William Bartholomew (British Army officer)

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Sir William Bartholomew
Nickname(s)"Barty"
Born(1877-03-16)16 March 1877
Wiltshire, England[1]
Died31 December 1962(1962-12-31) (aged 85)
Wiltshire, England[1]
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
Years of service1897–1940
RankGeneral
UnitRoyal Artillery
Commands heldNorthern Command (1937–40)
Chief of the General Staff, India (1934–37)
Imperial Defence College (1929–31)
6th Infantry Brigade (1923–27)
Battles/warsFirst World War
Second World War
AwardsKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
Distinguished Service Order
Mentioned in Despatches

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.

Military career[]

Educated at Newton College, South Devon and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Bartholomew was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1897.[2] He was promoted to lieutenant on 23 March 1900,[3] and to captain on 22 March 1902.[4] 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.[2][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.[2] He was appointed Commandant of the Imperial Defence College in 1929 and Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at the War Office in 1931.[2] 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.[2][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.[2][1]

After the Army[]

In retirement, Bartholomew served as North Eastern Regional Commissioner for Civil Defence between 1940 and 1945.[2] He lived at Claxton Hall near York.[5] He donated over £20,000 in 1921 to the Public Dispensary and Hospital, Leeds; later becoming world-renowned St James' Teaching Hospital.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Smart, p. 23
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
  3. ^ "No. 27176". The London Gazette. 23 March 1900. p. 1968.
  4. ^ "No. 27431". The London Gazette. 6 May 1902. p. 3013.
  5. ^ Claxton Hall

Bibliography[]

  • Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 1844150496.

External links[]

Military offices
Preceded by Commandant of the Imperial Defence College
1929–1931 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Director of Military Operations and Intelligence
1931–1934 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief of the General Staff (India)
1934–1937 		Succeeded by
Preceded by GOC-in-C Northern Command
1937–1940 		Succeeded by
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