Kenneth Stuart

Kenneth Stuart
Brigadier Kenneth Stuart in the first Valentine tank built in Canada, 27 May 1941.
Nickname(s)	"Ken"
Born	September 9, 1891 Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
Died	November 3, 1945(1945-11-03) (aged 54) Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Allegiance	Canada
Service/branch	Canadian Army
Years of service	1911–1945
Rank	Lieutenant General
Unit	Royal Canadian Engineers
Commands held	7th Battalion, Royal Canadian Engineers Royal Military College of Canada Chief of the General Staff
Awards	Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order Military Cross

Lieutenant-General Kenneth Stuart CB DSO MC (September 9, 1891 – November 3, 1945) was a senior Canadian Army officer who saw active service during both the First World War and, later, the Second World War. During the latter conflict his most notable role was as Chief of the General Staff, the head of the Canadian Army, from 24 December 1941 until 27 December 1943.

Early life and military career[]

Kenneth Stuart was born on September 9, 1891 in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, the son of an Anglican clergyman, who was then the rector of St James Church and the author of The Church of England in Canada, 1759−1793.^[1] Despite the fact that there was little money, Stuart went to Bishop's College School in Lennoxville, Quebec in 1908, the same school his father had attended and where Andrew McNaughton, later destined to play a huge role in the young Stuart's military career, was an upper classman. 1908 also saw him apply for the Royal Military College of Canada, which was accepted, despite being twenty-eighth of the thirty-eight applicants. While he was there, however, he changed significantly, growing an inch-and-a-half until he was just under six foot tall, "his chest measurement increased by four inches", and he made close friendships that would be maintained throughout his life, such as , later a major-general, and Colin W. G. Gibson, later a Liberal cabinet minister, and he did better at his studies as, by the time he graduated, he stood fifteen out of a class of thirty-three.^[2][3][1] He joined the Royal Canadian Engineers and received further training at the School of Military Engineering in Chatham, England. He returned to Canada in 1913 and was posted to the 1st Fortress Company in Halifax.^[2]

At the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, he commanded a battery of searchlights in Halifax, before going overseas in late 1915, initially with the 1st Army Troops Company, Canadian Engineers, which was one of the first mechanized engineer units then in France. He subsequently joined the 7th Field Company, part of the 3rd Canadian Division, and won the Military Cross in 1917, although he was slightly wounded but received a promotion to major.^[2] The following year, he was given command of the 7th Battalion, Canadian Engineers. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1918 for bridging a river under fire on 8 August 1918. The armistice with Germany brought the war to an end soon afterwards. Despite having had a relatively good war, his brother had been killed in action and his body was never found, despite Stuart searching for four days.^[2]

Between the wars[]

During the interwar period, Stuart went to England where he attended the Staff College, Camberley from 1926 to 1927.^[2][4] In 1929 he became the editor of Canadian Defence Quarterly, to which he contributed many articles. In 1934 he was appointed GSO1 at the Royal Military College of Canada, where he pushed for reforms to the curriculum and to the recruitment system. In 1938 he was appointed Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at National Defence Headquarters and at some point he attended the Imperial Defence College in England.^[5]

Second World War[]

Lieutenant General Kenneth Stuart speaks to a member of the Canadian Women's Army Corps, sometime in 1943.

At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, Stuart was appointed Commandant of the Royal Military College of Canada.^[6] He was made Deputy Chief General Staff in 1940, Vice Chief General Staff in 1941 and then Chief of the General Staff later that year.^[7] In December 1943 he was appointed acting General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the First Canadian Army in England and then, after Harry Crerar returned from Italy to assume command, in March 1944 Stuart was made Chief of Staff at Canadian Military Headquarters in England.^[7]

The Rt. Hon. William Lyon Mackenzie King, Prime Minister of Canada, is greeted by General Harry Crerar, King has arrived in England for the forthcoming Imperial conference, 28 April 1944. Lieutenant General Kenneth Stuart looks on.

During the Conscription Crisis of 1944, Stuart took a pro-conscription stance, for which he was dismissed by General Andrew McNaughton, the Minister of National Defence. He died the following year.

Stuart opposed the removal of Japanese-Canadians from the Pacific coast, telling Ottawa that "I cannot see that the Japanese Canadians constitute the slightest menace to national security."

Family[]

Stuart was married to Marguerite Dorothy Stuart, née Bauld, of Halifax; he had met her in England in 1916. They had a son and a daughter. His son Victor (1918–2007) also attended the Royal Military College of Canada, and reached the rank of Group Captain in the Royal Canadian Air Force.

References[]

Bibliography[]

• Granatstein, Jack (2005). The Generals. University of Calgary Press. ISBN 978-1-55238-176-2.
• Granatstein, Jack (1993). The Generals. Stoddart Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7737-2730-4.

External links[]

• Generals of World War II