William Forbes Gatacre

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Sir
William Forbes Gatacre
KCB DSO
William Gatacre.jpg
Born (1843-12-03)December 3, 1843
Herbertshire Castle, Stirlingshire, Scotland
Died January 18, 1906(1906-01-18) (aged 62)
Gambella, Abyssinia
Allegiance  United Kingdom
Service/branch Flag of the British Army.svg British Army
Years of service 1862–1904
Rank Lieutenant general
Unit 77th Foot
Battles/wars Chitral Expedition
Omdurman
Second Boer War
Battle of Stormberg
Awards Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Distinguished Service Order
Order of the Medjidie
Kaisar-i-Hind Medal
Signature [[File:
William Forbes Gatacre's signature
|100px|alt=]]

Lieutenant general Sir William Forbes Gatacre KCB DSO (1843 – 1906) was a British soldier who served between 1862 to 1904 in India and Africa. He commanded a division of two brigades at the Omdurman, and commanded the 3rd Division during the first months of the Second Boer War during which time he suffered a humiliating defeat at the Battle of Stormberg.

Contents

Early life [edit]

William Forbes Gatacre was born at Herbertshire Castle, near Stirling on 3 December 1843, he was the third son of Edward Lloyd Gatacre and Jessie Forbes, who's father William Forbes owned Herbertshire Castle.[1][2] He was educated at Royal Military College Sandhurst and entered the army as an Ensign of the 77th Foot in 1862, posted in India.[1] He purchased the rank of Lieutenant on 23 December 1864.[3]

Military career [edit]

He reached the rank of Captain by purchase on 7 December 1870,[4] before the purchase of commissions was abolished in the early 1870s[5] and passed into Staff college in 1873. Between 1875 to 1879 he returned to Sandhurst but this time as an instructor of surveying. He then returned to India with his regiment in 1880, being promoted to Major on 23rd March 1881.[6]

On 29 April 1882 he was promoted to Lieutenant colonel[7] and appointed to command a battalion on 28 June 1884[8] until he was made Deputy Quartermaster General in December 1885[1][9] He was mentioned in Sir George White's despatches of 10 March 1887 as part of the Upper Burma Field Force.[10]

He gained the substantive rank of Colonel and became Adjutant general of the Bombay Army with local rank of Major general on 25 November 1890.[11] While serving as a Major general in India in the early 1890s he was bitten by a jackal whilst hunting with the Bombay Jackal Club and, temporarily deranged, had his bungalow windows barred against jackals.[5]

He was put in command of a second class district in India in January 1884.[12] Mentioned in despatches by Lieutenant general Sir Robert C. Low, commander of the Chitral Relief Force on 1 May 1895.[13]

He returned home to command a brigade at Aldershot Command in August 1897.[14]

He commanded a division of two British brigades at Omdurman, and in the Second Boer War he was placed at the head of a the 3rd division, with the rank of Lieutenant general.[15] Gatacre was the commanding general of the Imperial forces at the Battle of Stormberg, during "Black Week", in which 135 men were killed and 696 captured in an ambush. His reputation, high after Omdurman, sank after Stormberg.[5]

He retired in 1904.

Though he worked them hard, Gatacre's men loved him and called him "General Backacher." Lady Beatrix Gatacre wrote his biography in General Gatacre: The story of the life and services of Sir William Forbes Gatacre, K.C.B., D.S.O. 1843-1906 (London, 1910).

Awards [edit]

References [edit]

Notes [edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Sir William Forbes Gatacre". Ladysmith Historical Society. Retrieved 21 March 2013. 
  2. ^ "Person page 31861". thepeerage.com. Retrieved 21 March 2013. 
  3. ^ The London Gazette: no. 22923. p. 6700. 23 December 1864. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  4. ^ The London Gazette: no. 23685. p. 5660. 6 December 1870. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  5. ^ a b c Reid 2006, p51
  6. ^ The London Gazette: no. 24961. p. 1793. 12 April 1881. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  7. ^ The London Gazette: no. 25142. p. 4013. 29 August 1882. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  8. ^ The London Gazette: no. 25384. p. 3534. 5 August 1884. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  9. ^ The London Gazette: no. 25559. p. 746. 16 February 1886. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  10. ^ The London Gazette: no. 25735. p. 4759. 2 September 1887. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  11. ^ The London Gazette: no. 26156. p. 2311. 28 April 1891. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  12. ^ The London Gazette: no. 26509. p. 2615. 4 May 1884. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  13. ^ The London Gazette: no. 26680. p. 6172. 2 September 1887. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  14. ^ The London Gazette: no. 26884. p. 4674. 20 August 1897. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  15. ^ The London Gazette: no. 27126. p. 6180. 13 October 1899. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  16. ^ The London Gazette: no. 25923. p. 2098. 12 April 1889. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  17. ^ The London Gazette: no. 27023. p. 6688. 15 November 1898. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  18. ^ The London Gazette: no. 27079. p. 3030. 12 May 1899. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  19. ^ The London Gazette: no. 27195. p. 3329. 23 May 1900. Retrieved 22 March 2013.

Sources [edit]

  • Churchill, Winston S (1900). London to Ladysmith via Pretoria. London: Longmans Green. 
  • Reid, Walter (2006). Architect of Victory: Douglas Haig. Edinburgh: Birlinn Ltd. ISBN 1-84158-517-3. 

External Links [edit]

Authority control
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