General Sir Robert Archibald Cassels, GCB, GCSI, DSO (15 March 1876 – 23 December 1959) was a British Indian Army officer. He was the father of Field Marshal Sir James Cassels.
Sir Robert Cassels | |
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Born | (1876-03-15)15 March 1876 Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India |
Died | 23 December 1959(1959-12-23) (aged 83) Battle, England, United Kingdom |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ | British Indian Army |
Years of service | 1896–1941 |
Rank | General |
Commands held | Commander-in-Chief, India Northern Command, India Peshawar District 18th Indian Division 11th Indian Cavalry Brigade |
Battles/wars | First World War Second World War |
Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Distinguished Service Order Officer of the Legion of Honour (France) |
Relations | Field Marshal Sir James Cassels (son) |
Educated at Sedbergh School and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Cassels was commissioned into the Indian Staff Corps as a second lieutenant on 22 January 1896.[1] He received promotion to lieutenant on 22 April 1898,[2] to captain on 22 January 1905[3] and to major on 22 January 1914.[4]
He went on to serve in the First World War, receiving rapid and successive promotion to temporary lieutenant colonel on 19 January 1916,[5] brevet lieutenant colonel on 3 June 1916,[6] brevet colonel in June 1917,[6] and to temporary brigadier general on 6 August 1917.[7][8][9] In November 1917 he was appointed Commander of 11th Indian Cavalry Brigade and took his brigade on a great turning movement up the left bank of the River Tigris, outflanking the Turks and helping to bring the Mesopotamian Campaign to an end.[10] Following the war, he briefly commanded the 18th Indian Division while it was stationed in the Middle East.[11]
Cassels was promoted to major general on 1 January 1919[12] in the Cavalry in India when he was appointed Commander of Peshawar District.[9] He became Adjutant-General, India in 1928, and was promoted to lieutenant general on 14 April (back-dated to 1 May 1927).[13][14] He was promoted to general on 15 October 1929[15] and appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Northern Command, India in 1930.[9] He was next made Commander-in-Chief, India and a Member of the Executive Council of the Governor-General of India in 1935.[9] He continued in that post into the Second World War and retired in 1941.[9]
Military offices | ||
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Preceded by Sir John Shea |
Adjutant-General, India 1928–1930 |
Succeeded by Sir Norman MacMullen |
Preceded by Sir Alexander Cobbe |
GOC-in-C, Northern Command, India 1930–1934 |
Succeeded by |
Preceded by Sir Philip Chetwode |
Commander-in-Chief, India 1935–1941 |
Succeeded by Sir Claude Auchinleck |
Commander-in-Chief, India | ||
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East India Company |
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British India |
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