William Riddell Birdwood GCB GCSI (1865 - 1951)

Born 13 Sep 1865 in Kirkee, Bombay Presidency, British India

Ancestors

Husband of Jeanette Hope Gonville (Bromhead) Birdwood — married 5 Apr 1894 in Lahore, Bengal, India

Descendants

Died 17 May 1951 at age 85 in Hampton Court Palace, London, England

Biography

William Birdwood GCB GCSI is Notable.

William Birdwood GCB GCSI is an Anzac who served in World War One.

Field Marshal William Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood, GCB GCSI GCMG GCVO CIE DSO KStJ was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener. He saw action again in the First World War as Commander of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915, leading the landings on the peninsula and then the evacuation later in the year, before becoming commander-in-chief of the Fifth Army on the Western Front during the closing stages of the war. He went on to be general officer commanding the Northern Army in India and commander-in-Chief, India. He attained the rank of Field Marshal. Birdwood's success as a commander lay in the field of leadership rather than in tactics or organisation; being careful to choose able subordinates.

William Riddell Birdwood was born on 13 September 1865 at Kirkee, Bombay Presidency, British India. His father, Herbert Birdwood, was a member of the Bombay Legislative Council, and would go on to become a Bombay high court judge. His mother, Edith Impey, was the eldest daughter of Surgeon-Major Elijah George Halhed Impey of the Bombay Horse Artillery and postmaster-general of the Bombay Presidency. William was educated at Clifton College. After securing a militia commission in the 4th Battalion Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1883, Birdwood trained at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, from which he was commissioned early, owing to the Russian war scare of 1885.^[1]

In 1894 he married Jeannette Bromhead, daughter of the fourth Baron Bromhead of Lincoln.^[2] They had a son and two daughters:^[1]

• Constance 'Nancy' Birdwood (1895-1975), married surname Craig
• Christopher Birdwood (1899-1962), succeeded as 2nd Baron Birdwood
• Judith Birdwood (1910-88), married surname Colville-Wallis

Lord Birdwood passed away on 17th May 1951 at Hampton Court Palace, Middlesex South, where he lived in grace-and-favour apartments. He was buried at Twickenham Cemetery with full military honours.^[3] The Australian Government continues to maintain his grave.^[1]

Sir William Birdwood KCB, 1918

an honorary Anzac hero

Birdwood served in numerous North-West Frontier campaigns and saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Lord Kitchener.^[1]

In November 1914, Birdwood was instructed by Lord Kitchener to form an army corps from the Australian and New Zealand troops that were training in Egypt. He was promoted to temporary Lieutenant General on 12th December 1914 and given command of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. Birdwood's ANZAC Corps became part of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force with planning for an assault on the Gallipoli Peninsula. In effect, Birdwood took command of the Australian Imperial Force, i.e., all Australian Forces.^[1]

Evacuated to Egypt in December, a re-structure was required with addiitonal Australian divisions being formed. The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps was replaced by two corps, I ANZAC Corps and II ANZAC Corps, with Birdwood commanding II ANZAC Corps. When I ANZAC Corps became the first to depart for France, as senior corps commander, Birdwood took over command. Birdwood was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath and promoted to General in 1917 with command of a formation then known as the Australian Corps.^[1] Throughout the war he was Mentioned in Despatches frequently.

Sir William Birdwood KCB KCMG DSO, 1919

Baron Birdwood of Anzac and of Totnes

Birdwood was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George on 1st January 1919. He was made Baronet of Anzac and of Totnes, in the County of Devon, on 29th December 1919;^[4] before touring Australia to great acclaim.^[1]

He went on to be general officer commanding the Northern Army in India in 1920 and Commander-in-Chief, India, in 1925. He was promoted to Field Marshal (simultaneously in both the United Kingdom^[5] and Australia^[6]) on 20th March 1925.

In 1930, Birdwood made a strong bid, with support from both the British government and King George V, to the office of Governor-General of Australia (the Australian government, however, successfully nominated Sir Isaac Isaacs, Australia's first home-grown governor general).^[7] Birdwood was appointed Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge on 20th April 1931^[8] and Captain of Deal Castle in 1934.^[9]

In January 1936 he attended the funeral of King George V, and in May 1937 he was present for the coronation of King George VI.^[1]

He was raised to the peerage in recognition of his wartime service as Baron Birdwood of Anzac and of Totnes in the County of Devon, on 25th January 1938.^[10]

Lord Birdwood's autobiography Khaki and Gown (1941) was followed by In My Time: Recollections and Anecdotes (1946).^[1]

Honours and awards

British Orders:^[1]

• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB), 1923; (KCB, 1917); (CB, 1911)
• Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (GCSI), 1930; (KCSI, 1915); (CSI, 1910)
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG), 1919; (KCMG, 1915)
• Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO), 1937
• Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE), 1908
• Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), 1908
• Knight of Grace of the Venerable Order of St John (KStJ), 1927

Foreign Orders:^[1]

• Croix de Guerre (France), 1916 and (with Palm), 1919
• Grand Officer of the Order of the Crown (Belgium), 1916
• Croix de Guerre (Belgium), 1918
• Distinguished Service Medal (United States), 1919
• Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and Sword (Portugal), 1919
• Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (Japan), 1921

Campaign and Commemorative medals:

• India Medal
• Queen's South Africa Medal
• India General Service Medal
• 1914-15 Star
• British War Medal 1914-1920
• Victory Medal
• King George V Silver Jubilee Medal
• King George VI Coronation Medal

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10} Wikipedia profile: William Birdwood; accessed 15 Jun 2018
2. ↑ record of marriage yet to be located
3. ↑ UK FreeBMD Death Index Jun qtr 1951, vol 5f, page 20
4. ↑ London Gazette 30 December 1919 Issue: 31708 Page: 15988; accessed 8 Aug 2019
5. ↑ London Gazette 20 March 1925 Issue:33031Page:1954; accessed 8 Aug 2019
6. ↑ Commonwealth of Australia Gazette (National: 1901-1973) Thu 14 Jan 1926 [Issue No.2 Page 31 Australian Military Forces; accessed 8 Aug 2019]
7. ↑ Hill, A J. Birdwood, William Riddell (Baron Birdwood) (1865–1951). Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1979; accessed online 15 Jun 2018
8. ↑ London Gazette 8 March 1935 Issue: 34140 Page: 1631; accessed 8 Aug 2019
9. ↑ Captains of Deal Castle; accessed 8 Aug 2019
10. ↑ London Gazette 28 January 1938 Issue: 34477 Page: 578; accessed 8 Aug 2019

See also

• National Portrait Gallery photographs: 1st Baron Birdwood, 21 thumbnails.
• Hill, A J. Birdwood, William Riddell (Baron Birdwood) (1865–1951). Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1979; accessed online 15 Jun 2018.
• National Library of Australia: Crusading at Anzac AD1915, pictured and described by Ellis Silas; Forewords by Sir Ian Hamilton and Sir William Birdwood .
• Wikipedia profile: William Birdwood; accessed 15 Jun 2018.