Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Sir George Henry Fowke (10 September 1864 – 8 February 1936) 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 served on the staff of the British Expeditionary Force during

World War I 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 ...

Biography

Fowke joined the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

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 ...

on 15 February 1884, 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 19 July 1892. He saw active service in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

, where he was present at the

Defence of Ladysmith Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

, 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 ...

. During the war he received a brevet promotion 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 29 November 1900, and was confirmed with the substantive rank of major on 22 February 1901. The war ended in June 1902 with the

Peace of Vereeniging The Treaty of Vereeniging was a peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the Second Boer War between the South African Republic and the Orange Free State on the one side, and the United Kingdom on the other. This settlement provided ...

, and for his service he received a brevet promotion as lieutenant-colonel on 22 August 1902. After the war, he stayed in South Africa and was appointed as Director of Public Works in the

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name ''Transvaal''. * South African Republic (1856–1902; ...

and was a member of the Transvaal Legislative Council from 1902 to 1904.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> During the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

, he was an observer attached to the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

in Manchuria, and then lectured on fortifications at the School of Military Engineering. After being made a brevet colonel in August 1908, and then to lieutenant colonel in October, he was appointed the assistant adjutant general at the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

in June 1910. He was made a colonel with effect from the same date. He then succeeded Colonel Frederick Heath as inspector of Royal Engineers in April 1913, which saw him advanced to the rank of temporary brigadier general. On 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 ...

in August 1914, he was promoted again to the temporary rank of brigadier general and appointed to the post of brigadier general, Royal Engineers in the British Expeditionary Force, the senior engineering advisor. As the war settled into a stalemate it became apparent that the Royal Engineers would play a significant role in

trench warfare Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising Trench#Military engineering, military trenches, in which combatants are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from a ...

, and the position was changed to chief engineer in January 1915 and then to engineer-in-chief, for which he was raised to the temporary rank of major general in April 1915. He was made a Companion 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 February 1915 and his major general's rank became substantive in June. It was in this position, that he agreed the formation of the

Royal Engineer tunnelling companies Royal Engineer tunnelling companies were specialist units of the Corps of Royal Engineers within the British Army formed to dig attacking tunnels under enemy lines during the First World War. The stalemate situation in the early part of the war ...

, after a proposal from

John Norton-Griffiths Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Norton-Griffiths, 1st Baronet, (13 July 1871 – 27 September 1930) was an engineer, British Army officer during the Second Boer War and the First World War, and a Member of Parliament. A colourful figure in his d ...

. In February 1916, he succeeded Lieutenant General Sir Nevil Macready in the important post of adjutant general of the BEF and was raised to temporary lieutenant general while so employed. He held this post until the end of the war, and, having been made a substantive lieutenant general in January 1919, retired from the army in April 1922. In addition to his British decorations and awards, he was also awarded the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...

by the United States, with the citation for the medal reading:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowke, George Henry 1864 births 1936 deaths British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army generals of World War I Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Engineers officers Tunnel warfare in World War I Military personnel from Essex British Army lieutenant generals Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Foreign recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (United States)