General Sir William Henry Bartholomew, GCB, CMG, DSO (16 March 1877 – 31 December 1962) was a senior British Army officer during the 1930s and a Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery.
Sir William Bartholomew | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | "Barty" |
| Born | 16 March 1877 Wiltshire, England[1] |
| Died | 31 December 1962 (aged 85) Wiltshire, England[1] |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1897–1940 |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | Royal Artillery |
| Commands | Northern Command (1937–40) Chief of the General Staff, India (1934–37) Imperial Defence College (1929–31) 6th Infantry Brigade (1923–27) |
| Battles / wars | First World War Second World War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches |
Military career
editEducated at Newton College, South Devon and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Bartholomew was commissioned into the Royal Artillery on 23 March 1897.[2][3] He was promoted to lieutenant on 23 March 1900,[4] and to captain on 22 March 1902.[5] He attended the Staff College, Quetta from 1909 to 1910.[1]
Bartholomew served in the First World War initially as a General Staff Officer in 4th Division, and then as a brigadier general on the General Staff of XX Corps from 1917 and on the General Staff of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force from 1918.[3][1]
After the war Bartholomew commanded the 6th Infantry Brigade from 1923 moving on to be Director of Recruiting and Organisation at the War Office in 1927.[3] He was appointed Commandant of the Imperial Defence College in 1929 and Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at the War Office in 1931.[3] He became Chief of the General Staff in India in 1934 and then General Officer Commanding-in-Chief for Northern Command in 1937; he retired in 1940 during the Second World War.[3][1]
Bartholomew was made an Aide de Camp General to the King from 1938 to 1940 and Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery from 1934 to 1937.[3][1]
After the Army
editIn retirement, Bartholomew served as North Eastern Regional Commissioner for Civil Defence between 1940 and 1945.[3] He lived at Claxton Hall near York.[6] He donated over £20,000 in 1921 to the Public Dispensary and Hospital, Leeds; later becoming world-renowned St James' Teaching Hospital.
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Smart 2005, p. 23.
- ^ "No. 26835". The London Gazette. 23 March 1897. p. 1670.
- ^ a b c d e f g Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
- ^ "No. 27176". The London Gazette. 23 March 1900. p. 1968.
- ^ "No. 27431". The London Gazette. 6 May 1902. p. 3013.
- ^ Claxton Hall
Bibliography
edit- Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.