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Famous names in the First World War

Sir Philip Chetwode

Medal index card for Philip Chetwode (Catalogue reference: WO 372)

Philip Chetwode's 1914 Star entitlement (Catalogue reference: WO 329/2806)

Philip Chetwode's Victory and British War Medal entitlement (Catalogue reference: WO 329/2138)

Did you know that Sir Philip Chetwode served in the First World War and his medal card is now available to view on DocumentsOnline?

Field-Marshal Sir Philip Walhouse Chetwode, (1869-1950) was a cavalry commander during the First World War, and played a vital role under Allenby, in taking Jerusalem in 1917. He was known in the army as 'The Bart' on account of his long, amber cigarette holder and dapper manner, not to mention his aristocratic heritage (he succeeded his father as seventh Baronet in 1905). Chetwode was a serious soldier nevertheless.

Chetwode's early service was in Burma (now Myanmar) and he subsequently saw action during the South African War (1899-1902). During the First World War he saw action on both Western and Palestine fronts. His brother-in-law Noel 'Curly' Birch, (a horse artilleryman and equestrian expert), served as chief artillery advisor in France.

Later, in 1932 whilst at the War Office, Chetwode was also instrumental in assisting one of his friends, TE Lawrence, better known as 'Lawrence of Arabia', to enlist under the pseudonym TE Shaw in the Royal Tank Corps.

Chetwode had a daughter, Penelope, who married the poet John Betjeman in 1933.

Chetwode's medal entitlement

For his efforts during the First World War, Chetwode received the Victory Medal, the British War Medal and the 1914 Star. This entitlement can be seen on his Medal Index Card shown on the right.

To view the original Medal Rolls (held at The National Archives in the series WO 329), you will need to use the "Key to the Medal Rolls". This converts the Army Medal Office reference found on the index card (in this case Off 116 and Off 141) into a WO 329 document reference. They show the entitlement for each of the medals. You can view the WO 329 entries for Sir Philip Chetwode on the right. The first shows his 1914 Star entitlement, the second his Victory and British War Medal entitlement.

The Western Front

At the start of the First World War, Chetwode was a Brigadier General, assigned to command the 5th Cavalry Brigade in France and Belgium between 1914 and 1915. In 1915 he transferred to the 2nd Cavalry Division, and under his command led the troops onto the Western front.

Middle East

Extract from the War Diary of the Desert Mounted Corps (held in catalogue reference WO 95/5354)

In March 1917 he was transferred to Egypt to take command of the Mounted Desert Column during the "First Battle of Gaza". At this time the Commander-in-Chief in Egypt and Palestine was Sir Archibald Murray, and his second-in-command was Sir Charles Dobell. The whole operation was a failure due to Chetwode's forces being ordered to withdraw, on Dobell's command, while on the verge of a breakthrough during the battle. British losses were heavy.

An extract can be seen on the right.

The "Second Battle of Gaza" took place the following month, April 1917. The attack had failed by the third day, and heavy losses were again sustained. Dobell was replaced by Chetwode, but then Murray himself was recalled to London, with Sir Edmund Allenby drafted in to replace him as Commander-in-Chief in the Middle East.

Extract from the War Diary of the XX Corps (held in catalogue reference WO 95/4479-4489)

In August 1917 Chetwode was appointed Commander of XX (20) corps, where under his command the British troops finally had success during the "Third Battle of Gaza". With the Turkish line into Palestine broken and morale low, Jerusalem was the next challenge in December 1917. Chetwode's XX Corps were assigned to task of capturing the city, which fell within a single day. Chetwode's Corps later played an important role in the "Battle of Megiddo".

An extract from the War Diary of the XX Corps (held in WO 95/4479-4489) can be seen on the right.

At the end of the war Chetwode was appointed Commander-in-chief in India, and was also made Field Marshal.

He died in 1950.

You can read about the selected War Diaries which have been digitised. There is also a research guide, British Army War Diaries: First World War, 1914-1918.

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