Thomas Pilcher
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Major-General Thomas David Pilcher, CB (8 July 1858 â€“ 14 December 1928) 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 a mounted infantry unit 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 the
17th (Northern) Division The 17th (Northern) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, a Kitchener's Army formation raised during the Great War. Formation history The 17th (Northern) Division was created under Northern Command in September 1914, just a ...
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 ...
, before being removed from command in disgrace during the
Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...
. Pilcher spent his early career as an infantry officer, first seeing active service on colonial campaigns in
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in the late 1890s followed by field command in the Second Boer War (1899–1902), on which he published a book of lessons learned in 1903. Following the war, he held a number of senior commands in India. However, further promotion was checked by his having come into conflict with his commander-in-chief, who regarded him as unsuited for senior command in part because of his writings; Pilcher was a keen student of the German army and its operational methods, and an active theorist who published a number of controversial books advocating the adoption of new military techniques as well as an anonymous invasion novel. On the outbreak of the First World War he was on leave in England, and eventually obtained the command of 17th (Northern) Division, a New Army volunteer unit. The division supported the initial attacks at the
Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...
in July 1916, where Pilcher again clashed with his superiors over his refusal to push on an attack without pausing for preparations, believing it would result in failure and heavy casualties. After ten days of fighting, Pilcher was sacked and sent to command a reserve centre in England. From here, he wrote a series of books before retiring in 1919. He ran as a parliamentary candidate for the splinter right-wing
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in the 1918 general election, and continued a loose involvement with right-wing politics which extended to membership in the early
British Fascisti The British Fascists (originally called the British Fascisti) were the first political organisation in the United Kingdom to claim the label of fascism, formed in 1923. The group had lacked much ideological unity apart from anti-socialism for mo ...
. Pilcher had married Kathleen Gonne, daughter of a cavalry officer, in 1889; the marriage was strained, partly through Pilcher's gambling habits and adultery, and partly through his dislike for
Maud Gonne Maud Gonne MacBride (, born Edith Maud Gonne); 21 December 1866 – 27 April 1953) was an Irish republican revolutionary, suffragette and actress. She was of Anglo-Irish descent and was won over to Irish nationalism by the plight of people evict ...
, Kathleen's sister and a prominent Irish nationalist. The couple divorced in 1911, having had four children; one would later become a High Court judge, while another died on the Western Front in 1915. Pilcher remarried in 1913, and remained married to his second wife Millicent until his death in 1928.


Early career

Pilcher was born in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
in 1858, the son of Thomas Webb Pilcher, of Harrow, and his wife, Sophia (née Robinson). He was the eldest of five children (four surviving infancy); his younger brother, Percy, would go on to become a pioneering aeronautical engineer, assisted by their sister Ella who undertook the fabric work on the aircraft's wings. Pilcher was educated at
Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...
, but after his father died in October 1874, he left the school the following year (aged 17). Following his father's death, in an attempt to save money on living expenses, his mother took the family to live in
Celle Celle () is a town and capital of the district of Celle (district), Celle in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany. The town is situated on the banks of the river Aller (Germany), Aller, a tributary of the Weser, and has a population of about ...
, where she herself died in 1877. Thomas brought his three younger siblings home, and entered the
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 ...
, commissioned as a second lieutenant in the
Dublin City Artillery Militia The Dublin City Artillery Militia was a part-time reserve unit of Britain's Royal Artillery based in Dublin, Ireland, from 1854 to 1909. Background The long-standing national Militia (United Kingdom), Militia of the United Kingdom was revived by ...
in August 1878. Commissions in the
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 ...
were often used as a stepping-stone to a commission in 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 ...
, and Pilcher rapidly transferred out, first to the 22nd Regiment of Foot (later the
Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence ...
) in June 1879, then almost immediately to the 5th Fusiliers (later the Northumberland Fusiliers and, much later still, the
Royal Northumberland Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution and ...
) in July. After a period of regimental service, Pilcher 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 ...
, passing the course in 1892, and from 1895 to 1897 was appointed as the deputy assistant adjutant general (DAAG) for Dublin District. in "Lions Led by Donkeys", Birmingham Centre for First World War Studies. (Archived from the original, 2007) From here, he took a posting in colonial West Africa in the late 1890s, where he was involved in raising a battalion of the West African Frontier Force and commanded an expedition to Lapai and Argeyah. He had been promoted to temporary lieutenant colonel in November 1897. In 1899 Pilcher, who in July was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel, transferred regiments for the third time, this time to the Bedfordshire Regiment (later the
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment was the final title of a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was originally formed in 1688. After centuries of service in many conflicts and wars, including both the First and Second World W ...
), where he took command of the regiment's 2nd Battalion. It 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 ...
from 1899 to 1902, during which time Pilcher was also given command of a column of
mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. Unlike cavalry, mounted infantry dismounted to fight on foot. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Editio ...
, including a large contingent of Australians. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 20 October 1900, and to
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
on 29 November 1900, and in 1901 he was made an aide-de-camp to King
Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...
. During early 1902 he was stationed in the
Orange River Colony The Orange River Colony was the British colony created after Britain first occupied (1900) and then annexed (1902) the independent Orange Free State in the Second Boer War. The colony ceased to exist in 1910, when it was absorbed into the Unio ...
, operating from
Boshof Boshof is a farming town in the west of the Free State province, South Africa. The town is 55 km north-east of Kimberley on the R64 road. Established in March 1856 on the farm Vanwyksvlei, which had been named after a Griqua who sowed his ...
, and later assisted in convoying supplies to garrisons west of
Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia Queensland * Kimberley, Queensland, a coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas South Australia * County of Kimberley, a cadastral unit in South Australia Ta ...
in
Cape Colony The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three ...
. Following the end of the war, he returned to the United Kingdom in early June 1902. For his services during the war, 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 29 November 1900, but was not invested until he was back in England, by King Edward VII at
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on 8 August 1902. He commanded Regular brigades at Aldershot from 1902 to 1907, including the 3rd Brigade, part of the 2nd Division of the 1st Army Corps, in May 1904, for which he was promoted to substantive colonel and temporary brigadier general while employed in this role. He was promoted to major general in February 1907, while still commanding the brigade. From here, he was posted to India, where he held a variety of commands, culminating in that of the
Burma Division The Burma Division was a static formation of the British Indian Army. It was created as part of the 1903 reforms of the Indian Army by Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener then Commander-in-Chief, India. The task of such formations was to over ...
, the senior military officer in the colony, from 1912 to 1914, taking over from Major General Edwin Alderson. From 1914 to 1928 he was colonel of the Bedfordshire Regiment. At the time of the outbreak of war, though still holding the Burmese posting, he was on leave in England.


Personal life and writing

In 1889, Pilcher married Kathleen Mary Gonne, daughter of Colonel Thomas Gonne of the
17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regim ...
;"PILCHER, Maj.-Gen. Thomas David", in ''Who Was Who'' (2007)
Online edition
/ref> her sister, Maude Gonne, later became a prominent Irish nationalist and mother of the politician and Nobel laureate
Seán MacBride Seán MacBride (26 January 1904 – 15 January 1988) was an Irish Republican activist, politician, and diplomat who served as Minister for External Affairs from 1948 to 1951, Leader of Clann na Poblachta from 1946 to 1965 and Chief of Staff o ...
, as well as a close associate and muse of
W. B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (, 13 June 186528 January 1939), popularly known as W. B. Yeats, was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer, and literary critic who was one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the ...
. Pilcher disapproved of his sister-in-law, particularly after her marriage to
John MacBride John MacBride (sometimes written John McBride; ; 7 May 1868 â€“ 5 May 1916) was an Irish republican and military leader. He was executed by the British government for his participation in the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin. Early life Jo ...
, and relations were frequently strained; however, the two sisters remained close. The couple would have a daughter, Thora, and three sons – Toby, Tommy, and Pat. The elder son, Sir Gonne Pilcher ("Toby", to his family), became a High Court judge, while Tommy would be killed at the
Battle of Neuve Chapelle The Battle of Neuve Chapelle (10–13 March 1915) took place in the First World War in the Artois region of France. The attack was intended to cause a rupture in the German lines, which would then be exploited with a rush to the Aubers Ridge an ...
in 1915, aged 21. Pilcher's marriage was not a happy one; a gambler and womaniser, he expected his independently wealthy wife to bail out his debts and turn a blind eye to his mistresses. The two gradually drifted into separate lives, and after finally confronted with an affair becoming public, Kathleen sued for divorce. The precipitating event was Pilcher having been named as
co-respondent In English law, a co-respondent is, in general, a respondent to a petition, or other legal proceeding, along with another or others, or a person called upon to answer in some other way. 7.4.19 Divorce More particularly, since the Matrimonial Cau ...
in a divorce suit; it was alleged that he had committed adultery with Millicent Knight-Bruce, the wife of Major James Knight-Bruce. The case dragged on through 1910, delayed by Pilcher's inability to return from India to attend the court. Pilcher did not contest his wife's suit, and his own divorce was granted in 1911; he married Millicent, now divorced, in 1913. Pilcher was a particularly active observer of the German army, studying their military methods and attending German army manoeuvres. He would later publish a translation of
Clausewitz Carl Philipp Gottlieb von Clausewitz ( , ; born Carl Philipp Gottlieb Clauswitz; 1 July 1780 – 16 November 1831) was a Prussian general and military theorist who stressed the "moral" (in modern terms meaning psychological) and political aspe ...
. His writing was sometimes controversial, beginning with the 1896 ''Artillery from an Infantry Officer's Point of View'', in which he argued strongly in favour of adopting
indirect fire Indirect fire is aiming and firing a projectile without relying on a direct line of sight between the gun and its target, as in the case of direct fire. Aiming is performed by calculating azimuth and inclination, and may include correcting ...
techniques from concealed locations. Conventional doctrine held that artillery should be used to fire directly on its targets, as much from principle as from practical effect, with one prominent artillerist arguing that "firing from cover ... will destroy the whole spirit of the arm". The argument ran for two years. As well as provoking debate, his writing proved problematic for his career; in part because of a 1907 pamphlet, ''Fire Problems'', he was twice blocked for promotion by the Commander-in-Chief India. In it, he had encouraged the development of machine-gun tactics, and much heavier concentration and use of the weapons, an unusual position for the pre-war period. In 1906, Pilcher had also published an anonymous invasion novel, ''The Writing on the Wall'', which described a German invasion of Britain; The war he theorised was an invasion by Germany followed by a rapid collapse of the British forces, particularly the volunteers, which he saw as unfit for purpose; he advocated a form of conscription and a mandatory reserve system to strengthen the Army. The ''Spectator'' was dismissive, comparing the novel unfavourably to '' The Invasion of 1910'' ("many useful hints are given as to practical lessons ... utthe general plot entirely destroys any value it might otherwise possess") and noting that the suggestions were "highly typical", but that it was counterproductive to simply malign the Army and encourage the country to adopt German military policies. It was translated and published in Germany the same year, as ''Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin: Englands überwältigung durch Deutschland''.


First World War

At 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 Pilcher was on leave in England, and offered his services to the War Office, but was initially turned down as unsuitable for command by the commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), Field Marshal Sir John French; however, in January 1915, he was appointed 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 newly formed
17th (Northern) Division The 17th (Northern) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, a Kitchener's Army formation raised during the Great War. Formation history The 17th (Northern) Division was created under Northern Command in September 1914, just a ...
, a New Army formation predominantly drawn from civilian volunteers from
Northern England Northern England, or the North of England, refers to the northern part of England and mainly corresponds to the Historic counties of England, historic counties of Cheshire, Cumberland, County Durham, Durham, Lancashire, Northumberland, Westmo ...
. The division moved to France in July 1915, where it held a sector near Ypres for the remainder of the year. It fought the
Actions of St Eloi Craters The Actions of St Eloi Craters from 27 March to 16 April 1916, were local operations in the Ypres Salient of Flanders, during the First World War by the German 4th Army and the British Second Army. Sint-Elooi (the French is commonly used in ...
in March 1916, following which General Sir Douglas Haig, who had succeeded French in command of the BEF, considered relieving Pilcher of his command – he was not highly rated by his superior officers – but in the end his corps commander, Lieutenant General Hew Dalrymple Fanshawe, GOC of
V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Arm ...
, was sacked instead. Pilcher was perceived by many as old-fashioned and disengaged, rarely visiting the trenches; the journalist
Philip Gibbs Sir Philip Armand Thomas Hamilton Gibbs KBE, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour (1 May 1877 – 10 March 1962) was an English journalist and author who served as one of five official British war correspondents during the First World War. Earl ...
remarked on his "courteous old-fashioned dignity and gentleness of manner", but concluded simply that "modern warfare was too brutal for him". Pilcher's command was certainly slack; an observer in the summer of 1916, recently appointed to the 17th Division as a staff officer, recalled finding a completely disorganised unit, with no central co-ordination, no effective provision of laundry or comforts for front-line units, and described the divisional staff as simply "of no value". The 17th was deployed for the
Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...
in July. It was engaged on the
first day of the Somme The first day on the Somme (1 July 1916) was the beginning of the Battle of Albert the name given by the British to the first two weeks of the Battle of the Somme () in the First World War. Nine corps of the French Sixth Army and the Britis ...
, 1 July, where it supported the capture of Fricourt and lost 1,155 men killed or wounded. Following this, it was involved in the capture of Contalmaison and the
capture of Mametz The Capture of Mametz took place on 1 July 1916, when the British Fourth Army attacked the German 2nd Army on the Western Front, during the first day of the Battle of the Somme. Mametz is a village on the D 64 road, about north-east of Amie ...
, and had taken a total of 4,771 casualties by the time it was relieved on 11 July. Many of these casualties stemmed from an unsuccessful attack on the "Quadrangle Trench Support" on 7 July; the division had captured the main trench system on 5 July and Pilcher ordered it to pause and prepare for a subsequent assault. However, he was over-ruled by higher command, who forced an attack the next night – which failed – followed by a daylight attack on 7 July, which Pilcher strongly protested but eventually acquiesced in. He ordered an attack with the minimal number of men necessary, assuming it would inevitably be doomed to failure and high casualties, which outraged his superiors. Pilcher later wrote that: Following the division's withdrawal, Pilcher was promptly sacked by his corps commander, Lieutenant General Henry Horne, GOC XV Corps, along with the commander of the neighbouring
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 ...
; Horne considered him lacking in "initiative, drive, and readiness", while Haig simply dismissed him as "unequal to the task" of divisional command. Pilcher was succeeded by the much younger Brigadier General Philip Robertson, an experienced battalion and brigade commander, on 13 July. He was later appointed to command the Eastern Reserve Centre at St. Albans, and retired from the army in 1919, by which time the war was over.


Later life

Following the end of the war, Pilcher contested the seat of Thornbury in the 1918 general election. He opposed the sitting Liberal member Athelstan Rendall, a
Coalition Coupon The Coalition Coupon was a letter sent to parliamentary candidates at the 1918 United Kingdom general election, endorsing them as official representatives of the Coalition Government. The 1918 election took place soon after British victory in the ...
candidate, representing the splinter right-wing
National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...
of Conservatives opposed to the Coalition. He was heavily defeated, taking only 38% of the vote in what had previously been a relatively close seat. He continued a loose association with right-wing politics, chairing the anti-Bolshevik National Security Union, and joining the anti-socialist and protectionist British Commonwealth Union. When the
British Fascisti The British Fascists (originally called the British Fascisti) were the first political organisation in the United Kingdom to claim the label of fascism, formed in 1923. The group had lacked much ideological unity apart from anti-socialism for mo ...
was formed in the early 1920s, Pilcher became a member and an official of its London branch. Pilcher died in 1928, aged 70, of pneumonia. He was survived by his second wife.


Publications

Pilcher published a number of books through his career:PILCHER, Thomas David (1858–1928), Major General
– Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives.
* ''ManÅ“uvre block'' (1895) * ''Artillery from an Infantry Officer's Point of View'' (1896 * ''Some Lessons from the Boer War, 1899–1902'' (1903) â€
digital copy
* ''Some considerations connected with the formations of infantry in attack and defence'' (1906) * ''The writing on the wall'' ublished anonymously as "General Staff"(1906) * ''Fire problems'' (1912) * ''A general's letters to his son on obtaining his commission'' ublished anonymously(1917) â€
digital copy
* ''A General's letters to his son on minor tactics'' ublished anonymously as "X. Y. Z."(1918) â€
digital copy
* ''War according to Clausewitz'' dited, with commentary(1918) * ''East is East: stories of Indian life'' (1922) â€
digital copy


References


External links

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pilcher, Thomas 1858 births 1928 deaths Military personnel from Rome British Army major generals British Army generals of World War I British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Companions of the Order of the Bath English male writers People educated at Harrow School Cheshire Regiment officers Royal Northumberland Fusiliers officers Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment officers English fascists Deaths from pneumonia in the United Kingdom British political candidates Royal West African Frontier Force officers Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Royal Artillery officers British Militia officers