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Harry Knox

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Sir Harry Knox
Birth nameHarry Hugh Sidney Knox
Born(1873-11-05)5 November 1873
Newcastle, County Down, Ireland
Died10 June 1971(1971-06-10) (aged 97)
Christchurch, Hampshire, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchBritish Army
Years of service1893–1937
RankGeneral
Commands3rd Division
3rd Brigade
Battles / wars
AwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Distinguished Service Order
Mentioned in Despatches
Officer of the Legion of Honour (France)
Officer of the Order of the Crown (Belgium)

General Sir Harry Hugh Sidney Knox, KCB, DSO (5 November 1873 – 10 June 1971) was a senior British Army officer who served as Adjutant-General to the Forces from 1935 to 1937.[1]

Early life and education

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Knox was born in Newcastle, County Down,[2] the fourth son of Vesey Edmund Knox and Margaret Clarissa Garrett. Edmund Vesey Knox and Maj.-Gen. Sir Alfred Knox were his elder brothers. His great-grandfather was Hon. Vesey Knox, third son of Thomas Knox, 1st Viscount Northland of Dungannon, and brother of Thomas Knox, 1st Earl of Ranfurly (1754–1840); William Knox (1762–1831), Bishop of Derry; George Knox (1765–1827), MP for Dublin University; Charles Knox (1770–1825), Archdeacon of Armagh; and Edmund Knox (1772–1849), Bishop of Limerick.[3]

He was educated at Saint Columba's College, Dublin.[1]

Military career

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Knox was commissioned into the Northamptonshire Regiment on 9 September 1893, aged 17,[4] and promoted to the rank of lieutenant on 26 August 1895. He served on the North-West Frontier between 1897 and 1898, where he took part in the Tirah Campaign, including operations on the Samana Range, the capture of the Sampagha Pass and Arhanga Pass (October 1897), and operations in the Bara valley (December 1897).[5] In January 1900, he was seconded for service under the Foreign Office,[6] and attached to the Uganda Rifles. He returned to regular service with his regiment in March 1902,[7] and was promoted to the rank of captain on 1 April 1902.[8][9] The following month he was appointed adjutant of the 1st Battalion.[10]

Knox fought in the First World War, and was involved in the British Expeditionary Force.[3] He was made an Officer of the Legion of Honour in February 1916.[11] He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in 1917 and appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1919.[12] For his war service he was also made an Officer of the Belgian Order of the Crown; he received permission to wear his decoration from 7 February 1921.[13]

After the war Knox became a colonel at the Staff College, Camberley.[3] He then became commander of the 3rd Brigade in 1923.[14] He was appointed Director of Military Training at the War Office in 1926 and then became General Officer Commanding of the 3rd Division in 1930.[3] On 20 September 1933 he was appointed Lieutenant of the Tower of London.[15]

In the 1935 New Year Honours, Knox was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.[16] He served as Adjutant-General to the Forces between 1935 and 1937.[17]

In retirement Knox was Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea from 1938 to 1943.[14]

Family

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In 1904, Knox married Grace Una Storrs, daughter of Rev. Robert Augustine Storrs. They had one daughter, Una Sheila Colleen, who in 1939 married Lt.-Gen. Sir Archibald Nye.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Obituary: General Sir Harry Knox". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 11 June 1971. p. 16.
  2. ^ "Births". Downpatrick Recorder. 8 November 1873. p. 8. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood (107 ed.). Burke's Peerage & Gentry. pp. 327–3271. ISBN 0-9711966-2-1.
  4. ^ "No. 26439". The London Gazette. 8 September 1893. p. 5165.
  5. ^ Hart's Army list, 1903
  6. ^ "No. 27165". The London Gazette. 16 February 1900. p. 1078.
  7. ^ "No. 27462". The London Gazette. 8 August 1902. p. 5099.
  8. ^ "No. 27472". The London Gazette. 9 September 1902. p. 5814.
  9. ^ "No. 27487". The London Gazette. 24 October 1902. p. 6737.
  10. ^ "No. 27444". The London Gazette. 20 June 1902. p. 4051.
  11. ^ "No. 12909". The Edinburgh Gazette. 28 February 1916. p. 330.
  12. ^ "Knox, Brig.-Gen. Harry Hugh Sidney". Thom's Irish Who's Who . Dublin: Alexander Thom & Co. 1923.
  13. ^ "No. 32218". The London Gazette (2nd supplement). 4 February 1921. p. 1038.
  14. ^ a b "Centre for War Studies". University of Birmingham.
  15. ^ "No. 33980". The London Gazette. 22 September 1933. pp. 6148–6149.
  16. ^ "No. 34119". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1934. p. 3.
  17. ^ "Note by Liddell Hart on discussion with Maj Gen Percy Cleghorn Stanley Hobart". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Archived from the original on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
Military offices
Preceded by GOC 3rd Division
1930–1932
Succeeded by
Preceded by Adjutant General
1935–1937
Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Governor, Royal Hospital Chelsea
1938–1943
Succeeded by
Sir Clive Liddell