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 normall ...

Sir Herbert Edward Watts (14 February 1858 – 15 October 1934) 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 commanded 7th Division and later XIX Corps 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 military career

Watts was born on 14 February 1858, the son of the Reverend R.E.R. Watts, the vicar of

Wisbech Wisbech ( ) is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the Fenland District, Fenland district in Cambridgeshire, England. In 2011 it had a population of 31,573. The town lies in the far north-east of Cambridgeshire, bordering Norfolk and ...

. He was educated at

The King's School, Peterborough Founded by King Henry VIII in 1541, The King's (The Cathedral) School is a state-funded Church of England Cathedral Chorister School located in Peterborough, England. It is the Chorister School for Peterborough Cathedral. Former pupils are kn ...

and at

Tours Tours ( ; ) is the largest city in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Indre-et-Loire. The Communes of France, commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabita ...

, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant into a

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

unit, the Royal North Down Militia, in November 1877 He was 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 ...

in August 1879. He transferred as a second lieutenant to the 20th Regiment of Foot in April 1880. In May he transferred again, to the

14th Regiment of Foot 14 (fourteen) is the natural number following 13 and preceding 15. Mathematics Fourteen is the seventh composite number. Properties 14 is the third distinct semiprime, being the third of the form 2 \times q (where q is a higher prime). ...

(the regiment changed name to become the Prince of Wales's Own West Yorkshire Regiment later the same year). He served with the regiment for 30 years, during which he was promoted to lieutenant on 1 July 1881,

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 6 March 1889, and

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 20 March 1899. Following the outbreak of 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 ...

in October 1899, he served with the 2nd Battalion of his regiment 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 ...

1899–1902. He took part in operations in the

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

, including the battles of Vaal Krantz (6-7 February 1900) and the Tugela Heights and Pieter's Hill (14-27 February 1900) leading to the

Relief of Ladysmith The Relief of Ladysmith consisted of multiple efforts to relieve the city of Ladysmith by General Sir Redvers Buller during the Second Boer War. Buller and the Natal Field Force attempted to relieve the city through multiple offensive actions ...

. In the following months he served in the Natal, and from July to November 1900 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; ...

. During the war 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 ...

five times and received the brevet promotion to lieutenant colonel on 29 November 1900. He was appointed

second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, f ...

of his battalion on 7 March 1902, and after peace was declared the following month, left South Africa on board the SS ''Bavarian'' to arrive in the United Kingdom in June 1902. He was promoted to substantive lieutenant colonel in February 1904 and commanded a battalion for the next four years, during which time he was promoted again, this time to brevet colonel, in July 1905, before going on

half-pay Half-pay (h.p.) was a term used in the British Army and Royal Navy of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries to refer to the pay or allowance an officer received when in retirement or not in actual service. Past usage United Kingdom In the E ...

in February 1908 after relinquishing command of the battalion. He was promoted to substantive colonel that month, and, after coming off the half-pay list, finished his military career as the commander of No. 9 District in Eastern Command, holding this post from May 1910 until he retired from the army in May 1914."WATTS, Lieut-Gen. Sir Herbert Edward", in ''Who Was Who'' (2007)
Online edition
/ref> While holding that post he had been created 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 ...

(CB) in June 1912.

First World War

Shortly after Watts's retirement, the outbreak of the

meant that he returned almost immediately to the army. He was promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general in August and given command of the recently raised 21st Infantry Brigade in the 7th Division; the division was composed of battalions of the

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a ...

recalled from overseas service on the outbreak of war and formed into a new division in England. Watts remained with the brigade until the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used Chemical weapons in World War I, ...

in September 1915, when Major-General Thompson Capper, commanding the division, was killed in action and Watts, promoted to temporary major general, took over as

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) of the 7th Division. With the brief exception of a few days in July 1916 as GOC

38th (Welsh) Division The 38th (Welsh) Division (initially the 43rd Division, later the 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division and then the 38th Infantry (Reserve) Division) of the British Army was active during both the First and Second World Wars. In 1914, the division ...

- under Watts, the division took its objective, Mametz Wood, though with severe losses - he would remain with the division for the next year and a half. In January 1917 he was promoted to major general on the active list and later to the temporary rank of lieutenant general in February and became GOC of the XIX Corps, which he led for the rest of the war. He was awarded the

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 ...

in February 1915, as well as the French

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1919. Watts was regarded by Field-Marshal Sir Douglas Haig, commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), as "a plucky hard little man" and "a fine leader" but also "a distinctly stupid man holacks imagination". While his courage and fighting spirit were well-regarded, planning and organisation were left to his divisional staff. His personality impressed regimental officers; he required

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry in ...

(TF) officers of the

61st (2nd South Midland) Division The 61st (2nd South Midland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army raised in 1915 during the Great War as a second-line reserve for the first-line battalions of the 48th (South Midland) Division. The division was sent to the W ...

to repeat after him in chorus a salutary maxim: “The natural corollary of delegation of authority is intelligent supervision”. Watts had never attended the

Staff College, Camberley Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army and the presidency armies of British India (later merged to form the Indian Army). It had its origins in the Royal Military College, High Wycombe, founded in 1799, which ...

, spending his earlier career entirely on regimental service. Watts unveiled the War Memorial at

Mitcham Mitcham is an area within the London Borough of Merton in South London, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross. Originally a village in the county of Surrey, today it is mainly a residential suburb, and includes Mitcham Common. It ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

in 1920.

Family

In 1896 he married Elizabeth Daly.

References

Sources

* * * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Herbert 1858 births 1934 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British Army generals of World War I Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George West Yorkshire Regiment officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British recipients of the Legion of Honour Lancashire Fusiliers officers British Militia officers