Charles Macpherson Dobell

Lieutenant General Sir Charles Macpherson Dobell KCB, CMG, DSO (22 June 1869 – 17 October 1954) was a Canadian soldier who served with the Royal Welch Fusiliers of the British Army.

Sir Charles Macpherson Dobell
John Singer Sargent: Sir Charles Macpherson Dobell, Oil on canvas, 1919.
Born	22 June 1869 Quebec City, Quebec
Died	17 October 1954 (aged 85)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1890–c.1920
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands held	Eastern Force
Battles/wars	Second Boer War Boxer Rebellion First World War Kamerun Campaign First Battle of Gaza Second Battle of Gaza
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Distinguished Service Order Mentioned in Despatches Legion of Honour (France)

Career

Born in Quebec City, the son of Richard Reid Dobell, an MP, and a grandson of Senator Sir David Lewis Macpherson, Dobell was educated at the Rev. Canon Von Iffland's Private School, the Quebec High School and Charterhouse School in England. He graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada (college #221) in 1890. He was a lieutenant in the Hazara expedition of 1891 and took part with the International Forces in the occupation of the Island of Crete, where he was promoted to major. He served during the Second Boer War, where he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. After serving in Nigeria, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He served in China during the Boxer Rebellion. He was gazetted as Inspector-General of the West African Field Force, with the rank of brigadier general.

During the First World War, he fought in the Kamerun Campaign and was later promoted to lieutenant general. He served with the Egyptian Expeditionary Force in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign under General Sir Archibald Murray, but they were both replaced in 1917.

In the 1915 New Year Honours, he was made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George. He was also made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.

Footnotes

References

• "A cyclopædia of Canadian biography". Internet Archive. 1919.
• Biography of Charles Dobell at firstworldwar.com

Books

• 4237 Dr. Adrian Preston & Peter Dennis (Edited) "Swords and Covenants" Rowman And Littlefield, London. Croom Helm. 1976.
• H16511 Dr. Richard Arthur Preston "To Serve Canada: A History of the Royal Military College of Canada" 1997 Toronto, University of Toronto Press, 1969.
• H16511 Dr. Richard Arthur Preston "Canada's RMC – A History of Royal Military College" Second Edition 1982
• H16511 Dr. Richard Preston "R.M.C. and Kingston: The effect of imperial and military influences on a Canadian community" 1968 Kingston, Ontario.
• H1877 R. Guy C. Smith (editor) "As You Were! Ex-Cadets Remember". In 2 Volumes. Volume I: 1876–1918. Volume II: 1919–1984. RMC. Kingston, Ontario. The R.M.C. Club of Canada. 1984

• Winston S. Churchill "Ian Hamilton's March" Longmans,Green,and co, London (1 edition) 1900, page 405.