Lieutenant General Sir James Ronald Edmondston Charles, KCB, CMG, DSO (26 June 1875 – 24 December 1955) was a senior British Army officer in the Royal Engineers.[1]
Sir Ronald Charles | |
|---|---|
 Sir Ronald Charles by Bassano Ltd, 1930 | |
| Born | 26 June 1875[1] Calcutta, British India |
| Died | 24 December 1955 (aged 80) Somerset, England |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1894–1934 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Unit | Royal Engineers |
| Commands | Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Waziristan Force 25th Division |
| Battles / wars | Second Boer War First World War |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches |
Family
editCharles was born in Calcutta, British India, the son of Thomas Edmondston Charles, later honorary physician to King Edward VII,[2][3] and Ada Henrietta Charles.[4] He had two older sisters, Bessie and Ethel, who both studied architecture and became the first women members of the Royal Institute of British Architects.[5]
Military career
editCharles was educated at Winchester College and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst,[1] and was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1894.[6] He served in the Second Boer War (1899–1901), was mentioned in despatches (31 March 1900),[7] and received the Distinguished Service Order in November 1900.[8] He was part of the Bazar Valley and Mohmand Field Forces in 1908.[6]
Charles spent most of the First World War in the General Staff until being promoted to command a re-constituted 25th Division in August 1918.[9] He was appointed commander of the Waziristan Force in India in 1923 and then became commandant of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich in 1924.[6] He was Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at the War Office from 1926 and Master-General of the Ordnance from 1931.[10] He retired in 1934.[6]
Charles' nickname among the troops was 'Don Carlos', deriving from his commanding personality and his height of 6’ 4".[9] He was also commandant of the Royal Engineers from 1931 to 1945 and Chief Royal Engineer from 1940 to 1946.[6]
Civilian roles
editFrom 1934 to 1953, Charles was a director of British Aluminium Company,[11] appointed for his high level connections and knowledge of defence procurement procedures gained at the War Office and as Master General of the Ordnance.[12]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Obituary: Lt.-Gen. Sir Ronald Charles". The Times. 28 December 1955. p. 11.
- ^ Addison, Henry Robert; Oakes, Charles Henry; Lawson, William John; Sladen, Douglas Brooke Wheelton (1906). Who's who. A. & C. Black. p. 317. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- ^ "Deaths in the Services". The Lancet. J. Onwhyn: 702. 10 March 1906. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(01)80307-x.
- ^ Walker, Lynne (2004). "Charles, Ethel Mary (1871–1962), architect". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/63129. Retrieved 23 August 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ "Ethel Charles nomination papers". Architecture.com. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
- ^ "No. 27282". The London Gazette. 8 February 1901. pp. 844–846.
- ^ "No. 27359". The London Gazette. 27 September 1901. p. 6309.
- ^ a b Centre for First World War Studies
- ^ "No. 33785". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1931. p. 3.
- ^ "Appendix: Background of key BACo Top Management Team" (PDF). Glasgow University. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
- ^ Perchard, Andrew (2010) Land and Empire: Politics and the British Aluminium Company. University of Strathclyde. Retrieved: 17 September 2021.
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