Duncan Sayre MacInnes
Encyclopedia
Brigadier General Duncan Sayre MacInnes DSO
CMG (21 February 1860 - 23 May 1918) was a Canadian soldier and engineer who served in South Africa before, during and after the Second Boer War
. Before a during World War I
, MacInnes played a key role in the establishment and development of the Royal Flying Corps
. He was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918.
at Kingston, Ontario
in 1887, cadet # 236. He graduated with distinction in 1891.
from Hamilton, Ontario
, and his mother was the fourth daughter of Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto
. Duncan Sayre MacInnes married May Millicent Wolferstan Thomas, the daughter of a prominent Montreal banker, Francis Wolferstan Thomas
, and his first wife, Harriet, daughter of The Hon. George Jervis Goodhue
on 22 October 1902. They had one daughter and one son.
on 16 July 1891. Promoted lieutenant on 18 July 1894, he served in the Ashanti expedition of 1895–96. He erected a fort at the Ashanti capital of Kumasi (Ghana
). He was admitted to the Distinguished Service Order
for his work in the Second Boer War
. He was principal staff officer to Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Kekewich
, who commanded the garrison during the siege of the town of Kimberley, South Africa. Between May and November 1900 MacInnes was engaged in field operations in the Orange River Colony.
He served as assistant director of works to the South African Constabulary in the Cape Colony
. In 1904, he and other Canadians celebrated Dominion Day at a banquet in Johannesburg, South Africa. He served as deputy assistant quartermaster general at Halifax, Nova Scotia
in 1906, turning over the fortress and garrison to Canada
. From September 1907 he was deputy assistant adjutant-general, Maritime provinces. On 31 March 1908, he attended the Staff College at Camberley. In 1910, he was gazetted a general staff officer in the Directorate of Military Training at the War Office. Early in 1912 he became secretary to an advisory committee on military aviation of the Committee of Imperial Defence whose recommendations led to the establishment of the Royal Flying Corps.
in August 1914. He was in command of a field company of Royal Engineers, participated in the retreat from Mons, France and in November received a wound which permanently restricted the use of fingers on his right hand. Promoted Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel on 29 November 1915, he went back to the War Office as assistant director of military aeronautics. In 1916, he was appointed director of aircraft equipment, in charge of design, supply, and maintenance, and subsequently made a temporary brigadier-general. Faced with extraordinary demands for more and better aircraft, an overwhelmed system of procurement, and malicious attacks from superiors, an overworked MacInnes suffered a breakdown in the fall of 1916 and he left the directorate that winter.
Retiring by nature and uninterested in honours, he was rewarded with a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on 1 January 1917. He went back to the Western Front to become commanding Royal Engineer to the 42nd Division, in the substantive rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.
During the war he was mentioned in Despatches twice. He was awarded the Russian Order of St Stanislaus, with the French Legion of Honour (Croix d'Officier) in 1917.
In January 1918 he was appointed inspector of mines at general headquarters in Montreuil, France
, and restored to the rank of Brigadier General. MacInnes was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918, possibly as a result of his work with mines, and he was buried at Étaples, France on 25 May 1918.
who is considered the most deserving of those who accept a regular commission in the military occupation of Aerospace Controller by reason of academic standing, character, and proficiency in classification training.
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...
CMG (21 February 1860 - 23 May 1918) was a Canadian soldier and engineer who served in South Africa before, during and after 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...
. Before a during World War I
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...
, MacInnes played a key role in the establishment and development of the Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
. He was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918.
Education
Brigadier-General Duncan Sayre MacInnes (RMC 1892) DSO CMG entered the Royal Military College of CanadaRoyal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
at Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
in 1887, cadet # 236. He graduated with distinction in 1891.
Family
His father was Senator Donald MacInnesDonald MacInnes
Donald MacInnes, born Donald McInnes, was a Canadian businessman and politician.Born in Oban, Scotland, the son of Duncan McInnes and Johanna Stuart, McInnes’s family emigrated to Upper Canada in 1840 and settled in Ontario. He was married on April 30, 1863 to Mary Amelia Robinson, they had five...
from Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, and his mother was the fourth daughter of Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto
Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto
Sir John Beverley Robinson, 1st Baronet CB, was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Upper Canada.Robinson was born in 1791 at Berthier, Lower Canada, the son of Christopher Robinson, a United Empire Loyalist of one of the First Families of Virginia, whose grandfather came there in 1641 as...
. Duncan Sayre MacInnes married May Millicent Wolferstan Thomas, the daughter of a prominent Montreal banker, Francis Wolferstan Thomas
Francis Wolferstan Thomas
Francis Wolferstan Thomas , General Manager of the Molson's Bank, and a philanthropist of Montreal.-Boyhood in England:Born January 9, 1834, at Morwenstow, Cornwall, the son of the Rev...
, and his first wife, Harriet, daughter of The Hon. George Jervis Goodhue
George Jervis Goodhue
George Jervis Goodhue was a Canadian merchant, landowner, and politician.Born in Putney, Vermont, the son of Josiah Goodhue and Rachel Burr, Goodhue came to Canada in 1820. A merchant in London, Ontario, he owned a store, distillery and ashery. He was elected to Township of London Council in 1838...
on 22 October 1902. They had one daughter and one son.
Career
He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Royal EngineersRoyal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
on 16 July 1891. Promoted lieutenant on 18 July 1894, he served in the Ashanti expedition of 1895–96. He erected a fort at the Ashanti capital of Kumasi (Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
). He was admitted to 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...
for his work 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...
. He was principal staff officer to Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Kekewich
Robert Kekewich
Major General Robert George Kekewich CB was a Victorian era British Army officer.Kekewich was the second son of Trehawke Kekewich, of Peamore House, near Exeter, Devon, and the grandson of Samuel Trehawke Kekewich...
, who commanded the garrison during the siege of the town of Kimberley, South Africa. Between May and November 1900 MacInnes was engaged in field operations in the Orange River Colony.
He served as assistant director of works to the South African Constabulary in the Cape Colony
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
. In 1904, he and other Canadians celebrated Dominion Day at a banquet in Johannesburg, South Africa. He served as deputy assistant quartermaster general at Halifax, Nova Scotia
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
in 1906, turning over the fortress and garrison to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. From September 1907 he was deputy assistant adjutant-general, Maritime provinces. On 31 March 1908, he attended the Staff College at Camberley. In 1910, he was gazetted a general staff officer in the Directorate of Military Training at the War Office. Early in 1912 he became secretary to an advisory committee on military aviation of the Committee of Imperial Defence whose recommendations led to the establishment of the Royal Flying Corps.
World War I
In 1913, he was posted to the staff at Camberley, where he remained until the outbreak of World War IWorld 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...
in August 1914. He was in command of a field company of Royal Engineers, participated in the retreat from Mons, France and in November received a wound which permanently restricted the use of fingers on his right hand. Promoted Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel on 29 November 1915, he went back to the War Office as assistant director of military aeronautics. In 1916, he was appointed director of aircraft equipment, in charge of design, supply, and maintenance, and subsequently made a temporary brigadier-general. Faced with extraordinary demands for more and better aircraft, an overwhelmed system of procurement, and malicious attacks from superiors, an overworked MacInnes suffered a breakdown in the fall of 1916 and he left the directorate that winter.
Retiring by nature and uninterested in honours, he was rewarded with a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George on 1 January 1917. He went back to the Western Front to become commanding Royal Engineer to the 42nd Division, in the substantive rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.
During the war he was mentioned in Despatches twice. He was awarded the Russian Order of St Stanislaus, with the French Legion of Honour (Croix d'Officier) in 1917.
In January 1918 he was appointed inspector of mines at general headquarters in Montreuil, France
Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis
Montreuil is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. It is the third most populous suburb of Paris...
, and restored to the rank of Brigadier General. MacInnes was accidentally killed while visiting the front on 23 May 1918, possibly as a result of his work with mines, and he was buried at Étaples, France on 25 May 1918.
Legacy
Colonel C.S. MacInnes instituted the Duncan Sayre MacInnes Memorial Scholarship in 1951 in memory of his brother the late Brigadier-General Duncan Sayre MacInnes, CMG, DSO, Royal Engineers. The scholarship is awarded to the Fourth Year cadet at the Royal Military College of CanadaRoyal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
who is considered the most deserving of those who accept a regular commission in the military occupation of Aerospace Controller by reason of academic standing, character, and proficiency in classification training.