Peter Strickland (British Army officer)

For other people with the same name, see Peter Strickland.

Lieutenant General Sir Edward Peter Strickland, KCB, KBE, CMG, DSO (3 August 1869 – 24 June 1951) was a British Army officer who commanded the 1st Division during the First World War.

Sir Peter Strickland
Lieutenant General Sir Peter Strickland
Born	(1869-08-03)3 August 1869 Snitterfield, Warwickshire
Died	24 June 1951(1951-06-24) (aged 81) Snettisham, Norfolk
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Years of service	1888–1931
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands	British Troops in Egypt 2nd Division 6th Division Western Division of the British Army of the Rhine 1st Division 98th Brigade Jullundur Brigade 1st Battalion Manchester Regiment North Nigeria Regiment
Battles / wars	Mahdist War First World War Irish War of Independence
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George[1] Distinguished Service Order

Military career

Prince Arthur, the Duke of Connaught, inspecting troops of the 2nd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps, 2nd Infantry Brigade, 1st Division at Le Buissiere, near Bruay, France, 1 July 1918. Stood on the left of the screen is Major General Strickland, GOC 1st Division.

Educated at Warwick School,^[2] Strickland was commissioned into the Norfolk Regiment in 1888 and served in Upper Burma in 1888/1889, on the Dongola expedition in 1896,^[3] and fought at the Battle of Atbara and the Battle of Omdurman in 1898.^[2]

He served in North Nigeria from 1906 and commanded the North Nigeria Regiment in 1909.^[3]

He served in the First World War as commanding officer (CO) of the 1st Battalion, Manchester Regiment from 1914 and, promoted in January 1915 to the temporary rank of brigadier general,^[4] as commander of the Jullundur Brigade, leading it at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle and at the Second Battle of Ypres.^[2] He was promoted in February to brevet colonel^[5] and continued his war service as commander of the 98th Infantry Brigade from late 1915 and then, after being promoted to temporary major general in June 1916,^[6] was general officer commanding (GOC) of the 1st Division on the Western Front from 1916 until the end of the war, leading it at the Battle of the Somme in 1916 and the Battle of Lys two years later.^[3] In January 1918 his rank of major general became permanent.^[7]

After the war Strickland became commander of the Western Division of the British Army of the Rhine,^[2] and then GOC 6th Division in Ireland,^[3] in which role he survived an assassination attempt by the Irish Republican Army in Cork in September 1920 before assuming the additional responsibilities of military governor (under Martial law) for the counties of Munster, Kilkenny and Wexford in January 1921.^[2] He was appointed GOC 2nd Division in 1923 and GOC British Troops in Egypt in 1927 before retiring from the army in 1931.^[3]

From 1917 to 1946 Strickland was the colonel of the Norfolk Regiment, which became the Royal Norfolk Regiment in 1935.^[8]

Family

In 1918, Strickland married Barbara Cresswell (née Ffolkes); they had a daughter, and there were two daughters from his wife's previous marriage, including Billa Harrod. Barbara, Lady Strickland, was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1923.^[2]

Honours

• Distinguished Service Order – 1899
• Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George – 1913
• Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath – 1919 (Companion (CB) 1917)^[9]
• Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire – 1923
• Third class, Order of Medjidie – 1902 – in recognition of valuable services rendered to Hs Highness the Khedive of Egypt^[10]