William Holmes (Australian general)
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Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
William Holmes (12 September 1862 – 2 July 1917) was a senior
Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
officer during the First World War. He was mortally wounded by a German artillery shell while surveying the ground won at the Battle of Messines.


Early life and career

Holmes was born in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
on 12 September 1862, the son of Captain William Holmes, the chief clerk at New South Wales Military Forces Headquarters, and Jane Holmes. Holmes lived in the Victoria Barracks and was educated at Paddington Public School. In 1872 at the age of 10 Holmes joined the 1st Infantry Regiment of the New South Wales Military Forces as a
bugler The bugle is one of the simplest brass instruments, normally having no valves or other pitch-altering devices. All pitch control is done by varying the player's embouchure. History The bugle developed from early musical or communication i ...
and served in every enlisted rank. Holmes worked at the
Sydney Mint The Sydney Mint in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, is the oldest surviving public building in the Sydney central business district. Built between 1811 and 1816 as the southern wing of the Sydney Hospital, it was then known as the ''Rum H ...
and then joined the Department of Works as a clerk on 24 June 1878. On 24 August 1887, he married Susan Ellen Green, whose family also lived in the Victoria Barracks. They had two children, one son and one daughter. On 20 April 1888 he became chief clerk and paymaster of the Metropolitan Board of Water Supply and Sewerage. Under his leadership, the department underwent a major expansion and the
Cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble w ...
, Cordeaux and Avon dams were built. Holmes served for 18 months in a submarine mining company before returning to the regiment and being commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1886. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1890, captain in 1894 and major in 1900.


Boer War

In 1899, Holmes volunteered for service in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. The company left for South Africa in November 1899, and on arrival was incorporated in the Australian Regiment. Originally an infantry unit, it became mounted in February. He saw action at
Colesberg Colesberg is a town with 17,354 inhabitants in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, located on the main N1 road from Cape Town to Johannesburg. In a sheep-farming area spread over half-a-million hectares, greater Colesberg breeds many ...
,
Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...
and
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in June 1900, where he was wounded. Holmes was
mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...
, promoted to
brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...
lieutenant colonel, and awarded the
Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...
(DSO). He returned home in August 1900. Holmes commanded the 1st Australian Infantry from 1902 to 1911. He was promoted to colonel on 6 January 1912 and was appointed to command the 6th Infantry Brigade.


First World War

During the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Holmes served first as Commander of the
Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force The Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) was a small volunteer force of approximately 2,000 men, raised in Australia shortly after the outbreak of World War I to seize and destroy German wireless stations in German New Guin ...
(AN&MEF), and later as Commander of the 5th Brigade, which he took to Gallipoli and the Western Front.


German New Guinea

Shortly after war broke out, a special expeditionary force, the AN&MEF, was formed to occupy German possessions in
New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...
and the
Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...
. Holmes was appointed the commander. Under Holmes command the force sailed from Sydney on the auxiliary cruiser on 19 August 1914. The German governor surrendered to Holmes on 12 September 1914 and the British flag was raised over the town. Holmes was criticised in Australia for offering extremely lenient terms, but he was under orders to occupy, not annex,
German New Guinea German New Guinea (german: Deutsch-Neu-Guinea) consisted of the northeastern part of the island of New Guinea and several nearby island groups and was the first part of the German colonial empire. The mainland part of the territory, called , ...
. Holmes became administrator of New Guinea. He relinquished the post to Colonel Samuel Pethebridge in January 1915 and returned to Australia, where his appointment to the AN&MEF was terminated on 6 February 1915.


Gallipoli

On 16 March 1915, Holmes was appointed to the Australian Imperial Force as commander of the newly formed 5th Brigade with the rank of colonel. The brigade left Sydney in May and arrived in Egypt in June 1915, where it became part of the 2nd Division. The 5th Brigade began moving to
Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...
in early August and Holmes arrived on the 19th. The brigade was placed at the disposal of Major General
Alexander Godley General Sir Alexander John Godley, (4 February 1867 – 6 March 1957) was a senior British Army officer. He is best known for his role as commander of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force and II Anzac Corps during the First World War. Born in ...
of the
New Zealand and Australian Division The New Zealand and Australian Division was a composite army division raised for service in the First World War under the command of Major General Alexander Godley. Consisting of several mounted and standard infantry brigades from both New Zea ...
and elements participated in the fighting for Hill 60. The 5th Brigade took over the trenches facing the
Nek Filippo Neviani (born 6 January 1972), known by his stage name Nek, is an Italian singer-songwriter and musician. Nek is popular in Italy and throughout the Spanish-speaking world, and has performed and released most of his albums in both Italian ...
from the 3rd Light Horse Brigade on 28 August 1915. Holmes made a habit of regularly visiting every key part of his front lines. When Major General
James Legge James Legge (; 20 December 181529 November 1897) was a Scottish linguist, missionary, sinologist, and translator who was best known as an early translator of Classical Chinese texts into English. Legge served as a representative of the London ...
fell ill in November and was evacuated, Holmes took over acting command of the 2nd Division. He was still in temporary command of the division in December 1915, when they were amongst the last of the Anzac troops to be evacuated from Gallipoli.


Western Front

After the evacuation of
Anzac The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was a First World War army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. General William Birdwood comma ...
, Holmes returned to the 5th Brigade, which he took to the Western Front in April 1916. He led the brigade in the attacks on the
Pozières Pozières (; ) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The commune is situated on the D929 road, northeast of Amiens between Albert and Bapaume, on the Pozières ridge. Southwest of the village on ...
Heights in August and at Flers in October 1916. In January 1917, Holmes was given command of the 4th Division, replacing Major General
Vaughan Cox General Sir Herbert Vaughan Cox, (12 July 1860 – 8 October 1923) was a British officer in the Indian Army. Early life Cox was born in Watford, the son of the Rector of Upper Chelsea. He was educated at Charterhouse and the Royal Military Coll ...
. Holmes continued his habit of personally reconnoitring every part of his line. On 31 March 1917, he paid a daylight visit to an outpost near
Lagnicourt Lagnicourt-Marcel is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography A farming village situated southeast of Arras, at the junction of the D18, D14 and the D5 roads. Population Places of interest ...
, as usual wearing his red hat band, accompanied by his aide, Lieutenant Fergusson. Holmes was sniped at but not hit; Fergusson was hit and had to be left behind, to be evacuated after nightfall. Shortly afterwards the post was shelled, causing heavy casualties to the garrison, including Fergusson who was injured for a second time. Holmes commanded his division at Bullecourt in April, where he opposed the operation that ultimately caused his division very heavy losses, and at Messines in June. On 2 July 1917, Holmes took the
Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales acting as the legislature. ...
,
William Holman William Arthur Holman (4 August 1871 – 5 June 1934) was an Australian politician who served as Premier of New South Wales from 1913 to 1920. He came to office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch), Labor Party, ...
, to survey the Messines battlefield. The party left his car in order to avoid a dangerous corner, something Holmes usually would not do. As they set out on foot, a German shell, believed to be a seventy-seven, or a "pip-squeak" landed nearby and Holmes was hit through the chest and lung. His aide, Captain Maxwell, along with Frank Edwards the private secretary to Holman, took Holmes to the nearest aid post, where he died. He was buried a
Trois Arbres Cemetery
Steenwerck Steenwerck (; Dutch: ''Steenwerk'') is a commune, in French Flanders, in the Nord department in northern France. It is located about north of Lille and in 2013 had a population of 3519. People from Steenwerck are known as ''Steenwerckois''. I ...
, France. Holmes was the most senior Australian officer killed in action on the Western Front. A memorial service was held for him in October 1917 a
St Matthias' Anglican Church, Paddington
the church where he and Susan were married.


Memorial

William Holmes Street in the Potts Hill Business Park, Potts Hill New South Wales is named after Major General William Holmes. Potts Hill Business Park is on the edge of the Potts Hill reservoir, a major water storage operated by
Sydney Water Sydney Water, formally, Sydney Water Corporation, is a New South Wales Government owned statutory corporation that provides potable drinking water, wastewater and some stormwater services to Greater Metropolitan Sydney, the Illawarra and the B ...
.
General Holmes Drive General Holmes Drive is a major divided road located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The road forms part of the M1, the A1, the Sydney Orbital Network, and the Australian Highway 1 network. Initially built in 1919 as a two-lane road ...
that runs between Botany Bay and Sydney Airport is named after him. Holmes Avenue, Clontarf, New South Wales, is also named after him.


See also

*
List of Australian diarists of World War I This is a list of Australian diarists of World War I including Australian servicemen and women, other Australians associated with the armed forces, and those who remained in Australia. Personal diaries Many soldiers chose to keep a diary to d ...
*
List of Australian generals The following is an incomplete list of Australian Army generals (i.e. a list of people who are or have been general officers in the Australian Army). For other senior ranking officers, see list of Australian Army brigadiers. Ranks The senior Aus ...


References


External links

*Ross Mallett
William Holmes
General Officers of the First AIF, adfa.edu.au * *B. H. Travers

Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 9, Melbourne University Press, 1983, pp 349–351. {{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, William 1862 births 1917 deaths Military personnel from New South Wales Australian generals Australian military personnel of the Second Boer War Australian military personnel killed in World War I People from Sydney Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Australian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Administrators of the Territory of New Guinea