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Sir Charles Carmichael Monro

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

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"SIR CHARLES CARMICHAEL MONRO (1860-), British general, was born June 15 1860 and joined the army in 1879. In 1897-8 he saw service at Malakand, in the Mohmand country, in Bajaur and in Tirah, and he was on the staff in S. Africa during the war, for which he was promoted brevet lieutenant-colonel. He was afterwards commandant of the School of Musketry, and he commanded a brigade from 1907 to 1911. Promoted majorgeneral in 1910, he had charge of a Territorial division in 1912-3 and was then transferred from this to the II. Div. of the Expeditionary Force, which he commanded in the first campaign in France in 1914. On the splitting up of General French's forces into two armies at the end of 1914, Monro was placed in command of the I. Army Corps, and he was shortly afterwards given the K.C.B. Then, on a III. Army being organized in July 1915, having acquitted himself admirably as a divisional and as a corps commander in the field, he was given charge of this. He, however, occupied the position for only three months, as he was chosen in October to take over command of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and to decide whether the campaign in the Gallipoli Peninsula was to be continued; he was at the same time promoted lieutenant-general for dis tinguished service. Monro now acted with rare decision under most difficult circumstances. Although the Government was disposed to cling to the peninsula he insisted upon its abandon ment, and he was after some delay allowed to have his way, with the result that the forces were withdrawn from a most dangerous position without appreciable loss under his general superintendence. His great services on this occasion were recognized by his being given the G.C.M.G., and then, having accomplished what was required in the Near East, he returned to the western front to succeed Sir Douglas Haig in command of the I. Army. He served in that capacity until Oct. 1916, when he was selected to be commander-in-chief in India, with the rank of full general.

In his new sphere of responsibility Sir Charles Monro proved himself to be a military administrator of the foremost rank. By untiring energy and skilful organization he succeeded in adding substantially to the strength of the native army, in creating a number of fresh regiments, and in greatly developing the non-combatant and hospital services on progressive lines. The consequence was that he was enabled to dispatch considerable and badly needed reinforcements to Mesopotamia and to Egypt and Palestine; the triumphs gained by General Allenby in Syria after he had been obliged to send off a large part of his army to the western front in the spring of 1918, were indeed in no small measure due to the work that had been accomplished by the commander-in-chief in India. Monro received the G.C.B. and he remained in India until 1920, when he returned to England.