Arthur Solly-Flood

Arthur Solly-Flood
Men of the 307th Regiment, US 77th Division, (attached to the British 42nd Division for training), headed by a British regimental band, marching past Major-General Arthur Solly-Flood, GOC 42nd Division, on a road near Famechon, France, 7 June 1918.
Born28 January 1871[1]
Southsea, Hampshire, England[1]
DiedDecember 1940 (aged 69)
Crickhowell, Wales[2]
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchBritish Army
Years of service1891−1931
RankMajor-General
Service number10670[3]
UnitSouth Lancashire Regiment
4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards
Commands4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards
35th Brigade
42nd (East Lancashire) Division
Battles / warsSecond Boer War
First World War
AwardsCompanion of the Order of the Bath
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
Distinguished Service Order

Major-General Arthur Solly-Flood CB, CMG, DSO (28 January 1871 − December 1940) was a British Army officer.

Military career

Born the son of Major-General Sir Frederick Solly-Flood and Constance Eliza Frere, Arthur Solly-Flood was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.[4] He was commissioned into the South Lancashire Regiment as a second lieutenant on 25 March 1891, and promoted to lieutenant on 12 January 1894.[5][4]

He saw action in the Second Boer War, where he was promoted to captain on 28 February 1900,[6] and served as adjutant of the South African Light Horse.[5] For his service, he was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in April 1901.[7]

He was a general staff officer, grade 2 (GSO2), in succession to Reginald Hoskins.[8]

He became commanding officer of the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards and, in that role, deployed to the Western Front during the First World War.[4] He went on to be commander of the 35th Brigade during the Battle of the Somme in autumn 1916, Director-General of Training for the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in January 1917[9] the same month in which he was advanced to brevet colonel,[10] and General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 42nd (East Lancashire) Infantry Division in October 1917.[4]

With the war now over, he handed over his command in June 1919, when he was promoted to the permanent rank of major general,[11] and became Military Adviser in Ireland in April 1922.[12] He returned to the command of 42nd (East Lancashire) Infantry Division in June 1923 and then served as Major-General, Cavalry from November 1927 until he retired in February 1931.[13]

He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1919 New Year Honours.[14]

He was colonel of the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards from 1930 to 1940.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "Number 4. Name: Arthur Solly-Flood. Date of birth: 28 January 1871". National Archives. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  2. ^ "Arthur Solly-Flood 1871-1940 - Ancestry®". www.ancestry.co.uk.
  3. ^ "No. 35109". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 March 1941. p. 1581.
  4. ^ a b c d Palmer, Peter J. "Sir Arthur Solly-Flood and Tactical Training in the BEF" (PDF). Western Front Association. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  5. ^ a b Hart's Army list, 1901
  6. ^ "No. 27179". The London Gazette. 3 April 1900. p. 2198.
  7. ^ "No. 11296". The Edinburgh Gazette. 23 April 1901. p. 467.
  8. ^ "No. 28346". The London Gazette. 8 March 1910. p. 1682.
  9. ^ Simkins, Peter (2014). From the Somme to Victory: The British Army's Experience on the Western Front 1916-1918. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1781593127.
  10. ^ "No. 29886". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1916. p. 16.
  11. ^ "No. 31395". The London Gazette. 6 June 1919. p. 7421.
  12. ^ Hill, J. R.; Moody, Theodore William; Martin, Francis X.; Byrne, Francis John (2003). A New History of Ireland Volume VII: Ireland, 1921-84. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199592821.
  13. ^ "Army Commands" (PDF). Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  14. ^ "No. 13375". The Edinburgh Gazette. 2 January 1919. p. 2.
  15. ^ "4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 16 April 2007. Retrieved 5 August 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
Military offices
Preceded by GOC 42nd (East Lancashire) Division
1917–1919 		Succeeded by
Preceded by GOC 42nd (East Lancashire) Division
1923–1927 		Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Colonel of the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards
1930–1940 		Succeeded by