Major-General Robert John Collins, (22 August 1880 – 6 March 1950) 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 as

Commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

of 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 ...

, from 1939 to 1941.

Military career

Educated at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

, Collins, after service with the 6th Warwick

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 ...

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 ...

, was commissioned into the

Royal Berkshire Regiment The Royal Berkshire Regiment (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was created in 1881, as the Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment), by ...

in 1899. He fought in the

and then served with the

Egyptian Army The Egyptian Army (), officially the Egyptian Ground Forces (), is the land warfare branch (and largest service branch) of the Egyptian Armed Forces. Until the declaration of the Republic and the abolishment of the monarchy on 18 June 1953, it w ...

until 1911 and attended the

, from 1913 to 1914, where

J. F. C. Fuller Major-General John Frederick Charles "Boney" Fuller (1 September 1878 – 10 February 1966) was a senior British Army officer, military historian, and strategist, known as an early theorist of modern armoured warfare, including categorisin ...

was one of his fellow students. Collins took part in 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 ...

, becoming a general staff officer, grade 2 in succession to Brevet Lieutenant Colonel Francis Gathorne-Hardy in March 1915. In March 1916 he was awarded 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 ...

and was Chief Instructor at the Staff School in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

during the last year of the war. He was appointed commander of the 73rd Brigade later in 1918. With the war over, Collins became an instructor at the Staff College, Camberley, in 1919, and being made a brevet colonel in July 1922, before taking up a post as Director of Military Training in India in 1924. He went on to be commandant of the Small Arms School in 1929 and

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 3rd (Meerut) Indian Division in 1934 before retiring in 1938. He was recalled at the start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

to be GOC of the 61st Infantry Division followed by being made commandant of the Staff College, Camberley, before retiring again in 1941. Collins was one of the founders, with Phoebe Cusden, of the ''Reading Düsseldorf Association'' which provided help from the people of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

for the people of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

in Germany, which had been heavily bombed during the war. He was also author of ''Lord Wavell, 1883–1941 – A military biography'' (Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1947).

Family

In 1912 Collins married Violet Agnes Monro.''Armorial families : a directory of gentlemen of coat-armour'' by Arthur Charles Fox-Davies, p.107
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References

Bibliography

External links

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Robert 1880 births 1950 deaths British Army generals of World War I British Army generals of World War II British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Commandants of the Staff College, Camberley Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Deputy lieutenants of Berkshire Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley People educated at Marlborough College Royal Berkshire Regiment officers British Army major generals Academics of the Staff College, Camberley