Richard Butler (British Army officer)
| Sir Richard Butler | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 August 1870 |
| Died |
22 April 1935 (aged 64) Shawbury,[1] Shropshire |
| Buried at | Hodnet, Shropshire |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch |
 British Army |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands held |
2nd Bn Lancashire Fusiliers 3rd Infantry Brigade III Corps 2nd Division Western Command |
| Battles/wars |
Second Boer War First World War |
| Awards |
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George |
Lieutenant General Sir Richard Harte Keatinge Butler KCB KCMG (28 August 1870 – 22 April 1935) was a British Army general during the First World War.
Military career
Educated at Harrow and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst,[2] Butler was commissioned into the Dorset Regiment in 1890.[3] He was promoted to Lieutenant on 6 April 1892, and to Captain on 11 October 1899. He served in the Second Boer War in South Africa, and took part in the Relief of Ladysmith, including the Battles of Spion Kop (January 1900), Vaal Krantz and Tugela Heights (February 1900); following which he served in the Transvaal (June 1900), and in Orange River Colony (June 1900). For his war services he was mentioned in despatches, received the Queen's South Africa Medal, and was appointed Brevet Major on 29 November 1900. He was again seconded for service in South Africa in April 1902,[4] when he was appointed in command of the 10th Regiment Mounted Infantry.
Following his return from South Africa, he became a Brigade Major at Aldershot in 1906.[3] He also served in the Great War, initially as Commanding Officer of 2nd Battalion the Lancashire Fusiliers[2] and then as Commander of the 3rd Infantry Brigade[2] before becoming a Major-General on the General Staff of 1st Army from 1915.[3] He was Deputy Chief of the General Staff on the Western Front from 1916 and then became General Officer Commanding III Corps in February 1918.[5]
After the War he was General Officer Commanding 2nd Division from 1919 to 1923; he became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief for Western Command in 1924 and retired in 1929.[3]
He ultimately lived at Roden Lodge, Shawbury,[6] in Shropshire, where he died on 22 April 1935. He was buried in the Parish Churchyard at Hodnet, Shropshire.
Family
In 1894 he married Helen Frances Battiscombe and had a son and a daughter.[2]
References
- ↑ "A Famous General's Death - Sir R.H.K.Butler, of Shawbury". Shrewsbury Chronicle. 26 April 1935. p. 7. Both the Dictionary of National Biography and Oxford Dictionary of National Biography are erroneous in stating he died in Shrewsbury.
- 1 2 3 4 Richard Butler at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- 1 2 3 4 Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 27428. p. 2793. 25 April 1902.
- ↑ Amiens 1918: The Black Day of the German Army By Alistair McCluskey and Peter Dennis, Page 13 Osprey, 2008, ISBN 978-1-84603-303-2
- ↑ "Who Was Who" 1929-1940 page 202.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by William Pulteney |
GOC III Corps February 1918–September 1918 |
Succeeded by Post Disbanded |
| Preceded by Cecil Pereira |
General Officer Commanding the 2nd Division 1919–1923 |
Succeeded by Peter Strickland |
| Preceded by Sir John Du Cane |
GOC-in-C Western Command 1924–1928 |
Succeeded by Sir Cecil Romer |