Francis Kelly (British Army officer)

Major-General Francis Henry Kelly CB CMG (26 July 1859 – 18 March 1937) was Commander of British Troops in South China.

Francis Henry Kelly
Kelly in 1916
Born26 July 1859
Clifton, Bristol
Died18 March 1937 (1937-03-19) (aged 77)
Camberley, Surrey
Buried
Rochester Cathedral
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
RankMajor-General
Commands heldKarachi Brigade
Ahmednagar Brigade
Commander of British Troops in South China
69th (2nd East Anglian) Division
Battles/warsWorld War I
AwardsCompanion of the Order of the Bath
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George

Military career

Kelly was commissioned into the Royal Engineers as a lieutenant on 6 April 1879.[1] He took part in the Burma expedition in 1885, was promoted to captain on 1 April 1889, and then went to the North West Frontier in India in 1897 where he participated in the Tirah Campaign, during which he was promoted to major on 1 October 1897.[1] Following the campaign he received a brevet promotion to lieutenant-colonel on 20 May 1898.[2]

He was appointed temporary assistant adjutant-general in Quetta District on 23 June 1900 (while the actual A.A.G. served in the Boxer Rebellion in China),[3] serving as such for several years. He was further appointed Commander of the Karachi Brigade in 1905 and Commander of the Ahmednagar Brigade in 1907.[1] After that he became Commander of British Troops in South China in 1913[4] and General Officer Commanding 69th (2nd East Anglian) Division in November 1915 during the First World War before retiring in 1918.[1]

After the War he became a Regional Director at the Ministry of Pensions.[1]

Memorial in Rochester Cathedral

References
  1. "Kelly, Francis Henry". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  2. Hart′s Army list, 1903
  3. "No. 27469". The London Gazette. 29 August 1902. p. 5610.
  4. Hong Kong Legislative Council
Military offices
Preceded by
Sir Charles Anderson		 Commander of British Troops in South China
1913–1915		 Succeeded by
Francis Ventris
Preceded by
William Cavaye		 GOC 69th (2nd East Anglian) Division
1915−1917		 Succeeded by
Charles Ross
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.