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 John Philip Du Cane, (5 May 1865 – 5 April 1947) 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. He held high rank 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 ...

, most notably as Major General Royal Artillery at General Headquarters in 1915 when the British Expeditionary Force was rapidly expanding, 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 ...

XV Corps from 1916 to 1918, then from April 1918 as liaison officer between Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig and the Allied Generalissimo

Ferdinand Foch Ferdinand Foch ( , ; 2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929) was a French general, Marshal of France and a member of the Académie Française and French Academy of Sciences, Académie des Sciences. He distinguished himself as Supreme Allied Commander ...

. After the war he was

Master-General of the Ordnance The Master-General of the Ordnance (MGO) was a very senior British military position from 1415 to 2013 (except 1855–1895 and 1939–1958) with some changes to the name, usually held by a serving general. The Master-General of the Ordnance was ...

Military career

After attending the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of Officer (armed forces), commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers o ...

, Du Cane was commissioned 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 Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

in February 1884, 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 4 March 1893, and, made an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

in February 1894, became a

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 14 February 1900. Du Cane served in 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 ...

, and was appointed a staff officer for lines of communication in South Africa in September 1900. Following the end of hostilities in early June 1902, he left

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

on board the SS ''Assaye'', and arrived at

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

the next month. 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 ...

and received a brevet promotion to lieutenant colonel in the South Africa honours list published on 26 June 1902. He served as a

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

, Royal Artillery, with the 1st Army Corps in April 1904, in which role he succeeded Brevet Lieutenant Colonel Neil Douglas Findlay. He then served at 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 ...

, as a deputy assistant adjutant general (DAAG) from April 1905–1907. He was promoted again to major in January 1908, and full colonel later that month. He then became a general staff officer, grade 1 (GSO1) at army headquarters. Having been made 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 1910, Du Cane was promoted in February 1911 to the temporary rank of brigadier general and succeeded Sir Godfrey Thomas, 9th Baronet as commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) for the 3rd Division. In July 1912 he became staff officer to the inspector general of Home Forces, or brigadier general, general staff, taking over from Brigadier General David Henderson. Du Cane served in the

, initially as BGGS of III Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General Sir William Pulteney, of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). In 1915, after being promoted to major general in February, as major general, Royal Artillery, he was an artillery advisor at General Headquarters; Lieutenant General Sir William Robertson, chief of staff to the BEF in 1915, later stated that he had laid the organisational groundwork for the massive expansion of BEF artillery during the war. He was posted to the

Ministry of Munitions The Minister of Munitions was a British government position created during the First World War to oversee and co-ordinate the production and distribution of munitions for the war effort. The position was created in response to the Shell Crisis o ...

in 1916 and then, after being promoted to temporary lieutenant general, became

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 XV Corps in September 1916, after Sir Henry Horne went to command the First Army. In that capacity, he was closely involved in Operation Hush, a planned invasion on the Belgian coast. On 12 April 1918, against the backdrop of the German "Georgette" Offensive and Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig's demands for French reinforcements, he was appointed liaison officer between Haig and the Allied generalissimo,

. After the war, Du Cane, promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant-general in January 1919, made his home in London at 4 Upper Brook Street,

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

. Du Cane was appointed

in January 1920 and then general officer commanding-in-chief for Western Command in October 1923. He was GOC-in-C for the

British Army of the Rhine British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) was the name given to British Army occupation forces in the Rhineland, West Germany, after the First and Second World Wars, and during the Cold War, becoming part of NATO's Northern Army Group (NORTHAG) tasked ...

from June 1924 until May 1927 when he became governor and commander-in-chief of Malta, during which time he was promoted to

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 ...

. He was also

aide-de-camp general Aide-de-camp general is a senior honorary appointment for General (United Kingdom), generals in the British Army. The recipient is appointed as an aide-de-camp general to the head of state, currently King Charles III. They are entitled to the post- ...

to the King, taking over from General Sir Francis Davies, from April 1926 to 1930. He retired from the army in June 1931.

Works

* DuCane, Lt. General Sir John, ''Marshal Foch'', London: privately printed, 1920

References

Sources

* * , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Du Cane, John 1865 births 1947 deaths British Army generals British Army generals of World War I Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Royal Artillery officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War People from South Kensington Governors and governors-general of Malta Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Military personnel from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich