19-574: General Sir George Wentworth Alexander Higginson , GCB , GCVO , DL (21 June 1826 – 1 February 1927) was a British Army officer and veteran of the Crimean War who served more than 30 years in the Grenadier Guards . Higginson was born in 1826 in Marlow, Buckinghamshire , England. He was the son of General George Powell Higginson, Grenadier Guards , who distinguished himself at
38-569: A Crown appointment and one of several deputies to the lord-lieutenant of a lieutenancy area – an English ceremonial county , Welsh preserved county , Scottish lieutenancy area , or Northern Irish county borough or county . Before the creation of the Irish Free State , all Irish counties had deputy lieutenants. In formal style , the postnominal letters DL may be added after a deputy lieutenant's surname and other postnominals – e.g. John Brown, CBE, DL. Deputy lieutenants are nominated by
57-497: A godfather to George Lascelles, later 7th Earl of Harewood , the first grandson of King George V and Queen Mary, and elder son of Princess Mary and Viscount Lascelles. On 24 June 1918, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of Buckinghamshire. Higginson's 100th birthday was celebrated with great splendour in his native Marlow. To mark that birthday, the inhabitants of Marlow organised a public collection and, with its proceeds, purchased Court Garden, Marlow and its grounds, alongside
76-728: A lord-lieutenant, to assist with any duties as may be required (see the Lieutenancies Act 1997 ). Deputy lieutenants receive their commission of appointment via the appropriate government minister by command of the British monarch . In England and Wales, since November 2001, the minister responsible for most appointments is the Lord Chancellor , with exceptions such as the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster . In Scotland, since July 1999, it has been
95-632: Is an appointment in the gift of the Sovereign, the position of deputy lieutenant is an appointment of the Sovereign's appointee, and therefore not a direct appointment of the Sovereign per se . Deputy lieutenant commissions are published by the clerk of the lieutenancy, as a State Appointment, in either the London Gazette or the Edinburgh Gazette , as appropriate, with the names of the persons appointed deputy lieutenants for that county or area, and
114-534: Is now only awarded as an honorary rank. The rank of general has a NATO-code of OF-9 , and is a four-star rank . It is equivalent to a full admiral in the Royal Navy or an air chief marshal in the Royal Air Force . Officers holding the ranks of lieutenant-general and major-general may be generically considered to be generals. A general's insignia is a crossed sword and baton. This appeared on its own for
133-853: The Battle of Corunna , and Lady Frances Elizabeth, daughter of Francis Needham, 1st Earl of Kilmorey . His paternal grandmother was the painter Martha Isaacs , wife of Alexander Higginson, of the East India Company , chief of the provincial council at Burdwan , West Bengal , and member of the Board of Trade. The Higginsons were a military family, and owned a large timber wharf on the Thames and land in Essex and at Marlow, Buckinghamshire. He spent his childhood in West London, which at that time consisted of villages and fields, and
152-408: The Crimean War . He participated in the battles of Alma , Balaclava and Inkerman , having his horse shot from under him at Inkerman. He was promoted to the brevet rank of major in the army on 12 December 1854. He was also present at the siege and fall of Sebastopol , following which he served as Brigade Major of his regiment, until the end of the war. He was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel in
171-618: The River Thames , with the grounds becoming a public park called Higginson Park as a memorial to what they considered their town's most famous son. Higginson himself contributed generously to the collection. At a ceremony in the town, Princess Mary, the Princess Royal , presented the deeds of the park to Higginson. Higginson was associated for many years with the Gordon Boys' Home (now Gordon's School ) at West End near Woking , Surrey, which
190-509: The Scottish Ministers . Decades ago, the number of deputy lieutenants for each county could be as few as three. Today, however, there may be well over a dozen that are appointed, as the number of deputy lieutenants today correlates with the population of each respective county. Deputy lieutenants tend to be people who either have served the local community, or have a history of public service in other fields. Deputy lieutenants represent
209-689: The Tower of London from 1888 to 1893. He was knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 1889 Birthday Honours, promoted to general on 11 October 1890, and retired on 21 June 1893 after 38 years of service. He was a personal friend of the Royal Family , and had close ties with King Edward VII . King George V and Queen Mary were regular visitors to Gyldernscroft, his home in Marlow. In 1923, aged 96, he became
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#1732844757595228-661: The army on 2 November 1855, and was promoted by purchase to lieutenant colonel on 10 April 1857. Higginson, throughout his career, travelled extensively on military affairs, to Ireland, Canada, France, Italy and Russia. He also spent time in the United States during the American Civil War , where he had family ties. He was promoted to the brevet rank of colonel on 30 September 1863, to regimental major (army rank of lieutenant colonel) on 10 July 1870 and to regimental lieutenant colonel (army rank of colonel) on 15 September 1877. He
247-465: The lord-lieutenant in his or her absence, including at local ceremonies and official events, from opening exhibitions to inductions of vicars (as requested by the Church of England ). They must live within their lieutenancy area, or within seven miles (11 km) of its boundary. Their appointments do not terminate with any change of lord-lieutenant, but they are legally required to retire at age 75. One of
266-568: The lower general officer ranks) is the highest rank achievable by serving officers of the British Army . The rank can also be held by Royal Marines officers in tri-service posts, for example, Generals Sir Gordon Messenger and Gwyn Jenkins , former and current Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff . It ranks above lieutenant-general and, in the Army, is subordinate to the rank of field marshal , which
285-456: The now obsolete rank of brigadier-general . A major-general has a pip over this emblem; a lieutenant-general a crown instead of a pip; and a full general both a pip and a crown. The insignia for the highest rank, that of Field Marshal , consists of crossed batons within a wreath and surmounted by a crown. Deputy lieutenant In the United Kingdom , a deputy lieutenant is
304-416: The serving deputy lieutenants is appointed to be vice lord-lieutenant, who in most circumstances will stand in for a lord-lieutenant who cannot be present. The appointment as vice lord-lieutenant usually expires upon the retirement of the lord-lieutenant who made the choice. Generally, the vice lord-lieutenant would then revert to being a regular deputy lieutenant. Unlike the office of lord-lieutenant, which
323-576: Was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1871 Birthday Honours . Promoted to major general on 1 October 1877, from 1879 to 1884 he was Major General commanding the Brigade of Guards and General Officer Commanding the Home District . As Commanding Officer of the Brigade of Guards, he was asked in 1882 to assist in the (now defunct) Royal Tournament . He was promoted to lieutenant general on 1 April 1883. Higginson served as Lieutenant of
342-417: Was educated at Eton College . On 14 February 1845, Higginson was commissioned by purchase in the 1st Regiment of the Grenadier Guards with the regimental rank of ensign (army rank of lieutenant). He was promoted by purchase to regimental lieutenant (army rank of captain) on 12 July 1850. He was appointed as the regimental adjutant on 5 December 1851. As Adjutant of the 3rd Battalion, he served throughout
361-519: Was founded as the national memorial to Major General Charles Gordon , who was killed at Khartoum , Sudan, in 1885. Higginson wrote an autobiography in 1916, entitled 71 Years of a Guardsman's Life . Higginson died in February 1927, and his funeral, with full military honours, was described by observers as the grandest Marlow had seen, with hundreds lining the streets. General (United Kingdom) General (or full general to distinguish it from
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