John Capper
Encyclopedia
Major-General
Sir John Edward Capper KCB
KCVO
(7 December 1861 – 24 May 1955) was a senior officer of the British Army
during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who served on the North-West Frontier
of British India, in South Africa
and during the First World War, where he was instrumental in the development of the tank
.
An experienced engineer, Capper was involved in numerous building projects during his years in India and pioneered the development of airships in Britain. He helped establish and command several military training establishments in Britain, was involved in large-scale military planning during 1918 and 1919 and was pivotal in establishing the tank as an important feature of the British Army. Although Capper was sometimes described as pompous and possessing poor communication skills, earning the nickname Stone Age for his attitude towards the ideas of junior officers in the Royal Tank Corps, he nevertheless played a vital role in the development and deployment of armoured vehicles in the British Army.
, India to civil servant William Copeland Capper and his wife Sarah in December 1861. Returning to England at a young age for education, Capper attended Wellington College
and upon leaving in 1880 enrolled in the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich and was subsequently commissioned into the Royal Engineers
as a lieutenant. A capable engineering officer, Capper served in India and Burma for most of the first 17 years of his career, principally employed on military and public construction projects. He performed well in this position, being promoted to captain
in 1889.
In 1897, Capper was attached to the force dispatched to the Tirah Campaign
on the North-West Frontier of British India. At the campaign's successful conclusion, he was promoted to major
and transferred to South Africa
while his wife Edith Mary (neé Beausire) and their son John Beausire Copeland Capper returned to England. Arriving in South Africa at the outbreak of the Second Boer War
, Capper became deputy assistant director of railways, a vital job given the lengthy and dangerous supply routes along which the war was fought. In 1900, he received the brevet
rank of lieutenant colonel and commanded several locally raised units, eventually becoming the commandant at Johannesburg
. On 31 October 1902, he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
Returning to England as a full colonel
at the war's conclusion he settled with his family at Bramdean House in Alresford
, and was attached to the School of Ballooning
, the Army's training and experimental establishment at Aldershot
, under the command of Col James Templer
. He was made Superintendent of the Royal Balloon Factory, and was placed in charge of developing Britain's first military airship, the Nulli Secundus In 1906 he became Superintendent of the Balloon Factory.
He piloted the first successful British airship flight, that of the Nulli Secundus over London
during 1907. On Templer's retirement from service in 1908 Capper became commander of th entire balloon establishment. In 1909 the Balloon Factory was removed from the command of the Army and a new superintendent, Mervyn O'Gorman, appointed. Capper remained in command of the Balloon School, but left in 1910, being transferred to command of the Royal School of Military Engineering
at Chatham, which he ran until September 1914 when the lack of experienced officers forced his transfer to France
in the early months of the First World War.
. In October, following the deaths of several senior officers at the Battle of Loos
, including Capper's younger brother Major-General Sir Thompson Capper
, he was promoted to overall command of the 24th Division
. Capper remained in command of the division for the next 18 months, including periods of heavy fighting at the Battle of the Somme, in which his son John was killed in action serving with the Royal Artillery
. The division also spent extensive periods of time in other sections of the line and gained extensive battle experience at the cost of high casualties. As a reward for his service in command of the division, he was presented with the Commander's Cross of the Légion d'honneur
by the French government.
In May 1917, he was recalled to England, initially to run the Machine-Gun Corps training centre and from 28 July hold the position of Director-General of the newly formed Tank Corps at the War Office
. Operational command of tanks at the frontlines was in the hands of Hugh Elles
, the first commander of the Heavy Branch. Although tanks had first been introduced on the Somme the year before, their design and manufacture were both inadequate and the tactics of their deployment almost non-existent. Capper's job at the Tank Corps was to shape the organisation of the unit into an efficient battlefield force, improve mechanical reliability and develop effective tactics. It was in this role that Capper was given the nickname Stone Age, as his subordinates considered him to be unwilling to accept new innovations in tank tactics. In fact, Capper was an able tactician who worked with General J. F. C. Fuller to develop a plan for a large scale armoured assault on German lines in 1919 (known as Plan 1919
): his subordinates' prejudices were based on Capper's rigid adherence to the military hierarchy and his consequent failure to communicate his ideas to those below his rank. For his services as Director General of the Tank Corps, Capper was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.
During the Second World War, Capper joined the Hampshire
Home Guard and remained on duty with the unit until 1943. Post-War he retired fully to Bramdean House and remained there until shortly before his death. He was widowed in 1953 and died at Esperance Nursing Home in Eastbourne
in May 1955, leaving a daughter. In 1971, his collected papers, and those of his brother Thompson, who had been an instructor at the Staff College, Camberley
, were donated to the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives at King's College London
where they are still available to researchers.
Major-General (United Kingdom)
Major general is a senior rank in the British Army. Since 1996 the highest position within the Royal Marines is the Commandant General Royal Marines who holds the rank of major general...
Sir John Edward Capper KCB
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...
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...
(7 December 1861 – 24 May 1955) was a senior officer of the 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...
during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who served on the North-West Frontier
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
of British India, in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and during the First World War, where he was instrumental in the development of the tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
.
An experienced engineer, Capper was involved in numerous building projects during his years in India and pioneered the development of airships in Britain. He helped establish and command several military training establishments in Britain, was involved in large-scale military planning during 1918 and 1919 and was pivotal in establishing the tank as an important feature of the British Army. Although Capper was sometimes described as pompous and possessing poor communication skills, earning the nickname Stone Age for his attitude towards the ideas of junior officers in the Royal Tank Corps, he nevertheless played a vital role in the development and deployment of armoured vehicles in the British Army.
India, South Africa and airships
John Capper was born in LucknowLucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
, India to civil servant William Copeland Capper and his wife Sarah in December 1861. Returning to England at a young age for education, Capper attended Wellington College
Wellington College, Berkshire
-Former pupils:Notable former pupils include historian P. J. Marshall, architect Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, impressionist Rory Bremner, Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge, author Sebastian Faulks, language school pioneer John Haycraft, political journalist Robin Oakley, actor Sir Christopher...
and upon leaving in 1880 enrolled in the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich and was subsequently commissioned into the Royal Engineers
Royal 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....
as a lieutenant. A capable engineering officer, Capper served in India and Burma for most of the first 17 years of his career, principally employed on military and public construction projects. He performed well in this position, being promoted to 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...
in 1889.
Tirah Campaign
The Tirah Campaign, often referred to in contemporary British accounts as the Tirah Expedition, was an Indian frontier war in 1897–98. Tirah is a mountainous tract of country.-Rebellion:...
on the North-West Frontier of British India. At the campaign's successful conclusion, he was promoted to major
Major (UK)
In the British military, major is a military rank which is used by both the British Army and Royal Marines. The rank insignia for a major is a crown...
and transferred to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
while his wife Edith Mary (neé Beausire) and their son John Beausire Copeland Capper returned to England. Arriving in South Africa at the outbreak of 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...
, Capper became deputy assistant director of railways, a vital job given the lengthy and dangerous supply routes along which the war was fought. In 1900, he received the brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
rank of lieutenant colonel and commanded several locally raised units, eventually becoming the commandant at Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
. On 31 October 1902, he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
Returning to England as a full colonel
Colonel (UK)
Colonel is a rank of the British forces, ranking below Brigadier, and above Lieutenant Colonel. British Colonels are not usually field commanders; typically they serve as staff officers between field commands at battalion and brigade level. The insignia is two diamond shaped pips below a crown...
at the war's conclusion he settled with his family at Bramdean House in Alresford
Old Alresford
Old Alresford is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England. It is situated some 1 km north of the town of New Alresford, 12 km north-east of the city of Winchester, and 20 km south-west of the town of Alton....
, and was attached to the School of Ballooning
School of Ballooning
The School of Ballooning was a training and test centre for British Army experiments with balloons and airships. It was established at Chatham in Kent in 1888. The School moved to Stanhope Lines, Aldershot in 1890 when a balloon section and depot were formed as permanent units of the Royal...
, the Army's training and experimental establishment at Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
, under the command of Col James Templer
James Templer
Colonel James Lethbridge Brooke Templer was an early British military pioneer of balloons. He was an officer in the King's Royal Rifle Corps and Royal Engineers. Templer set out a scientific foundation for British military ballooning...
. He was made Superintendent of the Royal Balloon Factory, and was placed in charge of developing Britain's first military airship, the Nulli Secundus In 1906 he became Superintendent of the Balloon Factory.
He piloted the first successful British airship flight, that of the Nulli Secundus over London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
during 1907. On Templer's retirement from service in 1908 Capper became commander of th entire balloon establishment. In 1909 the Balloon Factory was removed from the command of the Army and a new superintendent, Mervyn O'Gorman, appointed. Capper remained in command of the Balloon School, but left in 1910, being transferred to command of the Royal School of Military Engineering
Royal School of Military Engineering
The Royal School of Military Engineering is the main training establishment for the British Army's Royal Engineers. After they have successfully completed their Phase 1 - Basic Soldier Training, members of the Corps of Royal Engineers attend 3 RSME, at Minley for Phase 2a - Combat Engineering...
at Chatham, which he ran until September 1914 when the lack of experienced officers forced his transfer to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the early months of the First World War.
First World War
As a brigadier-general, Capper was first made deputy inspector of the lines of communication before being given the post of Chief Engineer to the Third Corps. In July 1915 he was promoted to major-general and made chief engineer of the British Third ArmyBritish Third Army
-First World War :The Third Army was part of the British Army during World War I and was formed in France on 13 July 1915. The battles it took part in on the Western Front included:*Battle of the Somme*Battle of Cambrai*Second Battle of Arras...
. In October, following the deaths of several senior officers at the Battle of Loos
Battle of Loos
The Battle of Loos was one of the major British offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. It marked the first time the British used poison gas during the war, and is also famous for the fact that it witnessed the first large-scale use of 'new' or Kitchener's Army...
, including Capper's younger brother Major-General Sir Thompson Capper
Thompson Capper
Major General Sir Thompson Capper KCMG CB DSO was a highly decorated and senior British Army officer who served with distinction in the Second Boer War and was a divisional commander during the First World War...
, he was promoted to overall command of the 24th Division
British 24th Division
The British 24th Division was a New Army division that was sent to France between August and September, 1915. It served on the Western Front for the duration of the First World War...
. Capper remained in command of the division for the next 18 months, including periods of heavy fighting at the Battle of the Somme, in which his son John was killed in action serving with the Royal Artillery
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
. The division also spent extensive periods of time in other sections of the line and gained extensive battle experience at the cost of high casualties. As a reward for his service in command of the division, he was presented with the Commander's Cross of the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
by the French government.
In May 1917, he was recalled to England, initially to run the Machine-Gun Corps training centre and from 28 July hold the position of Director-General of the newly formed Tank Corps at the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
. Operational command of tanks at the frontlines was in the hands of Hugh Elles
Hugh Elles
Lieutenant General Sir Hugh Jamieson Elles KCB KCMG KCVO DSO was a British General and the first commander of the newly formed Tank Corps in the First World War.-Early life:...
, the first commander of the Heavy Branch. Although tanks had first been introduced on the Somme the year before, their design and manufacture were both inadequate and the tactics of their deployment almost non-existent. Capper's job at the Tank Corps was to shape the organisation of the unit into an efficient battlefield force, improve mechanical reliability and develop effective tactics. It was in this role that Capper was given the nickname Stone Age, as his subordinates considered him to be unwilling to accept new innovations in tank tactics. In fact, Capper was an able tactician who worked with General J. F. C. Fuller to develop a plan for a large scale armoured assault on German lines in 1919 (known as Plan 1919
Plan 1919
Plan 1919 was a military strategy drawn up by J.F.C. Fuller in 1918 during World War I. His plan criticised the practice of physically destroying the enemy, and instead suggested a lightning thrust toward the command center of the German army...
): his subordinates' prejudices were based on Capper's rigid adherence to the military hierarchy and his consequent failure to communicate his ideas to those below his rank. For his services as Director General of the Tank Corps, Capper was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.
Retirement
In July 1918, Capper left the War Office and commanded the 64th Division in England until May 1919, when he took over command of Number 1 Area in France and Flanders. In September 1919, Capper became Lieutenant-Governor of Guernsey and took over command of the island's military installations. He held the post for five years and during that time was made Colonel-Commandant of the Royal Tank Corps. On 11 July 1921, he was made a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. Retiring in 1925, Capper remained associated with the Tank Corps and also became a governor of Wellington College, associations he retained until 1946.During the Second World War, Capper joined the Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
Home Guard and remained on duty with the unit until 1943. Post-War he retired fully to Bramdean House and remained there until shortly before his death. He was widowed in 1953 and died at Esperance Nursing Home in Eastbourne
Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...
in May 1955, leaving a daughter. In 1971, his collected papers, and those of his brother Thompson, who had been an instructor at the Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley
Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, was a staff college for the British Army from 1802 to 1997, with periods of closure during major wars. In 1997 it was merged into the new Joint Services Command and Staff College.-Origins:...
, were donated to the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives at King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
where they are still available to researchers.