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 Arthur Brodie Haig, (31 January 1886 – 9 February 1957) was a senior officer 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 ...

. A pre-war regular officer, he served in India prior to the outbreak of 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 ...

when he was posted to the Middle East. He was wounded at the Battle of Shaiba, twice

mentioned in despatches 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 ...

and awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

(MC), before he was taken prisoner by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

at the

Siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000-strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army (1861–1922), Ottoman Ar ...

. Escaping captivity in August 1918, he received a

Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

to his MC. Haig returned to India after the war, holding a succession of staff appointments and command of a brigade. After the start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was appointed Quartermaster General of

Army Headquarters, India General Headquarters, India was the headquarters of the Commander-in-Chief, India, who commanded the British military forces in India, including the British Indian Army, after the Kitchener Reforms of 1903. It succeeded Headquarters, India which ...

and promoted to lieutenant general. He later became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Command in India before his retirement in 1942.

First World War

Haig attended the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...

, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant on the unattached list for the

on 18 January 1905. He was first attached to a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

regiment in India for a year then appointed to 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 ...

, Indian Army on 19 March 1906.Indian Army List January 1919 He received promotion to lieutenant on 18 April 1907 and to captain on 18 January 1914. During the First World War, Haig served in Egypt from 18 November 1914 to 22 March 1915 and Mesopotamia from 7 April 1915 to 29 April 1916, when he was taken prisoner at the Fall of Kut. During this time he was wounded (on 14 April 1915 at the Battle of Shaiba), was

twice and was awarded the

and

. The Bar to his Military Cross was for successfully escaping from his

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

camp in August 1918. This was awarded 10 June 1920.

Return to India

Haig was appointed temporary major (for service in India only) on 14 September 1919, at the same time becoming a General Staff Officer (2nd grade) until 30 September 1920. He was re-appointed a General Staff Officer (2nd grade) on 1 April 1922 for the United Provinces district until 20 February 1923. He was appointed an instructor at the Staff College in Quetta on 21 February 1923. Haig attended the

Imperial Defence College The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest level ...

in 1929, then was appointed brevet lieutenant colonel then promoted to substantive lieutenant colonel, which was confirmed on 10 February 1930. Haig was appointed commanding officer of the 4th Battalion, 14th Punjab Regiment on 10 February 1930.Brodie Haig at Generals.dk
/ref> Haig was appointed a temporary brigadier and substantive colonel on 4 June 1932, upon his appointment as Deputy Director of Staff Duties (and General Staff Officer Grade 1). He vacated this position on 25 October 1933 and was appointed to command the 7th Dehra Dun Brigade (retaining his temporary brigadier rank). Haig was appointed Deputy Adjutant and Quartermaster General of the Eastern Command on 28 February 1936, once more retaining the temporary rank of brigadier. Haig received promotion to major general on 6 June 1936 and ceased to be Deputy Adjutant and Quartermaster General on 27 April 1937. He was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

on 1 February 1937. Haig became colonel of the 4th Battalion, 14th Punjab Regiment on 9 July 1937 and the same year was appointed commandant of the Quetta Staff College.

Second World War

Haig was appointed Quartermaster General of

and acting lieutenant general on 16 March 1940. This was confirmed as a substantive rank on 1 April that year. He became a full general on 10 May 1941 and was appointed Adjutant-General of India on 15 May. From October 1941 until June 1942, he was General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Command. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 11 June 1942. He retired on 16 August 1942.

References

External links

Generals of World War II
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Haig, Brodie 1886 births 1957 deaths Academics of the Staff College, Quetta Indian Army personnel of World War I Indian Army generals of World War II Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Military Cross Military personnel from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea People from Kensington World War I prisoners of war held by the Ottoman Empire British World War I prisoners of war British escapees Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Commandants of the Staff College, Quetta British Indian Army generals

First World War

Return to India

Second World War

References

Further reading

External links