William Nicholls (Royal Marines officer)

General Sir William Charles Nicholls, KCB (25 February 1854 – 1 December 1935) was a Royal Marines officer who served as Adjutant-General Royal Marines.

Sir William Nicholls
Birth nameWilliam Charles Nicholls
Born(1854-02-25)25 February 1854
Greenwich, London
Died1 December 1935(1935-12-01) (aged 81)[1]
East Dean, Wiltshire, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchRoyal Marines
Years of service1872–1916
RankGeneral
CommandsAdjutant-General Royal Marines
Battles / warsAnglo-Zulu War
First World War
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath

Military career

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Educated at Cheltenham College, Nicholls was commissioned into the Royal Marine Artillery on 15 July 1872.[2] He saw action in South Africa in 1879 during the Anglo-Zulu War.[3] He became Deputy Adjutant-General at Headquarters, Royal Marine Forces in June 1911.[4] At that time the Deputy Adjutant-General was the professional head of the Royal Marines.[5] His post was redesignated Adjutant-General Royal Marines in early 1914[6][7] shortly before the Gallipoli landings, in which the Royal Marine Forces took a prominent role, in June 1915 during the First World War.[8] He retired in June 1916.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Obituary". The Times. 3 December 1935. p. 21.
  2. ^ "No. 24033". The London Gazette. 11 November 1873. p. 4902.
  3. ^ "Officers Of The Royal Marines Battalion 1879". 1879 Zulu War. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  4. ^ "No. 28508". The London Gazette. 27 June 1911. p. 4771.
  5. ^ "Navy List". December 1913. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  6. ^ "British Admiralty". Naval History. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  7. ^ "Punch, or the London Charivari". 11 February 1914. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  8. ^ Field, Cyril (2014). The British Navy Book. Create Space. ISBN 9781502428912.
  9. ^ "Senior Royal Navy appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 20 May 2016.
Military offices
Preceded by Deputy Adjutant-General Royal Marines
1911–1914
Post renamed
New title Adjutant-General Royal Marines
1914–1916
Succeeded by