Edward Thompson Dickson

Major General Edward Thompson Dickson (16 July 1850 – 23 August 1938) was a British Army general officer, who commanded two Territorial Force divisions before the First World War.

Edward Thompson Dickson
Born	16 July 1850 London
Died	23 August 1938 (aged 88) London
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1869 – 1912
Rank	Major General
Unit	49th Regiment of Foot Royal Berkshire Regiment
Commands held	1st Royal Berkshire Regiment GOC West Africa West Lancashire Division Home Counties Division

Military career

He was born in St. Helier, Jersey, the son of Major-General E. J. Dickson and his wife Louisa Maria Dickson. After studying at Cheltenham College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, he was commissioned into the 49th Regiment of Foot in 1869.[1] In 1881 the regiment amalgamated to become the Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment).[2]

In the Suakin Expedition of 1885 he saw action at the Battles of Suakin, Hasheen, Tofrek, and Ginnis, and was appointed brigade-major in the Sudan Field Force.[3] He was later appointed to command the 1st Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment from 1891 to 1895, and promoted to colonel on 30 April 1895. He was in command of the 49th Regimental District (Royal Berkshire Regiment, based in Reading, Berkshire) from 1 May 1897 to 6 September 1902,[4][5][1] when he was placed on half-pay.[6] In late 1902 he was appointed to the staff,[3] and in November that year arrived in Barbados taking command of the troops in the West Indies,[7] with the rank of brigadier-general. He was in 1905 promoted to the post of General Officer Commanding the forces in West Africa. In 1906 he returned to England as the Major-General responsible for administration in Eastern Command, a post he held until 1908. That year, he was appointed the first General Officer Commanding of the newly formed West Lancashire Division in the Territorial Force, and in 1909 took command of the Home Counties Division. He remained in command of the division until 1912, when he retired to Tunbridge Wells.[1]

Dickson married Helene Frances Harvey, eldest daughter of Colonel W. F. Harvey, in 1878, and they had one daughter.[1]

Notes

1. Who Was Who
2. "Royal Berkshire Regiment". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 28 October 2005. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
3. Times obituary
4. "No. 27474". The London Gazette. 16 September 1902. p. 5961.
5. Hart′s Army list, 1902
6. "No. 27491". The London Gazette. 4 November 1902. p. 7014.
7. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36931). London. 21 November 1902. p. 5.

References

• "DICKSON, Major-General Edward Thompson", in Who Was Who (Online ed.). A & C Black. 2007.
• Obituary in The Times, p. 13, 24 August 1938