General Sir Cecil Francis Romer, GCB, KBE, CMG (14 November 1869 – 1 October 1962) was a British Army general who reached high command during the 1920s.[2]
Sir Cecil Romer | |
|---|---|
 General Sir Cecil Romer | |
| Born | 14 November 1869 Kensington, London[1] |
| Died | 1 October 1962 (aged 92) Maidstone, Kent |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1890–1935 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands | Southern Command Western Command 1st Division 59th (2nd North Midland) Division |
| Battles / wars | Second Boer War First World War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Mentioned in Despatches Legion of Honour (France) |
Early life and education
editRomer was born in Kensington, London, the son of Lord Justice Robert Romer and Betty Lemon, daughter of Mark Lemon, editor of Punch. His elder brother was Mark Romer, Baron Romer. He was educated at Eton College.[2] His sister, Helen Mary, married Lord Chancellor Frederic Maugham, 1st Viscount Maugham.[3]
Military career
edit
Romer was commissioned into the Royal Dublin Fusiliers as a second lieutenant on 1 March 1890,[4] promoted lieutenant on 23 August 1893, and captain on 19 October 1898. He served in the Second Boer War between 1899 and 1902, was wounded in early 1900,[5] and received the brevet rank of major on 29 November 1900.[6] Following the war he was seconded as an adjutant of volunteers in February 1902,[7] but only a few months later he was on 19 June 1902 appointed brigade major to the 13th Brigade, in Dublin.[8] He went on to become a General Staff Officer in 1904.[6]
During the First World War, Romer, promoted to temporary colonel in November 1914,[9] fought on the Western Front.[6] He was General Officer Commanding 59th (2nd North Midland) Division between 1917 and 1918.[10][11]
Romer became General Officer Commanding 1st Division at Aldershot in 1926.[6] He was then elevated to General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command in 1928 and to General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command in March 1931.[6][12] In 1933, he was appointed Adjutant-General to the Forces: he retired in 1935.[6]
References
edit- ^ 1871 England Census
- ^ a b "Obituary: Sir Cecil Romer – Hard Fighting in France". The Times. 3 October 1962. p. 13.
- ^ G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant
- ^ "No. 27051". The London Gazette. 10 February 1899. p. 869.
- ^ "The War - Casualties". The Times. No. 36102. London. 29 March 1900. p. 8.
- ^ a b c d e f Sir Cecil Francis Romer Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
- ^ "No. 27425". The London Gazette. 15 April 1902. p. 2505.
- ^ "No. 27454". The London Gazette. 15 July 1902. p. 4512.
- ^ "No. 28961". The London Gazette. 3 November 1914. p. 8884.
- ^ University of Birmingham
- ^ Maj A.F. Becke,History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2b: The 2nd-Line Territorial Force Divisions (57th–69th), with the Home-Service Divisions (71st–73rd) and 74th and 75th Divisions, London: HM Stationery Office, 1937/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, ISBN 1-847347-39-8, p. 17.
- ^ "No. 33696". The London Gazette. 6 March 1931. p. 1534.