General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Sir Andrew Skeen, (20 January 1873 – 18 February 1935) served in the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

, rising to the position of Chief of the General Staff in India.

Military career

Skeen was commissioned into the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers, Royal Highland Fusiliers ...

as a second lieutenant on 5 December 1891, and promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 2 October 1893. He served on the North-West Frontier of

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

from 1897 to 1898 taking part in operations of the

Malakand Field Force The siege of Malakand was the 26 July – 2 August 1897 siege of the British garrison in the Malakand region of colonial British India's North West Frontier Province.Nevill p. 232 The British faced a force of Pashtun tribesmen whose tribal la ...

.Andrew Skeen
Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives He was deployed to China in 1900, and promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

on 10 July 1901 while serving in the

24th Punjabis The 24th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1857, as the 11th Regiment of Punjab Infantry. It was designated as the 24th Punjabis in 1861 and became 4th Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, i ...

. From December 1902 he was in

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

where he took part in operations in

Somaliland Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...

until 1904. He was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel in January 1914. Skeen served in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, receiving promotion in June 1915 to brevet colonel and to the temporary rank of brigadier general and succeeding Brigadier General Harold Walker as brigadier general, general staff to Lieutenant General

Sir William Birdwood Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal William Riddell Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood (13 September 1865 – 17 May 1951), was a British Army officer. He saw active service in the Second Boer War on the staff of Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl ...

general officer commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

(GOC) the

Australian and New Zealand Army Corps The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was originally a First World War army corps of the British Empire under the command of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the ...

, taking part in the Gallipoli campaign in 1915. He was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) 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 of t ...

with regard to reinforcing Anzac Cove, in full view and reach of the enemy, prior to the

Battle of Sari Bair The Battle of Sari Bair (), also known as the August Offensive (), represented the final attempt made by the British in August 1915 to seize control of the Gallipoli peninsula from the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. At the time of ...

. For his service at Gallipoli, Skeen was appointed a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

and awarded the French

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

. He went on to be Director of Military Operations at India Army HQ in 1916 and then Deputy Chief of General Staff,

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

in 1917. He then became commander of the 3rd (

Abbottabad Abbottabad is a city in the Hazara Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan. It is the 40th largest city in the country and 6th largest in the province by population, and serves as the headquarter of its namesake tehsil and district ...

) Indian Infantry Brigade and then commander of the Kohat Kurram Force, in which capacity he took part in the

Third Anglo-Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War was a short war which began on 3 May and ended on 8 August 1919. The new Amir of the Emirate of Afghanistan Amanullah Khan declared a Jihad against the British in the hope to proclaim full independence, as well as ...

in 1919. Skeen served in

Waziristan Waziristan (Persian language, Persian, Pashto, Ormuri, , ) is a mountainous region of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Waziristan region administratively splits among three districts: North Waziristan, Lower South Waziristan Dis ...

on the North-West Frontier of India from 1919 to 1920 as Commander, Tochi and

Derajat Derajat (Urdu: , the plural of the word 'dera' ) is a historical and cultural region in central Pakistan, bounded by the Indus River to the east and the Sulaiman Mountains to the west. It is located in the area where the provinces of Punjab, Paki ...

Columns. He was then appointed Commander,

Kohat Kohat (; ) is a city that serves as the capital of the Kohat District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is regarded as a centre of the Bangash tribe of Pashtuns, who have lived in the region since the late 15th century. With a population o ...

District, India in 1921, Commander,

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

District, India in 1922 and, promoted in January 1923 to lieutenant general, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Command, India in 1923. Finally he became Chief of the General Staff in India in 1924, and was appointed a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in the

1925 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1925 were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were published on 30 December 1924. The recipients of honours are displayed her ...

, before retiring in 1929.

References

Publications

*Skeen, Gen Sir A., ''Passing It On: Short Talks on Tribal Fighting on the Northwest Frontier of India'', 4th ed (

Gale & Polden Gale and Polden was a British printer and publisher. Founded in Brompton, Medway, Brompton, near Chatham, Kent in 1868, the business subsequently moved to Aldershot, where they were based until closure in November 1981 after the company had been ...

, 1939). The 4th edition has an additional chapter (by Maj D.B. Mackenzie) on lessons learned from

1937. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Skeen, Andrew 1873 births 1935 deaths 19th-century British Army personnel British Indian Army generals Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Indian Army generals of World War I British military personnel of the Malakand Frontier War British Army personnel of the Boxer Rebellion British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Afghan War Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) British military personnel of the Waziristan Campaign British people in colonial India