Gilbert Mackereth
Encyclopedia
Sir Gilbert Mackereth KCMG MC
(19 October 1892 – 11 January 1962) was a decorated British Army
officer of the First World War who subsequently served as a British diplomat
, most notably as Ambassador to Colombia from 1947 to 1953.
He began his army service in the ranks
in 1914 but after being commissioned in 1916 rapidly rose through the ranks and became a battalion commander. As a subaltern he was decorated for the rescue of a group of soldiers under heavy fire in 1917.
He left the army on 24 April 1919 and joined the diplomatic service. He held several consular positions in northern Africa and the Middle East before and during the Second World War. Post-war he was posted to the newly liberated Dutch East Indies
, before being posted to Bogotá
in 1947.
In retirement he lived in Spain
, where he died and was buried. Although his grave was saved from disturbance following threats from Spanish authorities in May 201, in November 2011 his remains were reburied in a garden of remembrance at the Fusilier Museum in Bury, Greater Manchester. Mackereth is believed to be the first soldier from WW1 to be repatriated to England since the burial of the Unknown Soldier at Westminster Abbey in 1920.
, Greater Manchester
, on 19 October 1892. His father, Thomas, was a bank manager born Eccles in 1st Qr 1864.
His mother Annie was born at Bolton
, and his paternal grandfather, Thomas, was minister of the New Jerusalem Church
, Higher Bridge Street, Bolton
.
which was a rather unusual unit, raised at Epsom
on 11 September 1914 as one of the battalions of Kitchener's Army
from the "Public Schools and University Mens Force". It served in France in the 98th Brigade, which formed part of 33rd Division. It was transferred under the direct authority of Haig's General Headquarters on 27 February 1916, and disbanded on 24 April 1916, with a high proportion of the men (like Mackereth) going on to take commissions in other units.
in the Lancashire Fusiliers
. He was promoted lieutenant
on 4 February 1917. In April 1917 during the capture of Gricourt
following the German’s withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, he rescued a stranded group of soldiers in no man's land
. As a result, on 18 June 1917 he was awarded the Military Cross
, the citation read:
The details on his medal card indicate that he first entered a theatre of war on 14 November 1915, when he was a private in 21st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (4th Public Schools Battalion). He was awarded the Victory Medal
, the British War Medal
and the 1914–15 Star; the MC on his medal card denotes the Military Cross
he was awarded. He was also Mentioned in Despatches, which entitled him to wear an oak leaf emblem on the ribbon of the Victory Medal.
On 1 May 1917 he was appointed adjutant
, and became an acting captain
on 3 August 1917. On 21 August 1917 he received a serious leg wound during an attack on Canal Wood south of Cambrai. He was in hospital for 5 months and did not rejoin the 17th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers in France until 15 June 1918. He retained the appointment of adjutant until 19 June 1918, when he reverted to the rank of lieutenant until 4 July when he was promoted acting major and second-in-command of the battalion. The rank of major was later made substantive and back-dated to 21 May 1918. On 26 August 1918 he was promoted acting lieutenant-colonel and became temporary commanding officer of 17th Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers. He reverted to major and battalion second-in-command on 13 September 1918, but took command again as an acting lieutenant-colonel on 29 October, this time remaining in command until 24 April 1919.
He was demobilised at this time, reverting to his Special Reserve rank of lieutenant.
and married his wife Muriel while posted to Jerusalem in 1921. He worked as a vice-consul at consulates
across northern Africa; being posted to Tangier
on 1 April 1923; and Fez, Morocco on 18 October 1923, his area of responsibility was widened in November 1926, but he continued to reside at Fez; He moved to Addis Ababa
on 2 November 1930. He returned to the Middle East in 1933 when he was appointed to be consul for the Sanjaks of Damascus, Horns, Hama, and of the Hauran and the Governorate of the Djebel Druze on 10 January, residing at Damascus; a role he continued until 1939. In 1937 he advised an increase in border patrol around Palestine due to the high numbers of Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazism
in Hitler's Germany
; the French were at this time in control of Damascus since the Versailles Conference
had granted France a mandate over Syria
.
Documents known as the Tegart Collection contain correspondence from 1938 with Syrian and Transjordan authorities that relate to border control and security to counteract arms smuggling and terrorist infiltration along with Mackereth's report.
A set of documents known as the Sir Edward Spears Papers, dated between June 1944 to January 1945, contain references to telegrams regarding Mackereth, then Counsellor at the British Legation, Beirut, to the Foreign Office on the situation in Syria and the Lebanon. In these communications there are attempts by Sir Edward Spears to have Mackereth transferred or dismissed for alleged bad handling of economic affairs. The correspondence from Spears also mentions tyre imports and distribution in Syria, and relations with the Bedouin
with annotated weekly political summaries from Damascus with reports on the economic situation in the Levant. Spears' attempts to disturb Mackereth's career failed.
On 11 March 1940 Mackereth returned to Addis Ababa, now as Consul General. On 30 April 1941 he was appointed a Consul General at "Angora" as the British then called Ankara
, Turkey. On 26 March 1945 he took up the same appointment for French Morocco
, residing at Rabat
.
In the aftermath of the Second World War, Mackereth was appointed Consul General in the Dutch East Indies
(now Indonesia
), residing at Batavia, on 13 March 1946, where he helped restore order following the Japanese surrender. He was given a personal promotion to the Fourth Grade of the Foreign Service from the same date. He ended his career as Ambassador to Colombia from 19 December 1947 to 1953.
. The London Gazette
announcement read:
, Northern Spain. Following his death on 11 January 1962, age 69, his body was interred at San Sebastián
. The headstone reads "In Loving Memory of Sir Gilbert Mackereth KCMG MC". His wife returned to England and died 1979. They were childless, so following her death, his tomb in Spain became neglected.
A hunt commenced on 5 May 2010 for descendants who may still live in or near to Bolton
assisted by the Bolton News. As a result of press coverage, offers of assistance to pay the taxes were immediately received from members of the public in Britain and overseas. Terry Dean of the Western Front Association, North Lancashire Branch who had discovered the risk to Mackereth's grave brought the matter to the attention of the British media and resulted in articles appearing on the BBC website and in The Daily Telegraph
and other newspapers on 6 May 2010, offers of assistance were immediately received from members of the public and saw a widespread appeal for information in the hunt for living relatives. Sir Robert Atkins
MEP contacted Spanish authorities on 7 May 2010 asking them not to touch the grave. Terry Dean also successfully traced living relatives of Mackereth: on 10 May 2010, it was reported that one of Mackereth's first cousins, Mr John Sloan, had been located. He accepted an offer from The Sun
to pay the outstanding taxes and thus save the grave from being disturbed.
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
(19 October 1892 – 11 January 1962) was a decorated 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 of the First World War who subsequently served as a British diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
, most notably as Ambassador to Colombia from 1947 to 1953.
He began his army service in the ranks
Other Ranks
Other Ranks in the British Army, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force are those personnel who are not commissioned officers. In the Royal Navy, these personnel are called ratings...
in 1914 but after being commissioned in 1916 rapidly rose through the ranks and became a battalion commander. As a subaltern he was decorated for the rescue of a group of soldiers under heavy fire in 1917.
He left the army on 24 April 1919 and joined the diplomatic service. He held several consular positions in northern Africa and the Middle East before and during the Second World War. Post-war he was posted to the newly liberated Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
, before being posted to Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
in 1947.
In retirement he lived in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, where he died and was buried. Although his grave was saved from disturbance following threats from Spanish authorities in May 201, in November 2011 his remains were reburied in a garden of remembrance at the Fusilier Museum in Bury, Greater Manchester. Mackereth is believed to be the first soldier from WW1 to be repatriated to England since the burial of the Unknown Soldier at Westminster Abbey in 1920.
Early life
Gilbert Mackereth was born an only child in SalfordCity of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, on 19 October 1892. His father, Thomas, was a bank manager born Eccles in 1st Qr 1864.
His mother Annie was born at Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
, and his paternal grandfather, Thomas, was minister of the New Jerusalem Church
The New Church
The New Church is the name for a New religious movement developed from the writings of the Swedish scientist and theologian Emanuel Swedenborg . Swedenborg claimed to have received a new revelation from Jesus Christ through continuous heavenly visions which he experienced over a period of at least...
, Higher Bridge Street, Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
.
Military career
21st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers
Mackereth enlisted shortly after the outbreak of war on 19 November 1914 as a private with the Royal Fusiliers and he gave his occupation as "Insurance Surveyor". He joined the 21st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, also known as 4th Public Schools BattalionPublic Schools Battalion
The Public Schools Battalions were British First World War Pals battalions of Kitchener's Army, originally made up exclusively of former public schoolboys...
which was a rather unusual unit, raised at Epsom
Epsom
Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England. Small parts of Epsom are in the Borough of Reigate and Banstead. The town is located south-south-west of Charing Cross, within the Greater London Urban Area. The town lies on the chalk downland of Epsom Downs.-History:Epsom lies...
on 11 September 1914 as one of the battalions of Kitchener's Army
Kitchener's Army
The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, Kitchener's Mob, was an all-volunteer army formed in the United Kingdom following the outbreak of hostilities in the First World War...
from the "Public Schools and University Mens Force". It served in France in the 98th Brigade, which formed part of 33rd Division. It was transferred under the direct authority of Haig's General Headquarters on 27 February 1916, and disbanded on 24 April 1916, with a high proportion of the men (like Mackereth) going on to take commissions in other units.
17th Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers
Mackereth was commissioned on 6 July 1916 as a second lieutenantSecond Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in the Lancashire Fusiliers
Lancashire Fusiliers
The Lancashire Fusiliers was a British infantry regiment that was amalgamated with other Fusilier regiments in 1968 to form the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.- Formation and early history:...
. He was promoted lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
on 4 February 1917. In April 1917 during the capture of Gricourt
Gricourt
Gricourt is a commune in the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France....
following the German’s withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, he rescued a stranded group of soldiers in no man's land
No man's land
No man's land is a term for land that is unoccupied or is under dispute between parties that leave it unoccupied due to fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dumping ground for refuse between fiefdoms...
. As a result, on 18 June 1917 he was awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
, the citation read:
The details on his medal card indicate that he first entered a theatre of war on 14 November 1915, when he was a private in 21st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (4th Public Schools Battalion). He was awarded the Victory Medal
Victory Medal (United Kingdom)
The Victory Medal is a campaign medal - of which the basic design and ribbon was adopted by Belgium, Brazil, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Siam, Union of South Africa and the USA in accordance with decisions as taken at the Inter-Allied Peace Conference at...
, the British War Medal
British War Medal
The British War Medal was a campaign medal of the British Empire, for service in World War I.The medal was approved in 1919, for issue to officers and men of British and Imperial forces who had rendered service between 5 August 1914 and 11 November 1918...
and the 1914–15 Star; the MC on his medal card denotes the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
he was awarded. He was also Mentioned in Despatches, which entitled him to wear an oak leaf emblem on the ribbon of the Victory Medal.
On 1 May 1917 he was appointed adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
, and became an acting captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
on 3 August 1917. On 21 August 1917 he received a serious leg wound during an attack on Canal Wood south of Cambrai. He was in hospital for 5 months and did not rejoin the 17th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers in France until 15 June 1918. He retained the appointment of adjutant until 19 June 1918, when he reverted to the rank of lieutenant until 4 July when he was promoted acting major and second-in-command of the battalion. The rank of major was later made substantive and back-dated to 21 May 1918. On 26 August 1918 he was promoted acting lieutenant-colonel and became temporary commanding officer of 17th Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers. He reverted to major and battalion second-in-command on 13 September 1918, but took command again as an acting lieutenant-colonel on 29 October, this time remaining in command until 24 April 1919.
He was demobilised at this time, reverting to his Special Reserve rank of lieutenant.
British Diplomat
After leaving the Army, Mackereth joined the Diplomatic ServiceHer Majesty's Diplomatic Service
Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom, dealing with foreign affairs, as opposed to the Home Civil Service, which deals with domestic affairs...
and married his wife Muriel while posted to Jerusalem in 1921. He worked as a vice-consul at consulates
Consul (representative)
The political title Consul is used for the official representatives of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, and to facilitate trade and friendship between the peoples of the two countries...
across northern Africa; being posted to Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
on 1 April 1923; and Fez, Morocco on 18 October 1923, his area of responsibility was widened in November 1926, but he continued to reside at Fez; He moved to Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
on 2 November 1930. He returned to the Middle East in 1933 when he was appointed to be consul for the Sanjaks of Damascus, Horns, Hama, and of the Hauran and the Governorate of the Djebel Druze on 10 January, residing at Damascus; a role he continued until 1939. In 1937 he advised an increase in border patrol around Palestine due to the high numbers of Jewish immigrants fleeing Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
in Hitler's Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
; the French were at this time in control of Damascus since the Versailles Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
had granted France a mandate over Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
Documents known as the Tegart Collection contain correspondence from 1938 with Syrian and Transjordan authorities that relate to border control and security to counteract arms smuggling and terrorist infiltration along with Mackereth's report.
A set of documents known as the Sir Edward Spears Papers, dated between June 1944 to January 1945, contain references to telegrams regarding Mackereth, then Counsellor at the British Legation, Beirut, to the Foreign Office on the situation in Syria and the Lebanon. In these communications there are attempts by Sir Edward Spears to have Mackereth transferred or dismissed for alleged bad handling of economic affairs. The correspondence from Spears also mentions tyre imports and distribution in Syria, and relations with the Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
with annotated weekly political summaries from Damascus with reports on the economic situation in the Levant. Spears' attempts to disturb Mackereth's career failed.
On 11 March 1940 Mackereth returned to Addis Ababa, now as Consul General. On 30 April 1941 he was appointed a Consul General at "Angora" as the British then called Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
, Turkey. On 26 March 1945 he took up the same appointment for French Morocco
French Morocco
French Protectorate of Morocco was a French protectorate in Morocco, established by the Treaty of Fez. French Morocco did not include the north of the country, which was a Spanish protectorate...
, residing at Rabat
Rabat
Rabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000...
.
In the aftermath of the Second World War, Mackereth was appointed Consul General in the Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
(now Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
), residing at Batavia, on 13 March 1946, where he helped restore order following the Japanese surrender. He was given a personal promotion to the Fourth Grade of the Foreign Service from the same date. He ended his career as Ambassador to Colombia from 19 December 1947 to 1953.
Honours and knighthood
Mackereth was appointed Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 1939 King's Birthday Honours. In recognition of his work as British ambassador, he was promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) in the 1952 New Year HonoursNew Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...
. The London Gazette
London Gazette
The London Gazette is one of the official journals of record of the British government, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are required to be published...
announcement read:
Death
Mackereth and his wife Muriel retired to San SebastiánSan Sebastián
Donostia-San Sebastián is a city and municipality located in the north of Spain, in the coast of the Bay of Biscay and 20 km away from the French border. The city is the capital of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. The municipality’s population is 186,122 , and its...
, Northern Spain. Following his death on 11 January 1962, age 69, his body was interred at San Sebastián
San Sebastián
Donostia-San Sebastián is a city and municipality located in the north of Spain, in the coast of the Bay of Biscay and 20 km away from the French border. The city is the capital of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. The municipality’s population is 186,122 , and its...
. The headstone reads "In Loving Memory of Sir Gilbert Mackereth KCMG MC". His wife returned to England and died 1979. They were childless, so following her death, his tomb in Spain became neglected.
Preservation of tomb
In May 2010, the San Sebastián authorities generated an outcry in response to proposals to exhume and re-bury his body as a result of unpaid burial taxes.A hunt commenced on 5 May 2010 for descendants who may still live in or near to Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
assisted by the Bolton News. As a result of press coverage, offers of assistance to pay the taxes were immediately received from members of the public in Britain and overseas. Terry Dean of the Western Front Association, North Lancashire Branch who had discovered the risk to Mackereth's grave brought the matter to the attention of the British media and resulted in articles appearing on the BBC website and in The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
and other newspapers on 6 May 2010, offers of assistance were immediately received from members of the public and saw a widespread appeal for information in the hunt for living relatives. Sir Robert Atkins
Robert Atkins (politician)
Sir Robert James Atkins is a British Conservative politician. Educated at Highgate School, he served as a councillor for the London Borough of Haringey from 1968 to 1977. He was the Member of Parliament for Preston North and South Ribble from 1979 to 1997 and became a Member of the European...
MEP contacted Spanish authorities on 7 May 2010 asking them not to touch the grave. Terry Dean also successfully traced living relatives of Mackereth: on 10 May 2010, it was reported that one of Mackereth's first cousins, Mr John Sloan, had been located. He accepted an offer from The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
to pay the outstanding taxes and thus save the grave from being disturbed.