George_Willis_(British_Army_officer)
George Willis (British Army officer)
British Army general
General Sir George Harry Smith Willis GCB (11 November 1823 – 29 November 1900) was a British Army General who achieved high office in the 1880s.
Sir George Willis | |
|---|---|
Sir George Willis | |
| Born | 11 November 1823 Sopley, Hampshire, England |
| Died | 29 November 1900 (1900-11-30) (aged 77) Bournemouth, Hampshire, England |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service/ |  British Army |
| Years of service | 1841–1890 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Northern District |
| Battles/wars | Crimean War Anglo-Egyptian War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
He was born at Sopley Park in Sopley, Hampshire.
Willis was commissioned into the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment in 1841.[1] He served in the Crimean War and at the Battle of Inkerman he led the charge of a Grenadier company.[1] He returned to England in 1857 to become Commanding Officer of 2nd Bn 6th (Warwickshire) Regiment.[1] He was appointed Assistant Quartermaster-General at the War Office in 1873 and then General Officer Commanding Northern District in April 1878.[1]
In 1882 he was dispatched to Egypt and commanded troops at Al-Magfar and Tell al-Mahuta during the Anglo-Egyptian War.[1] He was involved in the capture of Mahsama and the Second battle of Kassassin.[1]
In 1884 he was appointed GOC Southern District, retiring in 1890.[1] Later in that year he was made Colonel of the Devonshire Regiment, but transferred in 1897 as Colonel to The Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), a position he held until his death.[2]
He died in Bournemouth in 1900 and is buried at St Michael & All Angels Church in Sopley.[3]
In 1856 he married Eliza Morgan,[1][4] daughter[4] of George Gould Morgan, M.P., of Brickendonbury, Hertfordshire. In 1874 he married Ada Mary Neeld, daughter[4] of Sir John Neeld and together they went on to have four sons.[5]
- "No. 27263". The London Gazette. 4 January 1901. p. 83.
- "Sopley Church". Archived from the original on 2 December 2009. Retrieved 12 December 2009.
- "Royal Garrison Church - General Sir George Willis -". Memorials and Monuments in Portsmouth. Archived from the original on 1 May 2009.
- Vetch, Robert Hamilton (1901). "Willis, George Harry Smith" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | GOC Northern District 1878–1881 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | GOC Southern District 1884–1889 |
Succeeded by |