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Colonel George Francis Robert Henderson, CB (2 June 1854''Jersey, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813–1915'' – 5 March 1903) was a British soldier and military author.


Early life

Henderson was born in
Saint Helier St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; french: Saint-Hélier) is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. St Helier has a population of 35,822 – over one-third of the total population of Jersey – ...
,
Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the ...
in 1854 to Rev. William George Henderson, later
Dean of Carlisle The Dean of Carlisle is based in Carlisle, UK and is the head of the Chapter of Carlisle Cathedral. There have been 39 previous incumbents and the post is currently vacant. List of deans Early modern *1542–1547 Lancelot Salkeld (last prior ...
, and Jane Melville Dalyell, Educated at
Leeds Grammar School Leeds Grammar School was an independent school founded 1552 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Originally a male-only school, in August 2005 it merged with Leeds Girls' High School to form The Grammar School at Leeds. The two schools physicall ...
, of which his father was headmaster, he was early attracted to the study of history, and obtained a scholarship at
St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pr ...
. But he soon left the university for Sandhurst, from where he was commissioned into the
84th Foot The 84th (York and Lancaster) Regiment of Foot was a regiment in the British Army, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 65th (2nd Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of Foot to form the York and Lancaster Regiment, with ...
in 1878.


Military service

After a few months service in India, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and returned to England, and in 1882 he went on active service to Egypt, fighting in the battles of
Kassassin Kassassin ( ar, القصاصين) is a village of Lower Egypt by rail west of Ismailia, a major city on the Suez Canal. Battle of Kassassin Lock At the Sweet Water Canal, on August 28, 1882 the British force was attacked by the Egyptians, ...
and Tel el-Kebir. During this time, he received numerous citations for bravery in combat, being promoted to captain in 1886. In 1885 he was seconded to the
Ordnance Store Department The Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) was a corps of the British Army. At its renaming as a Royal Corps in 1918 it was both a supply and repair corps. In the supply area it had responsibility for weapons, armoured vehicles and other military equi ...
. In 1889 appeared (anonymously) his first work, ''The Campaign of Fredericksburg''. In the same year he became Instructor in Tactics, Military Law and Administration at Sandhurst. From this post he proceeded as Professor of Military Art and History to the Staff College (1892–1899), and there exercised a profound influence on the younger generation of officers. His study on the
Battle of Spicheren The Battle of Spicheren, also known as the ''Battle of Forbach'', was a battle during the Franco-Prussian War. The German victory compelled the French to withdraw to the defenses of Metz. The Battle of Spicheren, on 6 August, was the second o ...
had been begun some years before. Then in 1898 appeared, as the result of eight years work, his masterpiece:
Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War ''Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War'' is a book combining a biography and military history of Confederate Lt. General Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson's actions and results during the American Civil War. Written by British soldie ...
.Henderson, ''Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War'', p. iv


Later life and death

In the
Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...
, Henderson served with distinction on the staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Lord Roberts, as Director of Intelligence, and was promoted to
lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...
on 23 December 1899. He received the local rank of
colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...
whilst in South Africa only weeks later, on 10 January 1900. In a despatch dated 31 March 1900, Lord Roberts wrote that Henderson gave him "valuable and reliable information regarding the physical features of the country and the disposition of the enemy". But overwork and
malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. ...
broke his health, and he had to return home in January 1902, being eventually selected to write the official history of the war. Failing health obliged him to go to Egypt, where he died at
Assuan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...
on 5 March 1903. He had completed the portion of the history of the South African War dealing with the events up to the commencement of hostilities, amounting to about a volume, but the War Office decided to suppress this, and the work was restarted by Sir F. Maurice.


Legacy

Various lectures and papers by Henderson were collected and published in 1905 by Captain Malcolm, D.S.O., under the title ''The Science of War''; to this collection a memoir was contributed by Lord Roberts.


References


Military profile
* Henderson, G. F. R., ''Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War'', Barnes & Noble, Inc., 2006,
.


Notes


External links

* * * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, George Francis Robert 1854 births 1903 deaths 84th Regiment of Foot officers British Army personnel of the Anglo-Egyptian War British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British military writers Companions of the Order of the Bath Historians of the American Civil War Jersey academics Jersey military personnel People educated at Leeds Grammar School Royal Army Ordnance Corps officers Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst York and Lancaster Regiment officers Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Academics of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst