Reginald Hildyard
Encyclopedia
General Sir
Reginald John Thoroton Hildyard KCB
CMG
DSO
(11 December 1876 – 29 September 1965) was a British Army
general who saw active service in the Second Boer War
and the First World War
.
He was Governor
and Commander-in-Chief
of Bermuda
from 1936 to 1939.
, by his marriage to Annette, the daughter of Admiral James Charles Prevost
, Hildyard's brothers were Harold Charles Thoroton Hildyard (born 1872) and Gerald Moresby Thoroton Hildyard (1874–1956). He also had one sister, Edith Mary Thoroton Hildyard.
Hildyard joined the British Army
in 1896. He was promoted Captain
in 1904, Major
in 1915, Colonel
in 1919, Major General
in 1929, Lieutenant General
in 1934, and General in 1938.
Hildyard served in South Africa
during the Second Boer War
of 1899–1902, receiving the Queen's Medal
with four clasps and the King's Medal
with two clasps; from 1900 to 1903 he was employed with the South African Constabulary and served as Aide-de-camp
to the Lieutenant General
commanding in South Africa, from 1904 to 1905, then as ADC to the General Officer Commanding
, Africa, from 1905 to 1908. He was a General Staff Officer (3rd grade) at the War Office
from 1911 to 1913, then Brigade-Major in the Southern Command, 1913 to 1914, and passed the Staff College. He served in the European War
of 1914–1918, was seven times mentioned in despatches, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
and appointed CMG
. He was Brigade Commander of the 2nd Rhine Brigade from 1928 to 1929, then Commander of the 43rd (Wessex) Division, Territorial Army, 1930–1934.
From 1936 to 1939, Hildyard was Governor and Commander-in-Chief
of Bermuda
. He retired the service in 1939.
He died on 29 September 1965 and at the time of his death was living at South Hartfield House, Coleman's Hatch, Sussex
.
Sir
Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
Reginald John Thoroton Hildyard KCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
CMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(11 December 1876 – 29 September 1965) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
general who saw active service in the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
and the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
He was Governor
Governor of Bermuda
The Governor of Bermuda is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territory of Bermuda. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government...
and Commander-in-Chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
of Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
from 1936 to 1939.
Life
The third son of General Sir Henry HildyardHenry Hildyard
General Sir Henry John Thoroton Hildyard GCB was a British Army general who saw active service in the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882 and the Second Boer War.He was General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South Africa, from 1905 to 1908....
, by his marriage to Annette, the daughter of Admiral James Charles Prevost
James Charles Prevost
James Charles Prevost was an admiral in the British Royal Navy.He was born in Bedhampton, Hampshire, England and joined the navy in 1823 and by 1850 was a Commander aboard the HMS Portland, flagship of Rear Admiral Sir Fairfax Moresby, whose daughter he married on 18 October 1842, they had five...
, Hildyard's brothers were Harold Charles Thoroton Hildyard (born 1872) and Gerald Moresby Thoroton Hildyard (1874–1956). He also had one sister, Edith Mary Thoroton Hildyard.
Hildyard joined the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in 1896. He was promoted Captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
in 1904, Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in 1915, Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in 1919, Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
in 1929, Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General 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 normally subordinate to a Captain General....
in 1934, and General in 1938.
Hildyard served in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
during the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
of 1899–1902, receiving the Queen's Medal
Queen's South Africa Medal
The Queen's South Africa Medal was awarded to military personnel who served in the Boer War in South Africa between 11 October 1899 and 31 May 1902. Units from the British Army, Royal Navy, colonial forces who took part , civilians employed in official capacity and war correspondents...
with four clasps and the King's Medal
King's South Africa Medal
The King's South Africa Medal was awarded to all troops who served in the Boer War in South Africa on or after 1 January 1902, and completed 18 months service before 1 June 1902. The medal was not issued alone but always with the Queen's South Africa Medal or QSA.The KSA was awarded only to those...
with two clasps; from 1900 to 1903 he was employed with the South African Constabulary and served as Aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to the Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General 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 normally subordinate to a Captain General....
commanding in South Africa, from 1904 to 1905, then as ADC to the General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
, Africa, from 1905 to 1908. He was a General Staff Officer (3rd grade) at the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
from 1911 to 1913, then Brigade-Major in the Southern Command, 1913 to 1914, and passed the Staff College. He served in the European War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
of 1914–1918, was seven times mentioned in despatches, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
and appointed CMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
. He was Brigade Commander of the 2nd Rhine Brigade from 1928 to 1929, then Commander of the 43rd (Wessex) Division, Territorial Army, 1930–1934.
From 1936 to 1939, Hildyard was Governor and Commander-in-Chief
Governor of Bermuda
The Governor of Bermuda is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territory of Bermuda. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the British government...
of Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
. He retired the service in 1939.
He died on 29 September 1965 and at the time of his death was living at South Hartfield House, Coleman's Hatch, Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
.
Private life
On 23 November 1911, Hildyard married Muriel Mary Bonsor (1887–1975), the daughter of Sir Cosmo Bonsor, 1st Baronet, by his second marriage to Mabel Grace Brand.Honours
- DSODistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
1915 - CMGOrder of St Michael and St GeorgeThe Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
1917 - CBOrder of the BathThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
1928 - KCBOrder of the BathThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
1936