quartermaster-General . . 12 August 1936 . 12.