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 Percy Henry Noel Lake, (29 June 1855 – 17 November 1940) served as a senior commander in the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and Indian Armies, and in the

Canadian Militia The Canadian Militia is a historical title for military units raised for the defence of Canada. The term has been used to describe sedentary militia units raised from local communities in Canada; as well as the regular army for the Province of Ca ...

. He served 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 ...

Military career

Lake was the son of Lt.-Colonel Percy Godfrey Botfield Lake (1829–1899) and his wife Margaret Phillips of

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

. Born at

Tenby Tenby () is a seaside town and community (Wales), community in the county of Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies within Carmarthen Bay. Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, the 13th-century Tenby Town Walls, me ...

, Wales, on 29 June 1855, he was brought up in

Preston, Lancashire Preston () is a city on the north bank of the River Ribble in Lancashire, England. The city is the administrative centre of the county of Lancashire and the wider City of Preston, Lancashire, City of Preston local government district. Preston ...

where his father was stationed. He was educated at Preston Grammar School and Uppingham School.Preston Grammar School Association
Lake was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant in the 59th Regiment of Foot in 1873, and 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 ...

on 9 August 1873. He fought in the

Second Anglo-Afghan War The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the latter was ruled by Sher Ali Khan of the Barakzai dy ...

in 1878–79. He was promoted captain on 31 October 1883 and graduated from Staff College in 1884. In 1885 he became Deputy Assistant Adjutant General and Quartermaster General during the Suakin Expedition, Sudan. Returning home, he served as a staff captain at Army Headquarters in 1887 and Deputy Assistant Adjutant General (Intelligence) at Army Headquarters in 1888. He was promoted to major in July 1891 and went on to be Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at Dublin District in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

in 1892, Quartermaster General for the

in 1893 and, on promotion to lieutenant-colonel, Assistant Quartermaster General (Intelligence) at Army Headquarters 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 September 1899. He was appointed 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 ...

(CB) on 22 August 1902. After that Lake became Chief Staff Officer for 2nd Army Corps in 1904, Chief of the Canadian General Staff in 1905 and Inspector General of the Canadian Militia in 1908, introducing a number of reforms. He was promoted to major general on 23 March 1905, and appointed a 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 III ...

(CMG) in 1905 and Knight Commander (KCMG) in 1908. Leaving Canada in 1910, he succeeded Lieutenant General Sir James Willcocks as General Officer Commanding 7th (Meerut) Division in India in February 1911 and Chief of the General Staff in India from 1912, having been promoted lieutenant-general in March 1911. In 1913 he was given the colonelcy of the East Lancashire Regiment, which he held until 1920. In January 1916 he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Mesopotamian Force, part of an expeditionary force sent to relieve Sir General Townshend's troops at Kut. After preparing for a fresh campaign, in August 1916 Lake returned to England, and was created Knight Commander of the

(KCB) on 1 January 1916. He was given a post in 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 May 1917.

Later life

Following the war, Lake formally retired on 20 November 1919. He returned to Canada and lived in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

, where he died on 17 November 1940. He was survived by his wife Hester Fanny (), whom he had married in 1891. They had no children.

Military career

Later life

References

Further reading