[[File:General Sir Charles Fergusson, Bart, Kcb, Mvo, Dso Art.IWMART1795.jpg|thumb|left|Portrait of Fergusson in uniform, seated with his hands folded in his lap.]]
[[File:General Sir Charles Fergusson, Bart, Kcb, Mvo, Dso Art.IWMART1795.jpg|thumb|left|Portrait of Fergusson in uniform, seated with his hands folded in his lap.]]
He took the 5th Division to France in August 1914 shortly after the outbreak of the [[World War I|First World War]].<ref name=odnb/> He remained in command of the division during all of its early battles on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] until he was suddenly removed from his command on 18 October, “ostensibly because he was being promoted to Lieutenant-General”, with Major General [[Thomas Morland]] taking over the 5th Division.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVRdAgAAQBAJ&dq=Charles+fergusson+5th+division&pg=PA72 | title=Ypres: The First Battle 1914 | isbn=978-1-317-86534-6 | last1=Beckett | first1=Ian | date=16 December 2013 | publisher=Routledge }}</ref> The real reason, however, appears to be that Field Marshal [[John French, 1st Earl of Ypres|Sir John French]], [[commander-in-chief]] (C-in-C) of the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War I)|British Expeditionary Force]] (BEF) on the Western Front, wanted Fergusson’s removal, not believing that the latter had it in him to successfully command a division, despite the fact that Fergusson had been doing so for the past two months.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVRdAgAAQBAJ&dq=Charles+fergusson+5th+division&pg=PA72 | title=Ypres: The First Battle 1914 | isbn=978-1-317-86534-6 | last1=Beckett | first1=Ian | date=16 December 2013 | publisher=Routledge }}</ref>
He took the 5th Division to France in August 1914 shortly after the outbreak of the [[World War I|First World War]].<ref name=odnb/> He remained in command of the division during all of its early battles on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] until he was suddenly removed from his command on 18 October, “ostensibly because he was being promoted to Lieutenant-General”, with Major General [[Thomas Morland]] taking over the 5th Division.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVRdAgAAQBAJ&dq=Charles+fergusson+5th+division&pg=PA72 | title=Ypres: The First Battle 1914 | isbn=978-1-317-86534-6 | last1=Beckett | first1=Ian | date=16 December 2013 | publisher=Routledge }}</ref>
The real reason, however, appears to be that Field Marshal [[John French, 1st Earl of Ypres|Sir John French]], [[commander-in-chief]] (C-in-C) of the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War I)|British Expeditionary Force]] (BEF) on the Western Front, wanted Fergusson’s removal, not believing that the latter had it in him to successfully command a division, despite the fact that Fergusson had been doing so for the past two months.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rVRdAgAAQBAJ&dq=Charles+fergusson+5th+division&pg=PA72 | title=Ypres: The First Battle 1914 | isbn=978-1-317-86534-6 | last1=Beckett | first1=Ian | date=16 December 2013 | publisher=Routledge }}</ref>
Returning to France, he commanded [[II Corps (United Kingdom)|II Corps]] of the BEF from January 1915 onwards. In February 1915 he was made a [[Order of the Bath|Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath]] (KCB), “in connection with Operations in the Field”.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29074|page=1686|date=16 February 1915|supp=y}}</ref> In May 1916 he was moved on to take over [[XVII Corps (United Kingdom)|XVII Corps]] from Lieutenant General [[Julian Byng, 1st Viscount Byng of Vimy|Sir Julian Byng]], which he led until the end of the war, caused by the [[Armistice of 11 November 1918|Armistice with Germany]], in November 1918.<ref name=odnb/>
After the war Fergusson, promoted to the rank of [[General (United Kingdom)|full general]] in July 1921,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=32401|page=5915|date=22 February 1921|supp=y}}</ref> was a military governor of [[Cologne]] before he retired from the army in 1922.<ref name=lh/>
After the war Fergusson, promoted to the rank of [[General (United Kingdom)|full general]] in July 1921,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=32401|page=5915|date=22 February 1921|supp=y}}</ref> was a military governor of [[Cologne]] before he retired from the army in 1922.<ref name=lh/>
British Army general and Governor General of New Zealand
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Charles Fergusson, 7th Baronet |
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|---|---|
Sir Charles Fergusson, circa 1926 |
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| In office 13 December 1924 – 8 February 1930 |
|
| Monarch | George V |
| Prime Minister | William Massey Francis Bell Gordon Coates Joseph Ward |
| Preceded by | The Viscount Jellicoe |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Bledisloe |
| Born | 17 January 1865 London, England |
| Died | 20 February 1951 (aged 86) Maybole, Ayrshire, Scotland |
| Spouse | Alice Mary Boyle |
| Relations | Sir James Fergusson, 6th Baronet (father) |
| Children | Sir James Fergusson, 8th Baronet Bernard Fergusson, Baron Ballantrae |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Branch/service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1883–1922 |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | Grenadier Guards |
| Commands | XVII Corps II Corps 9th (Scottish) Division 5th Division 3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards Omdurman District 15th Sudanese Regiment |
| Battles/wars | Mahdist War First World War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath[1] Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George[2] Distinguished Service Order Member of the Royal Victorian Order [3] Mentioned in dispatches |
General Sir Charles Fergusson, 7th Baronet, GCB, GCMG, DSO, MVO (17 January 1865 – 20 February 1951) was a British Army officer and the third Governor-General of New Zealand, in office from 1924 to 1930.
Early life and military career
[edit]
Fergusson was the son of Sir James Fergusson, 6th Baronet, the 6th Governor of New Zealand and Lady Edith Christian Ramsay, daughter of James Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie. He was educated at Eton College and the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, before being commissioned as a subaltern, with the rank of lieutenant, into the Grenadier Guards in November 1883.[4][5]
Promoted to captain in October 1895,[6] and major in November 1898,[7] he served in the Sudan from 1896 to 1898, becoming commanding officer (CO) of the 15th Sudanese Regiment in 1899 and commander of the Omdurman District in 1900.[5]
He was made adjutant general of the Egyptian Army in early 1901 and commanding officer (CO) of the 3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards in 1904 before being placed on half-pay in July 1907.[8] He was promoted to substantive colonel in October,[9] and was promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general to be brigadier general, general staff (BGGS) of Irish Command, in succession to Colonel Frederick Hammersley.[5][10][11] After being promoted to major-general in September 1908,[12] at the very young age (in peacetime) of just 43, he was appointed an inspector of infantry in April 1909.[13]
In February 1913 he succeeded Major General William Pitcairn Campbell as general officer commanding (GOC) of the 5th Division,[14] then stationed in Ireland. In this capacity he played a key role during the Curragh incident the following year, ensuring his officers obeyed orders.[15]
He took the 5th Division to France in August 1914 shortly after the outbreak of the First World War.[15] He remained in command of the division during all of its early battles on the Western Front until he was suddenly removed from his command on 18 October, “ostensibly because he was being promoted to Lieutenant-General”, with Major General Thomas Morland taking over the 5th Division.[16]
The real reason, however, appears to be that Field Marshal Sir John French, commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front, wanted Fergusson’s removal, not believing that the latter had it in him to successfully command a division, despite the fact that Fergusson had been doing so for the past two months.[17]
Fergusson, promoted to lieutenant general,[18] then returned to the United Kingdom and briefly took command of the 9th (Scottish) Division, a newly created Kitchener’s Army formation, from October to December 1914.[19]
Returning to France, he commanded II Corps of the BEF from January 1915 onwards. In February 1915 he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB), “in connection with Operations in the Field”.[20] In May 1916 he was moved on to take over XVII Corps from Lieutenant General Sir Julian Byng, which he led until the end of the war, caused by the Armistice with Germany, in November 1918.[15]
After the war Fergusson, promoted to the rank of full general in July 1921,[21] was a military governor of Cologne before he retired from the army in 1922.[5]
Governor-General of New Zealand
[edit]
A year after an unsuccessful attempt to enter parliament through the South Ayrshire constituency in the 1923 general election,[22] Fergusson was appointed Governor-General of New Zealand and served until 1930.[5] His father, Sir James Fergusson, had served as a Governor of New Zealand, and his son Lord Ballantrae was the tenth and last British-appointed governor-general.
On 20 June 1929 Fergusson was involved in a railway accident, following the 1929 Murchison earthquake. Attached to the rear of a train leaving the National Dairy Show at Palmerston North with 200 passengers on board, the Viceregal carriage contained the Governor-General and his wife and other members of the Viceregal party. The train hit a slip between Paekākāriki and Pukerua Bay, with the locomotive falling down a steep bank and injuring the driver. The first three carriages of the train also left the rails, but the Viceregal carriage remained on the tracks, and Fergusson and his party suffered only minor cuts and bruises.[23]
Marriage and family
[edit]
Fergusson married Lady Alice Mary Boyle on 18 July 1901. She was a daughter of David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow. They had five children:
Fergusson was a Freemason. During his term as governor-general, he was also Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand.
Lodge Empire Fergusson, No 225, still meets in Wellington.[24]
After his term in New Zealand, Fergusson became chairman of the West Indies Closer Union Commission and was Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire from 1937 until his death on 20 February 1951.
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- ^ “No. 29074”. The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 February 1915. p. 1686.
- ^ “No. 13186”. The Edinburgh Gazette. 1 January 1918. p. 9.
- ^ “No. 27927”. The London Gazette. 29 June 1906. p. 4465.
- ^ “No. 25285”. The London Gazette. 6 November 1883. p. 5243.
- ^ a b c d e “Survey of the Papers of Senior UK Defence Personnel, 1900–1975 – FERGUSSON, Sir Charles, (1865–1951), 7th Baronet, General”. Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014.
- ^ “No. 26677”. The London Gazette. 5 November 1895. p. 5984.
- ^ “No. 27032”. The London Gazette. 13 December 1898. p. 8047.
- ^ “No. 28042”. The London Gazette. 19 July 1907. p. 4942.
- ^ “No. 28067”. The London Gazette. 8 October 1907. p. 6747.
- ^ “No. 28067”. The London Gazette. 8 October 1907. p. 6745.
- ^ “No. 28071”. The London Gazette. 22 October 1907. p. 7042.
- ^ “No. 28179”. The London Gazette. 22 September 1908. p. 6861.
- ^ “No. 28241”. The London Gazette. 13 April 1909. p. 2920.
- ^ “No. 28689”. The London Gazette. 11 February 1913. p. 1057.
- ^ a b c “Fergusson, Sir Charles, of Kilkerran, seventh baronet (1865–1951), army officer and administrator”. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/33111. (Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ Beckett, Ian (16 December 2013). Ypres: The First Battle 1914. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-86534-6.
- ^ Beckett, Ian (16 December 2013). Ypres: The First Battle 1914. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-86534-6.
- ^ “No. 28881”. The London Gazette. 28 August 1914. p. 6798.
- ^ “Army Commands” (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2015.
- ^ “No. 29074”. The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 February 1915. p. 1686.
- ^ “No. 32401”. The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 February 1921. p. 5915.
- ^ McLintock, A. H., ed. (23 April 2009) [First published in 1966]. “Fergusson, General Sir Charles, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., D.S.O., M.V.O., LL.D. (Glasgow), Bt.”. An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Ministry for Culture and Heritage / Te Manatū Taonga. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
- ^ Gavin McLean (October 2006), The Governors, New Zealand Governors and Governors-General, Otago University Press, ISBN 978-1-877372-25-4, archived from the original on 24 June 2013, retrieved 9 August 2010
- ^ “Vice Regal Grand Masters – Who and Why?”. Archived from the original on 9 April 2013.
- ^ Burke, Sir Bernard; Burke, Ashworth P. (1909). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Peerage and baronetage, the Privy Council, Knightage and Companionage. London : Harrison & Sons. pp. 792–793, FERGUSSON. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
