William Sinclair-Burgess
Sir William Sinclair-Burgess | |
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First World War
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| Awards | (United States) |
Born in England, his family moved to New Zealand in the 1890s. He became a professional soldier in the New Zealand Military Forces in 1911. In Australia on an exchange with the
Early life
William Livingston Hatchwell Sinclair was born on 18 February 1880 in
Military career
Burgess joined the New Zealand Volunteer Forces in 1898. He initially served with the
First World War
In late 1913 Burgess was sent to
During the Gallipoli campaign, Burgess, now a major, commanded the 9th (Tasmanian) Battery. However, the guns of his battery were not landed until early May 1915. He and his men took over the guns of 7th Battery, allowing its personnel some rest. On 5 May, while reporting the location of Turkish artillery positions to his commander, Colonel Charles Rosenthal, he was wounded by shelling.[5] His injuries required hospital treatment but he returned to the front on 17 May.[6] Eventually poor health led to his evacuation from Gallipoli in October 1915. For his services during the campaign, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.[3] Promoted to lieutenant colonel in March 1916 and given command of the 3rd Australian Field Artillery Brigade, he served on the Western Front.[1]
Burgess particularly distinguished himself in action from July to September 1916 during the
In 1917, Burgess was promoted to temporary
Post-war career
Burgess returned to New Zealand, and resumed his career with the New Zealand military with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was an artillery officer at the Wellington Military District headquarters, in Palmerston North. He married in 1921, which was when he first adopted the additional surname Sinclair, his biological father's name. However, he did not begin formally using his new surname until 1926. In 1922, Burgess was posted to New Zealand Military Forces headquarters in Wellington as a staff officer. Two years later, he became director of 'Military intelligence and training' for three months before being promoted to colonel and appointed Chief of the General Staff.[1]
Promoted to brigadier in 1928, Burgess became Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces, a position now known as the Chief of Army, in 1931 for a four-year term.[1] The country's economic difficulties made his appointment a difficult one. The depression had resulted in New Zealand's compulsory military training scheme being abolished and the Territorial Force needed to be reorganised accordingly.[3]
Burgess, now a
Later life
Sinclair-Burgess retired from the military in 1937, having served six years as Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces. On his retirement, the position was abolished. Following the outbreak of the
He died at Eastborne, Wellington, on 3 April 1964. His marriage had ended in divorce several years earlier, and he had no children.[1] He is buried in the servicemen's section of Wellington's Karori Cemetery.[12]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i McIntyre 1998, pp. 476–477.
- ^ a b Haigh & Polaschek 1993, p. 53.
- ^ a b c d e McGibbon 2000, pp. 494–495.
- ^ a b "William Livingstone Hatchwell Sinclair-Burgess". Auckland War Memorial Museum. Retrieved 7 July 2022 – via Online Cenotaph.
- ^ Bean 1941, pp. 76–77.
- ^ Bean 1941, p. 81.
- ^ Brewer, Mark (March 2010). "New Zealand and the Legion d'honneur: Officiers, Commandeurs and Dignites". The Volunteers: The Journal of the New Zealand Military Historical Society. 35 (3): 131–147.
- ^ "Splendid Record – Retiring G.O.C.'s Career". Auckland Star. 20 March 1937. p. 10. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- ^ "No. 34010". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1934. p. 2.
- ^ "No. 34166". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 June 1935. p. 3601.
- ^ "Official jubilee medals". Evening Post. Vol. CXIX, no. 105. 6 May 1935. p. 4. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
- ^ Fraser, Walter. "Warrior's Walk, Karori Cemetery" (PDF). Wellington City Council. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
References
- Bean, C. E. W. (1941). The Story of ANZAC from 4 May, 1915, to the Evacuation of the Gallipoli Peninsula. Official History of Australia in the War of 1914–1918. Canberra, Australia: Australian War Memorial.
- Haigh, J. Bryant; Polaschek, A. J. (1993). New Zealand and The Distinguished Service Order. Christchurch, New Zealand: Privately published. ISBN 0-473-02406-3.
- McIntyre, W. David (1998). "Sinclair-Burgess, William Livingston Hatchwell 1880–1964". In ISBN 1-86940-203-0.
- ISBN 0-19-558376-0.