Frederick Stopford
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant General Sir Frederick William Stopford, KCB
, KCMG
, KCVO
(2 February 1854 - 4 May 1929) was a British Army
officer.
, Stopford was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards
in 1871. He was appointed Aide-de-Camp
to Sir John Adye, Chief of Staff for the Egyptian Expeditionary Force and took part in the Battle of Tel el-Kebir in 1882. He went on to be Aide de camp to Major General Arthur Fremantle
, Commander of the Suakin Expedition
in 1885. He was then made Brigade Major for the Brigade of Guards which had been posted to Egypt.
He returned to England to be Brigade Major of 2nd Infantry Brigade at Aldershot
in 1886. He became Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at Horseguards in 1892 and Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at Aldershot in 1894. He took part in the Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War in 1895 and became Assistant Adjutant General at Horseguards in 1897.
He took part in the Second Boer War
as Military Secretary to General Sir Redvers Buller
and was then Military Secretary to the General Officer Commanding Natal.
He was made Deputy Adjutant General at Aldershot in 1901 and Chief Staff Officer for 1st Army Corps in 1902 before becoming Director of Military Training at Horseguards in 1904. He was Major-General commanding the Brigade of Guards
and General Officer Commanding
London District
from 1906.
He took part in World War I
and, as General Officer Commanding
IX Corps, was blamed for the failure to attack following the Suvla Bay Landing
in August 1915 during the Battle of Gallipoli; however, responsibility ultimately lay with Secretary of State for War
Lord Kitchener
, who had appointed the elderly and inexperienced general to an active corps command, and with Sir Ian Hamilton
, who had accepted Stopford's appointment. Stopford had chosen to command the landing from the sloop
HMS Jonquil, anchored offshore, but slept as the landing was in progress. He retired in 1920. He was quickly replaced by General Byng
.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, KCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, KCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
(2 February 1854 - 4 May 1929) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer.
Military career
Born a younger son of James Stopford, 4th Earl of CourtownJames Stopford, 4th Earl of Courtown
James Thomas Stopford, 4th Earl of Courtown , known as Viscount Stopford from 1810 to 1835, was an Anglo-Irish peer and Tory Member of Parliament....
, Stopford was commissioned into the Grenadier Guards
Grenadier Guards
The Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...
in 1871. He was appointed Aide-de-Camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to Sir John Adye, Chief of Staff for the Egyptian Expeditionary Force and took part in the Battle of Tel el-Kebir in 1882. He went on to be Aide de camp to Major General Arthur Fremantle
Arthur Fremantle
General Sir Arthur James Lyon Fremantle, GCMG, CB was a British soldier, a member of Her Majesty's Coldstream Guards, and a notable British witness to the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War...
, Commander of the Suakin Expedition
Suakin Expedition
The Suakin Expedition refers to two military expeditions led by Major-General Sir Gerald Graham V.C. to Suakin in Sudan with the intention of destroying the power of Osman Digna, the first in February 1884 and the second in March 1885.-The first expedition:...
in 1885. He was then made Brigade Major for the Brigade of Guards which had been posted to Egypt.
He returned to England to be Brigade Major of 2nd Infantry Brigade at Aldershot
Aldershot Command
-History:After the success of the Chobham Manoeuvres of 1853, a permanent training camp was established at Aldershot in 1854 on the recommendation of the Commander-in-Chief, Viscount Hardinge...
in 1886. He became Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at Horseguards in 1892 and Deputy Assistant Adjutant General at Aldershot in 1894. He took part in the Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War in 1895 and became Assistant Adjutant General at Horseguards in 1897.
He took part 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...
as Military Secretary to General Sir Redvers Buller
Redvers Buller
General Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC GCB GCMG was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces....
and was then Military Secretary to the General Officer Commanding Natal.
He was made Deputy Adjutant General at Aldershot in 1901 and Chief Staff Officer for 1st Army Corps in 1902 before becoming Director of Military Training at Horseguards in 1904. He was Major-General commanding the Brigade of Guards
Major-General commanding the Household Division
The Major-General commanding the Household Division commands the troops of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. He is also General Officer Commanding London District.-Recent Commanders:The holders of this office include:...
and General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
London District
London District (British Army)
London District is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. Established in 1870 as Home District, it was re-formed in 1905 as London District to be an independent district within the larger command structure of the army, and has remained so...
from 1906.
He took part in 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...
and, as General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
IX Corps, was blamed for the failure to attack following the Suvla Bay Landing
Landing at Suvla Bay
The landing at Suvla Bay was an amphibious landing made at Suvla on the Aegean coast of Gallipoli peninsula in the Ottoman Empire as part of the August Offensive, the final British attempt to break the deadlock of the Battle of Gallipoli...
in August 1915 during the Battle of Gallipoli; however, responsibility ultimately lay with Secretary of State for War
Secretary of State for War
The position of Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a British cabinet-level position, first held by Henry Dundas . In 1801 the post became that of Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. The position was re-instated in 1854...
Lord Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
, who had appointed the elderly and inexperienced general to an active corps command, and with Sir Ian Hamilton
Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton
General Sir Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton GCB GCMG DSO TD was a general in the British Army and is most notably for commanding the ill-fated Mediterranean Expeditionary Force during the Battle of Gallipoli....
, who had accepted Stopford's appointment. Stopford had chosen to command the landing from the sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
HMS Jonquil, anchored offshore, but slept as the landing was in progress. He retired in 1920. He was quickly replaced by General Byng
Julian Byng, 1st Viscount Byng of Vimy
Field Marshal Julian Hedworth George Byng, 1st Viscount Byng of Vimy was a British Army officer who served as Governor General of Canada, the 12th since Canadian Confederation....
.