Major General Lionel Charles Dunsterville (9 November 1865 – 18 March 1946) was 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 ...

officer, who led

Dunsterforce Dunsterforce was an Allied military force, established in December 1917 and named after its commander, Major-General Lionel Dunsterville. The force comprised fewer than 350 Australian, New Zealand, British and Canadian officers and NCOs, ...

across present-day

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

towards the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

and

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

during 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 ...

Early life

Lionel Charles Dunsterville was born in

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

, Switzerland on 9 November 1865, the son of Lieutenant General Lionel D'Arcy Dunsterville (1830–1912) of the Indian Army and his wife, Susan Ellen (1835–1875). He went to school with

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much ...

and

George Charles Beresford George Charles Beresford (10 July 1864 – 21 February 1938) was a British studio photographer, originally from Drumlease, Dromahair, County Leitrim. Early life A member of the Beresford family headed by the Marquess of Waterford and the third ...

at The United Services College, a public school later absorbed into

Haileybury and Imperial Service College Haileybury is a co-educational public school (fee-charging boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols pupils at the 11+, 13+ and 16+ stages of edu ...

, which prepared British young men for careers in Her Majesty's Army. He served as the inspiration for the character "Stalky" in Kipling's collection of school stories ''

Stalky & Co ''Stalky & Co.'' is a novel by Rudyard Kipling about adolescent boys at a British boarding school. It is a collection of school stories whose three juvenile protagonists display a know-it-all, cynical outlook on patriotism and authority. It ...

''. He was also uncle to H.D. Harvey-Kelly, the first

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

pilot to land in France during the

Military career

Dunsterville was commissioned into the

as a

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 ...

in the

Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foo ...

on 23 August 1884. He later transferred to 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 ...

, was 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 23 August 1895, and served on the North-West Frontier and 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 ...

. As a railway staff officer he served in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

during the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, was an anti-foreign, anti-imperialist, and anti-Christian uprising in North China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious F ...

1900–02, for which he was

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 ...

(by Major-General

O'Moore Creagh General Sir Garrett O'Moore Creagh (2 April 1848 – 9 August 1923), known as Sir O'Moore Creagh, was a senior British Army officer and an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can ...

, commander of British forces in China after the end of the main hostilities), and was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

on 23 August 1902, and colonel on 1 May 1912. Commodore Norris and General Dunsterforce

At the beginning of the

, Dunsterville held a posting in

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 ...

. In April 1915 he was promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general while in command of the

Jhelum Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...

Brigade. At the end of 1917 the army appointed then-Major Dunsterville to lead an Allied force (

) of fewer than 1,000 Australian, British, Canadian and New Zealand troops, drawn from the

Mesopotamian Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary o ...

and Western Fronts, accompanied by armoured cars, from

Hamadan Hamadan ( ; , ) is a mountainous city in western Iran. It is located in the Central District of Hamadan County in Hamadan province, serving as the capital of the province, county, and district. As of the 2016 Iranian census, it had a po ...

in the Zagros Mountains of Persia for some 350 km across

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. Dunsterville was promoted to major-general in 1918. His mission set out from

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

in January 1918, aiming to gather information, to train and command local forces, and to prevent the spread of pro-German

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

.The Azerbaijani Turks: power and identity under Russian rule, Audrey L. Altstadt
On his way to

Bandar-e Anzali Bandar-e Anzali () is a city on the Caspian Sea in the Central District of Bandar-e Anzali County, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of both the county and the district. History Anzali is an old city in ancient Iran, first s ...

on the Persian

Caspian Caspian can refer to: *The Caspian Sea *The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea *The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea *The Caspian languages spoken in northern Iran and southeastern Azerbaij ...

coast he also fought

Mirza Kuchik Khan Mirza Kuchik Khan ( Gilaki: مئرزا کۊجي خان or ميرزا کۊچي خؤن ;) (common alternative spellings ''Kouchek'', ''Koochek'', ''Kuchak'', ''Kuchek'', ''Kouchak'', ''Koochak'', ''Kuçek'') (October 12, 1880 – December 2, 1921 ...

and his Jangali forces in

Manjil Manjil () is a city in the Central District (Rudbar County), Central District of Rudbar County, Gilan province, Gilan province, Iran. History Throughout its history Manjil has been a gate to the southern Caspian Sea region. There are numero ...

. Dunsterville was assigned to re-inforce the defence of the key oil-field and port of

(in present-day

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

), held from 26 July 1918 by the anti-Soviet Centro Caspian Dictatorship. Dunsterforce personnel first arrived in Baku on 6 August 1918. However, the British and their allies chose to abandon Baku on 14 September 1918 in the face of an onslaught by 14,000 Ottoman troops and Azerbaijani Generals like

Ali-Agha Shikhlinski Ali Agha Ismail Agha oghlu Shikhlinski (); Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are in the Julian calendar with the start of year adjusted to 1 January. All other dates in this article are in Gregorian calendar (see Adoption of the Gregorian cal ...

and Gaimmegam Hasan Bey, who took the city the next day. The

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

regained control of Baku within two months as a result of the Ottoman armistice of 30 October 1918. Promoted to major general in 1918, Dunsterville died in 1946 at Torquay,

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Family

Captain Lionel Charles Dunsterville of the Indian Staff Corps married Margaret Emily (known as "Daisie"), daughter of Captain John Walter Keyworth late 48th Regiment, in November 1897 at Bishopsteignton, Devon, England. Their elder son, Lionel Walter Dunsterville, was born on 9 September 1902 at Tientsin, China; their younger son Galfrid Charles Keyworth was born on 18 February 1905; and their daughter Susannah Margaret on 14 July 1911. Galfrid co-authored books on Venezuelan orchids with L. A. Garay. Susannah's first husband was the Swiss lawyer and diplomat August R. Lindt, the son of a renowned chocolate manufacturer. Her second husband was Colditz escapee

Damiaen Joan van Doorninck Damiaen J. van Doorninck (29 August 1902 – 24 September 1987Van Doorninck ...

, whom she met in Switzerland during the Second World War as a Resistance worker.

Sources

Encyclopaedia of the First World War- Who's Who

References

* * * * ''Stalky's Reminiscences'' by Major-General L. C. Dunsterville (London: 1928; re-issued under title ''Stalky's Adventures'' in 1941) * ''Something of myself'' by Rudyard Kipling * ''Stalky and Co.'' by Rudyard Kipling * S. P. Menefee, "Dunsterville, Lionel Charles," in H. C. G. Mathews and Brian Harrison (eds.), ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', vol. 17 (2004): pp. 361–63. * *

External links

*
The Adventures of Dunsterforce by L.C. Dunsterville

More Yarns by L.C. Dunsterville

Dunsterforce: A Case Study of Coalition Warfare in the Middle East 1918–1919
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunsterville, Lionel 1865 births 1946 deaths Royal Sussex Regiment officers British military personnel of the Boxer Rebellion British military personnel of the Russian Civil War Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War British Indian Army generals Indian Army generals of World War I Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of the Star of India People educated at United Services College British expatriates in Switzerland 19th-century British Army personnel Military personnel from Lausanne