151-604: Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener ( / ˈ k ɪ tʃ ɪ n ər / ; 24 June 1850 – 5 June 1916) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator. Kitchener came to prominence for his imperial campaigns, his involvement in the Second Boer War , and his central role in the early part of the First World War . Kitchener was credited in 1898 for having won the Battle of Omdurman and securing control of
302-613: A Swiss person which was in use during the 16th to 19th centuries, and land . The English adjective Swiss is a loanword from French Suisse , also in use since the 16th century. The name Switzer is from the Alemannic Schwiizer , in origin an inhabitant of Schwyz and its associated territory , one of the Waldstätte cantons which formed the nucleus of the Old Swiss Confederacy . The Swiss began to adopt
453-656: A lower house (the National Council , with representatives elected from across the country). Referendums were made mandatory for any amendments. This new constitution ended the legal power of nobility in Switzerland . A single system of weights and measures was introduced, and in 1850 the Swiss franc became the Swiss single currency , complemented by the WIR franc in 1934. Article 11 of
604-665: A national personification of the Swiss confederacy in the 17th century in a 1672 play by Johann Caspar Weissenbach. The state of Switzerland took its present form with the adoption of the Swiss Federal Constitution in 1848. Switzerland's precursors established a defensive alliance in 1291, forming a loose confederation that persisted for centuries. The oldest traces of hominid existence in Switzerland date to about 150,000 years ago. The oldest known farming settlements in Switzerland, which were found at Gächlingen , date to around 5300 BC. The earliest known tribes formed
755-513: A change of policy following threats from Germany. Over 100 Allied bombers and their crews were interned. Between 1940 and 1945, Switzerland was bombed by the Allies , causing fatalities and property damage. Among the cities and towns bombed were Basel , Brusio , Chiasso , Cornol , Geneva, Koblenz , Niederweningen , Rafz , Renens , Samedan , Schaffhausen , Stein am Rhein , Tägerwilen , Thayngen , Vals , and Zurich. Allied forces maintained that
906-425: A coalition government – and stripped of his control over munitions and strategy. On 5 June 1916, Kitchener was making his way to Russia on HMS Hampshire to attend negotiations with Tsar Nicholas II when in bad weather the ship struck a German mine 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Orkney , Scotland, and sank. Kitchener was among 737 who died; he was the highest-ranking British officer to die in action in
1057-631: A customs and railway union with the Cape Colony and the Natal . During Kitchener's posting in South Africa, Kitchener became acting High Commissioner for Southern Africa , and administrator of Transvaal and Orange River Colony in 1901. Kitchener, who had been promoted to the substantive rank of general on 1 June 1902, was given a farewell reception at Cape Town on 23 June, and left for the United Kingdom in
1208-711: A damn good dusting". As the British and Egyptians advanced in columns, the Khalifa attempted to outflank and encircle the columns; this led to desperate hand-to-hand fighting. Churchill wrote of his own experience as the 21st Lancers cut their way through the Ansar : "The collision was prodigious and for perhaps ten wonderful seconds, no man heeded his enemy. Terrified horses wedged in the crowd, bruised and shaken men, sprawling in heaps, struggle dazed and stupid, to their feet, panted and looked about them". The Lancers' onslaught carried them through
1359-420: A drinking cup or ink well. Other historians state that he had the head buried unmarked in a Muslim cemetery. In a letter to his mother, Churchill wrote that the victory at Omdurman had been "disgraced by the inhuman slaughter of the wounded and ... Kitchener is responsible for this". There is no evidence that Kitchener ordered his men to shoot the wounded Ansar on the field of Omdurman, but he did give before
1510-546: A formal welcome at St James's Palace . He also visited King Edward VII , who was confined to his room recovering from his recent operation for appendicitis , but wanted to meet the general on his arrival and to personally bestow on him the insignia of the Order of Merit (OM). Kitchener was created Viscount Kitchener , of Khartoum and of the Vaal in the Colony of Transvaal and of Aspall in
1661-564: A gold-tipped baton which they may carry on formal occasions. The vast majority of officers to hold the rank of field marshal were professional soldiers in the British Army, though eleven served as officers in the British Indian Army . At least fifty-seven field marshals were wounded in battle earlier in their careers, of whom 24 were wounded more than once, and eight had been prisoners of war. Fifteen future field marshals were present at
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#17330853115511812-506: A hell of whistling metal, exploding shells, and spurting dust – suffering, despairing, dying". By about 8:30 am, much of the Dervish army was dead; Kitchener ordered his men to advance, fearing that the Khalifa might escape with what was left of his army to the fort of Omdurman, forcing Kitchener to lay siege to it. Viewing the battlefield from horseback on the hill at Jebel Surgham, Kitchener commented: "Well, we have given them
1963-655: A horse". In 1864 the family moved to Switzerland , where the young Kitchener was educated at Montreux , then at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich . Pro-French and eager to see action, he joined a French field ambulance unit in the Franco-Prussian War . His father took him back to Britain after he caught pneumonia while ascending in a balloon to see the French Army of the Loire in action. Commissioned into
2114-449: A long war that would last at least three years, require huge new armies to defeat Germany, and cause huge casualties before the end would come. Kitchener stated that the conflict would plumb the depths of manpower "to the last million". A massive recruitment campaign began, which soon featured a distinctive poster of Kitchener , taken from a magazine front cover. It may have encouraged large numbers of volunteers, and has proven to be one of
2265-638: A peace treaty proposed by Louis Botha and the other Boer leaders, although he knew the British government would reject the offer; their proposal would have maintained the sovereignty of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State while requiring them to sign a perpetual treaty of alliance with the UK and grant major concessions to the British, such as equal language rights for English with Dutch in their countries, voting rights for Uitlanders , and
2416-461: A programme of restoring good governance. The programme had a strong foundation, based on education at Gordon Memorial College as its centrepiece – and not simply for the children of the local elites, for children from anywhere could apply to study. He ordered the mosques of Khartoum rebuilt, instituted reforms which recognised Friday – the Muslim holy day – as
2567-666: A remarkable size, while hundreds of agricultural estates ( Villae rusticae ) were established in the countryside. Around 260 AD, the fall of the Agri Decumates territory north of the Rhine transformed today's Switzerland into a frontier land of the Empire. Repeated raids by the Alamanni tribes provoked the ruin of the Roman towns and economy, forcing the population to shelter near Roman fortresses, like
2718-523: A sign of support. In September 2020, a referendum calling for a vote to end the pact that allowed a free movement of people from the European Union was introduced by the Swiss People's Party (SVP). However, voters rejected the attempt to retake control of immigration, defeating the motion by a roughly 63%–37% margin. On 9 February 2014, 50.3% of Swiss voters approved a ballot initiative launched by
2869-405: A significant impact on the psychology and society of Switzerland. The war convinced most Swiss of the need for unity and strength. Swiss from all strata of society, whether Catholic or Protestant, from the liberal or conservative current, realised that the cantons would profit more from merging their economic and religious interests. Thus, while the rest of Europe saw revolutionary uprisings ,
3020-524: A special sealed letter from Salisbury that told him that Salisbury's real reason for ordering the conquest of the Sudan was to prevent France from moving into the Sudan, and that the talk of "avenging Gordon" had been just a pretext. Salisbury's letter ordered Kitchener to head south as soon as possible to evict Marchand before he got a chance to become well-established on the Nile. On 18 September 1898, Kitchener arrived at
3171-682: A third soldier, Lt. George Witton , who served 32 months before being released. In late 1902 Kitchener was appointed Commander-in-Chief, India , and arrived there to take up the position in November, in time to be in charge during the January 1903 Delhi Durbar . He immediately began the task of reorganising the Indian Army . Kitchener's plan "The Reorganisation and Redistribution of the Army in India" recommended preparing
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#17330853115513322-547: A whole rather than being modified one amendment at a time. This need soon proved itself when the rise in population and the Industrial Revolution that followed led to calls to modify the constitution accordingly. The population rejected an early draft in 1872, but modifications led to its acceptance in 1874. It introduced the facultative referendum for laws at the federal level. It also established federal responsibility for defence, trade, and legal matters. In 1891,
3473-463: Is considered the confederacy's founding document, even though similar alliances likely existed decades earlier. The document was agreed among the rural communes of Uri , Schwyz , and Unterwalden . By 1353, the three original cantons had joined with the cantons of Glarus and Zug and the Lucerne , Zurich and Bern city-states to form the "Old Confederacy" of eight states that obtained through
3624-419: Is fairly cohesive, being rooted in a common historical background, shared values such as federalism and direct democracy , and Alpine symbolism. Swiss identity transcends language, ethnicity, and religion, leading to Switzerland being described as a Willensnation ("nation of volition") rather than a nation state . The English name Switzerland is a portmanteau of Switzer , an obsolete term for
3775-607: Is more like a machine than a man. You feel that he ought to be patented and shown with pride at the Paris International Exhibition . British Empire: Exhibit No. 1 hors concours , the Sudan Machine". The shooting of the wounded at Omdurman, along with the desecration of the Mahdi's tomb, gave Kitchener a reputation for brutality that was to dog him for the rest of his life, and posthumously. After Omdurman, Kitchener opened
3926-459: Is that within eighteen months of the outbreak of the war, when he had found a people reliant on sea-power, and essentially non-military in their outlook, he had conceived and brought into being, completely equipped in every way, a national army capable of holding its own against the armies of the greatest military Power the world had ever seen. However, Ian Hamilton later wrote of Kitchener "he hated organisations; he smashed organisations ... he
4077-636: Is the highest, although the Matterhorn (4,478 m or 14,692 ft) is the best known. Both are located within the Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais , on the border with Italy. The section of the Bernese Alps above the deep glacial Lauterbrunnen valley, containing 72 waterfalls, is well known for the Jungfrau (4,158 m or 13,642 ft) Eiger and Mönch peaks, and its many picturesque valleys. In
4228-425: The Ansar first with artillery, then machine guns and finally rifles as the enemy advanced. A young Winston Churchill , serving as an army officer, wrote of what he saw: "A ragged line of men were coming on desperately, struggling forward in the face of the pitiless fire – black banners tossing and collapsing; white figures subsiding in dozens to the ground ... valiant men were struggling on through
4379-502: The Ansar had broken through the thin khaki line. At about 5 a.m. on 2 September 1898, a huge force of Ansar , under the command of the Khalifa himself, came out of the fort at Omdurman , marching under their black banners inscribed with Koranic quotations in Arabic; this led Bennet Burleigh , the Sudan correspondent of The Daily Telegraph , to write: "It was not alone the reverberation of
4530-533: The Ansar . Burleigh summed the general mood of the British troops: "At Last! Gordon has been avenged and justified. The dervishes have been overwhelming routed, Mahdism has been "smashed", while the Khalifa's capital of Omdurman has been stripped of its barbaric halo of sanctity and invulnerability. Kitchener promptly had the Mahdi's tomb blown up to prevent it from becoming a rallying point for his supporters, and had his bones scattered. Queen Victoria , who had wept when she heard of General Gordon's death, now wept for
4681-534: The Axis and Allied powers. Switzerland's trade was blockaded by both the Allies and the Axis. Economic cooperation and extension of credit to Nazi Germany varied according to the perceived likelihood of invasion and the availability of other trading partners. Concessions reached a peak after a crucial rail link through Vichy France was severed in 1942, leaving Switzerland (together with Liechtenstein ) entirely isolated from
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener - Misplaced Pages Continue
4832-499: The Battle of Omdurman in September 1898. After marching to the walls of Khartoum, he placed his army into a crescent shape with the Nile to the rear, together with the gunboats in support. This enabled him to bring overwhelming firepower against any attack of the Ansar from any direction, though with the disadvantage of having his men spread out thinly, with hardly any forces in reserve. Such an arrangement could have proven disastrous if
4983-654: The Battle of Vitoria , where the Duke of Wellington earned the rank, and ten others served under Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo . However, only thirty-eight held independent commands in the field, and just twelve served as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces (the pre-1904 professional head of the army) or Chief of the Imperial General Staff during a major war. Four field marshals ( Sir Evelyn Wood , Sir George White , Earl Roberts , and Lord Gort ) had previously received
5134-638: The Belgian Army would be unable to hold its ground against the Germans; Kitchener was proved right but, given the belief in fortresses common at the time, it is not surprising that the War Council disagreed with him. Field marshal (United Kingdom) Field marshal ( FM ) has been the highest rank in the British Army since 1736. A five-star rank with NATO code OF-10 , it is equivalent to an Admiral of
5285-540: The British Armed Forces , were usually promoted to the rank upon their appointment. In total, 141 men have held the rank of field marshal. The majority led careers in the British Army or the colonial British Indian Army , rising through the ranks to eventually become a field marshal. Some members of the British Royal Family , most recently Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Charles III , were promoted to
5436-527: The British Armed Forces . At the same time, Guthrie, who relinquished the post of CDS and retired from active service in 2001, was promoted to honorary field marshal. In June 2014, former Chief of the Defence Staff Lord Walker of Aldringham was also promoted to honorary field marshal. Although the rank of field marshal is not used in the Royal Marines , the insignia is used on the uniform of
5587-568: The Captain General , the ceremonial head of the corps (equivalent to colonel-in-chief ). The rank insignia of a field marshal in the British Army comprises two crossed batons in a wreath of laurel leaves, with a crown above. In some other countries, historically under the sphere of British influence, an adapted version of the insignia is used for field marshals, often with the crown being replaced with an alternative cultural or national emblem. On appointment, British field marshals are awarded
5738-608: The Castrum Rauracense near Augusta Raurica. The Empire built another line of defence at the north border (the so-called Donau-Iller-Rhine-Limes). At the end of the fourth century, the increased Germanic pressure forced the Romans to abandon the linear defence concept. The Swiss Plateau was finally open to Germanic tribes . In the Early Middle Ages , from the end of the fourth century, the western extent of modern-day Switzerland
5889-548: The Congress of Vienna fully re-established Swiss independence, and the European powers recognised permanent Swiss neutrality. Swiss troops served foreign governments until 1860 when they fought in the siege of Gaeta . The treaty allowed Switzerland to increase its territory, with the admission of the cantons of Valais , Neuchâtel and Geneva . Switzerland's borders saw only minor adjustments thereafter. The restoration of power to
6040-717: The Delhi Durbar to assume the titles of Emperor and Empress of India. In June 1911 Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General in Egypt during the formal reign of Abbas Hilmi II as Khedive . At the time of the Agadir Crisis (summer 1911), Kitchener told the Committee of Imperial Defence that he expected the Germans to walk through the French "like partridges" and he informed Lord Esher "that if they imagined that he
6191-614: The Egyptian Army . Egypt had recently become a British puppet state, its army led by British officers, although still nominally under the sovereignty of the Khedive (Egyptian viceroy) and his nominal overlord the Ottoman sultan . Kitchener became second-in-command of an Egyptian cavalry regiment in February 1883, and then took part in the failed Nile Expedition to relieve Charles George Gordon in
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener - Misplaced Pages Continue
6342-660: The English Channel ; however, at Fashoda itself, despite the stand-off with the French, Kitchener established cordial relations with Marchand. They agreed that the tricolor would fly equally with the Union Jack and the Egyptian flag over the disputed fort at Fashoda. Kitchener was a Francophile who spoke fluent French, and despite his reputation for brusque rudeness was very diplomatic and tactful in his talks with Marchand; for example, congratulating him on his achievement in crossing
6493-840: The European Union (EU), the European Economic Area , or the eurozone ; however, it participates in the European single market and the Schengen Area . Switzerland is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons , with federal authorities based in Bern . Switzerland is one of the world's most developed countries having the highest nominal wealth per adult , and the eighth-highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita . Switzerland performs highly on several international metrics , including economic competitiveness and democratic governance . Cities such as Zurich, Geneva and Basel rank among
6644-654: The Federal Palace in 1902 and after 1948 used in the official seal (e.g., the ISO banking code "CHF" for the Swiss franc , the Swiss postage stamps ('HELVETIA') and the country top-level domain ".ch", are both taken from the state's Latin name). Helvetica is derived from the Helvetii , a Gaulish tribe living on the Swiss Plateau before the Roman era . Helvetia appeared as
6795-432: The First War of Villmergen , in 1656, and the Toggenburg War (or Second War of Villmergen), in 1712. In 1798, the revolutionary French government invaded Switzerland and imposed a new unified constitution. This centralised the government of the country, effectively abolishing the cantons: moreover, Mülhausen left Switzerland and the Valtellina valley became part of the Cisalpine Republic . The new regime, known as
6946-485: The Grenadier Guards , commanded a series of attacks while severely wounded during the First World War in 1918. Roberts received his VC for actions during the Indian Mutiny . Wellington, 44 at the time of his promotion, was the youngest non-royal officer to earn the rank of field marshal. Charles Moore, 1st Marquess of Drogheda was the oldest, promoted at the age of 91, while a further twenty-three officers were promoted to field marshal in their eighties. Wellington
7097-410: The Hallstatt and La Tène cultures , named after the archaeological site of La Tène on the north side of Lake Neuchâtel . La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age from around 450 BC, possibly influenced by Greek and Etruscan civilisations. One of the most prominent La Tène tribes were the Helvetii , who primarily occupied the Swiss Plateau , alongside the Rhaetians in
7248-434: The Holy Roman Empire around 1000 AD. In the 10th century, as the rule of the Carolingians waned, Magyars destroyed Basel in 917 and St. Gallen in 926. In response, Henry the Fowler , the then ruler of East Francia, decreed the fortification of key settlements to defend against these invasions. Large villages and towns, including strategic locations like Zurich and St.Gallen, were fortified. This initiative led to
7399-405: The Horn of Africa . A French expedition under the command of Jean-Baptiste Marchand had left Dakar in March 1896 with the aim of conquering the Sudan, seizing control of the Nile as it flowed into Egypt, and forcing the British out of Egypt; thus restoring Egypt to the place within the French sphere of influence that it had had prior to 1882. Salisbury feared that if the British did not conquer
7550-434: The League of Nations , which was based in Geneva , after it was exempted from military requirements. During World War II , detailed invasion plans were drawn up by the Germans, but Switzerland was never attacked. Switzerland was able to remain independent through a combination of military deterrence, concessions to Germany, and good fortune, as larger events during the war intervened. General Henri Guisan , appointed
7701-408: The Middle East for several reasons: In 1878, having completed the survey of western Palestine, Kitchener was sent to Cyprus to undertake a survey of that newly acquired British protectorate. He became vice-consul in Anatolia in 1879. On 4 January 1883 Kitchener was promoted to captain , given the Turkish rank binbasi (major), and dispatched to Egypt, where he took part in the reconstruction of
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#17330853115517852-410: The Ministry of Defence in 1995 made a number of recommendations for financial savings in the armed forces' budget, one of which was the abolition of all five-star ranks. Part of the rationale was that these ranks were disproportionate to the size of the forces commanded by these officers, and that none of the United Kingdom's close allies, such as the United States (which reserves the rank of general of
8003-475: The Old Swiss Confederacy established in the Late Middle Ages , following a series of military successes against Austria and Burgundy ; the Federal Charter of 1291 is considered the country's founding document. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognised in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. Switzerland has maintained a policy of armed neutrality since the 16th century and has not fought an international war since 1815 . It joined
8154-462: The Royal Engineers on 4 January 1871, Kitchener was reprimanded by the Duke of Cambridge , the commander-in-chief, as his service in France had violated British neutrality. He served in Palestine , Egypt and Cyprus as a surveyor, learned Arabic , and prepared detailed topographical maps of the areas. His brother, Lt. Gen. Sir Walter Kitchener , had also entered the army and was Governor of Bermuda from 1908 to 1912. In 1874, aged 24, Kitchener
8305-404: The Second World War ). The prime minister, H. H. Asquith , was sympathetic to Kitchener but was unwilling to overrule Morley, who threatened resignation, so Kitchener was finally turned down for the post of Viceroy of India in 1911. From 22 to 24 June 1911, Kitchener took part in the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary . Kitchener assumed the role of Captain of the Escort, responsible for
8456-510: The Sudan in late 1884. Fluent in Arabic, Kitchener preferred the company of the Egyptians over the British, and the company of no-one over the Egyptians, writing in 1884 that: "I have become such a solitary bird that I often think I were happier alone". Kitchener spoke Arabic so well that he was able to effortlessly adopt the dialects of the different Bedouin tribes of Egypt and the Sudan. Promoted to brevet major on 8 October 1884 and to brevet lieutenant-colonel on 15 June 1885, he became
8607-439: The Sudan , for which he was made Baron Kitchener of Khartoum . As Chief of Staff (1900–1902) in the Second Boer War he played a key role in Lord Roberts ' conquest of the Boer Republics , then succeeded Roberts as commander-in-chief – by which time Boer forces had taken to guerrilla fighting and British forces imprisoned Boer and African civilians in concentration camps . His term as Commander-in-Chief (1902–1909) of
8758-408: The Survey of Western Palestine because it was largely confined to the area west of the Jordan River . The survey collected data on the topography and toponymy of the area, as well as local flora and fauna. The results of the survey were published in an eight-volume series, with Kitchener's contribution in the first three tomes (Conder and Kitchener 1881–1885). This survey has had a lasting effect on
8909-405: The Swiss Alps to the south, the Swiss Plateau or Central Plateau, and the Jura mountains on the west. The Alps are a mountain range running across the central and south of the country, constituting about 60% of the country's area. The majority of the population live on the Swiss Plateau. The Swiss Alps host many glaciers, covering 1,063 square kilometres (410 sq mi). From these originate
9060-416: The Swiss economy . During the Cold War , Swiss authorities considered the construction of a Swiss nuclear bomb . Leading nuclear physicists at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich such as Paul Scherrer made this a realistic possibility. In 1988, the Paul Scherrer Institute was founded in his name to explore the therapeutic uses of neutron scattering technologies. Financial problems with
9211-422: The Victoria Cross (VC), the United Kingdom's highest and most prestigious award for gallantry 'in the face of the enemy'. Wood, a famously injury-prone officer, was awarded the VC for two actions in 1858, in which he first attacked a group of rebels in India, and later rescued an informant from another group of rebels. White, a cavalry officer , led two charges on enemy guns in Afghanistan in 1879, while Gort, of
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#17330853115519362-405: The commander-in-chief for the duration of the war ordered a general mobilisation of the armed forces. The Swiss military strategy changed from static defence at the borders to organised long-term attrition and withdrawal to strong, well-stockpiled positions high in the Alps, known as the Reduit . Switzerland was an important base for espionage by both sides and often mediated communications between
9513-468: The concentration camps , which had been conceived by Roberts as a form of control of the families whose farms he had destroyed, began to degenerate rapidly as the large influx of Boers outstripped the ability of the minuscule British force to cope. The camps lacked space, food, sanitation, medicine, and medical care, leading to rampant disease and a very high death rate for those Boers who entered. Eventually 26,370 women and children (81% were children) died in
9664-408: The de facto British ruler of Egypt, thought Kitchener "the most able (soldier) I have come across in my time". In 1890, a War Office evaluation of Kitchener concluded: "A good brigadier, very ambitious, not popular, but has of late greatly improved in tact and manner ... a fine gallant soldier and good linguist and very successful in dealing with Orientals" [in the 19th century, Europeans called
9815-438: The 12-men-deep Ansar line with the Lancers losing 71 dead and wounded while killing hundreds of the enemy. Following the annihilation of his army, the Khalifa ordered a retreat and early in the afternoon, Kitchener rode in triumph into Omdurman and immediately ordered that the thousands of Christians enslaved by the Ansar were now all free people. Kitchener lost fewer than 500 men while killing about 11,000 and wounding 17,000 of
9966-420: The Army in India saw him quarrel with another eminent proconsul , the Viceroy Lord Curzon , who eventually resigned. Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General ( de facto administrator). In 1914, at the start of the First World War , Kitchener became Secretary of State for War , a Cabinet Minister. One of the few to foresee a long war, lasting for at least three years, and having
10117-428: The Bold of Burgundy during the 1470s, and the success of the Swiss mercenaries . The Swiss victory in the Swabian War against the Swabian League of Emperor Maximilian I in 1499 amounted to de facto independence within the Holy Roman Empire . In 1501, Basel and Schaffhausen joined the Old Swiss Confederacy. The Confederacy acquired a reputation of invincibility during these earlier wars, but expansion of
10268-435: The British government. Milner was a hard-line conservative and wanted to Anglicise the Afrikaans -speaking people (the Boers) by force, and both Milner and the British government wanted to assert victory by forcing the Boers to sign a humiliating peace treaty; Kitchener wanted a more generous compromise peace treaty that would recognize certain rights for the Afrikaners and promise them future self-government. He even entertained
10419-408: The British member of the Zanzibar boundary commission in July 1885. He became Governor of the Egyptian Provinces of Eastern Sudan and Red Sea Littoral (which in practice consisted of little more than the Port of Suakin ) in September 1886, also Pasha the same year, and led his forces in action against the followers of the Mahdi at Handub in January 1888, when he was injured in the jaw. Kitchener
10570-495: The Commander-in-Chief directly. In order to deal with the Military Member, a request had to be made through the Army Secretary, who reported to the Indian Government and had right of access to the Viceroy. There were even instances when the two separate bureaucracies produced different answers to a problem, with the Commander-in-Chief disagreeing with himself as Military Member. This became known as "the canonisation of duality". Kitchener's successor, General Sir Garrett O'Moore Creagh ,
10721-639: The County of Suffolk, on 28 July 1902. In the Breaker Morant case, five Australian officers and one English officer of an irregular unit, the Bushveldt Carbineers , were court-martialed for summarily executing twelve Boer prisoners, and also for the murder of a German missionary believed to be a Boer sympathiser, all allegedly under orders approved by Kitchener. The celebrated horseman and bush poet Lt. Harry "Breaker" Morant and Lt. Peter Handcock were found guilty, sentenced to death, and shot by firing squad at Pietersburg on 27 February 1902. Their death warrants were personally signed by Kitchener. He reprieved
10872-651: The EU was attained that eliminated quotas on EU citizens, but still allowed favourable treatment of Swiss-based job applicants. On 27 September 2020, 62% of Swiss voters rejected the anti-free movement referendum by SVP. Extending across the north and south side of the Alps in west -central Europe, Switzerland encompasses diverse landscapes and climates across its 41,285 square kilometres (15,940 sq mi). Switzerland lies between latitudes 45° and 48° N , and longitudes 5° and 11° E . It contains three basic topographical areas:
11023-610: The Egyptian Army with the local rank of brigadier in April 1892. Kitchener was worried that, although his moustache was bleached white by the sun, his blond hair refused to turn grey, making it harder for Egyptians to take him seriously. His appearance added to his mystique: his long legs made him appear taller, whilst a cast in his eye made people feel he was looking right through them. Kitchener, at 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m), towered over most of his contemporaries. Sir Evelyn Baring ,
11174-567: The First World War, while one, Sir William Robertson , held every rank in the British Army, from private soldier to field marshal. Footnotes Works cited Switzerland in Europe (green and dark grey) Switzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe . It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to
11325-728: The Fleet in the Royal Navy or a Marshal of the Royal Air Force in the Royal Air Force (RAF). A Field Marshal's insignia consists of two crossed batons surrounded by yellow leaves below the Tudor Crown . Like Marshals of the Royal Air Force and Admirals of the Fleet, Field Marshals traditionally remain officers for life, though on half-pay when not in an appointment or retired. The rank has been used sporadically throughout its history, and
11476-533: The French fort at Fashoda (present day Kodok , on the west bank of the Nile north of Malakal ) and informed Marchand that he and his men had to leave the Sudan at once, a request Merchand refused, leading to a tense stand-off as French and British soldiers aimed their weapons at each other. During what became known as the Fashoda Incident , Britain and France almost went to war with each other. The Fashoda Incident caused much jingoism and chauvinism on both sides of
11627-524: The French in the name of the Helvetic Republic. In 1803 Napoleon organised a meeting of the leading Swiss politicians from both sides in Paris. The Act of Mediation was the result, which largely restored Swiss autonomy and introduced a Confederation of 19 cantons. Henceforth, much of Swiss politics would concern balancing the cantons' tradition of self-rule with the need for a central government. In 1815
11778-630: The Helvetic Republic, was highly unpopular. An invading foreign army had imposed and destroyed centuries of tradition, making Switzerland nothing more than a French satellite state . The fierce French suppression of the Nidwalden Revolt in September 1798 was an example of the oppressive presence of the French Army and the local population's resistance to the occupation. When war broke out between France and its rivals, Russian and Austrian forces invaded Switzerland. The Swiss refused to fight alongside
11929-624: The Helvetii were forced by Caesar to return to their original lands, where they were subjected to stringent restrictions on their autonomy and movements. In 15 BC, Tiberius (later the second Roman emperor) and his brother Drusus conquered the Alps, integrating them into the Roman Empire . The area occupied by the Helvetii first became part of Rome's Gallia Belgica province and then of its Germania Superior province. The eastern portion of modern Switzerland
12080-571: The Holy Roman Empire and its neutrality . During the Early Modern period of Swiss history, the growing authoritarianism of the patriciate families combined with a financial crisis in the wake of the Thirty Years' War led to the Swiss peasant war of 1653 . In the background to this struggle, the conflict between Catholic and Protestant cantons persisted, erupting in further violence at
12231-688: The Indian Army for any potential war by reducing the size of fixed garrisons and reorganising it into two armies, to be commanded by Generals Sir Bindon Blood and George Luck . While many of the Kitchener Reforms were supported by the Viceroy , Lord Curzon of Kedleston , who had originally lobbied for Kitchener's appointment, the two men eventually came into conflict. Curzon wrote to Kitchener advising him that signing himself "Kitchener of Khartoum" took up too much time and space – Kitchener commented on
12382-504: The Irish names of many of the fields. Although sometimes labeled by military historians as Irish or Anglo-Irish (a group which provided a disproportionate number of senior British officers - see Irish military diaspora ), Kitchener did not regard himself as such and was known to quote the saying misattributed to the Duke of Wellington that "a man may be born in a stable, but that does not make him
12533-853: The Middle East the Orient]. While in Egypt, Kitchener was initiated into Freemasonry in 1883 in the Italian-speaking La Concordia Lodge No. 1226, which met in Cairo. In November 1899 he was appointed the first District Grand Master of the District Grand Lodge of Egypt and the Sudan, under the United Grand Lodge of England . In 1896, the British Prime Minister , Lord Salisbury , was concerned with keeping France out of
12684-536: The Russian Emperor Nicholas II that the Franco-Russian alliance applied only to Europe, and that Russia would not go to war against Britain for the sake of an obscure fort in the Sudan in which no Russian interests were involved; and the possibility that Germany might take advantage of an Anglo-French war to strike France. Kitchener became Governor-General of the Sudan in September 1898, and began
12835-641: The SS Orotava on the same day. He received an enthusiastic welcome on his arrival the following month. Landing in Southampton on 12 July, he was greeted by the corporation, who presented him with the Freedom of the borough . In London, he was met at the train station by the Prince of Wales , drove in a procession through streets lined by military personnel from 70 different units and watched by thousands of people, and received
12986-504: The Sahara in an epic trek from Dakar to the Nile. In November 1898, the crisis ended when the French agreed to withdraw from the Sudan. Several factors persuaded the French to back down. These included British naval superiority; the prospect of an Anglo-French war leading to the British gobbling up the entire French colonial empire after the defeat of the French Navy ; the pointed statement from
13137-666: The Sudan, the French would. He had supported Italy 's ambitions to conquer Ethiopia in the hope that the Italians would keep the French out of Ethiopia. The Italian attempt to conquer Ethiopia , however, was going very badly by early 1896, and ended with the Italians being annihilated at the Battle of Adowa in March 1896. In March 1896, with the Italians visibly failing and the Mahdist State threatening to conquer Italian Eritrea , Salisbury ordered Kitchener to invade northern Sudan, ostensibly for
13288-493: The Swiss Alps. 90% of Switzerland's 65,000-kilometre-long network of rivers and streams have been straightened, dammed, canalized or channeled underground, in an effort to prevent natural disasters such as flooding, landslides, and avalanches. 80% of all Swiss drinking water comes from groundwater sources. Forty-eight mountains are 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) or higher in height. At 4,634 m (15,203 ft), Monte Rosa
13439-569: The Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC) to restrict immigration . This initiative was mostly backed by rural (57.6% approval) and suburban groups (51.2% approval), and isolated towns (51.3% approval) as well as by a strong majority (69.2% approval) in Ticino, while metropolitan centres (58.5% rejection) and the French-speaking part (58.5% rejection) rejected it. In December 2016, a political compromise with
13590-602: The Swiss drew up a constitution that provided for a federal layout , much of it inspired by the American example . This constitution provided central authority while leaving the cantons the right to self-government on local issues. Giving credit to those who favoured the power of the cantons (the Sonderbund Kantone), the national assembly was divided between an upper house (the Council of States , two representatives per canton) and
13741-826: The United Nations only in 2002 but pursues an active foreign policy that includes frequent involvement in peace building . Switzerland is the birthplace of the Red Cross and hosts the headquarters or offices of most major international institutions including the WTO , the WHO , the ILO , FIFA , the WEF , and the UN. It is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but not part of
13892-559: The appointment in the newspapers. Kitchener pushed hard for the Viceroyalty, returning to London to lobby Cabinet ministers and the dying King Edward VII , from whom, whilst collecting his field marshal's baton , Kitchener obtained permission to refuse the Malta job. However, Morley could not be moved. This was perhaps in part because Kitchener was thought to be a Tory (the Liberals were in office at
14043-555: The area of forest that was burned and cleared to build. The name was extended to the area dominated by the canton, and after the Swabian War of 1499 gradually came to be used for the entire Confederation. The Swiss German name of the country, Schwiiz , is homophonous to that of the canton and the settlement, but distinguished by the use of the definite article ( d'Schwiiz for the Confederation, but simply Schwyz for
14194-520: The army for officers who have commanded large armies in major wars), used such ranks. The recommendation was not taken up in full, but the practice of promoting service chiefs to five-star ranks was stopped, and the ranks are now reserved for special circumstances. Sir Peter Inge was, in 1994, the last active officer to be promoted to the rank. Inge relinquished the post of Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) in 1997, and his successor, Sir Charles Guthrie ,
14345-454: The authority to act effectively on that perception, he organised the largest volunteer army that Britain had seen, and oversaw a significant expansion of material production to fight on the Western Front . Despite having warned of the difficulty of provisioning for a long war, he was blamed for the shortage of shells in the spring of 1915 – one of the events leading to the formation of
14496-482: The battle what the British journalist Mark Urban called a "mixed message", saying that mercy should be given, while at the same time saying "Remember Gordon" and that the enemy were all "murderers" of Gordon. The victory at Omdurman made Kitchener into a popular war hero, and gave him a reputation for efficiency and as a man who got things done. The journalist G. W. Steevens wrote in the Daily Mail that "He [Kitchener]
14647-488: The bombings, which violated the 96th Article of War , resulted from navigation errors, equipment failure, weather conditions, and pilot errors. The Swiss expressed fear and concern that the bombings were intended to put pressure on Switzerland to end economic cooperation and neutrality with Nazi Germany. Court-martial proceedings took place in England. The US paid SFR 62M for reparations. Switzerland's attitude towards refugees
14798-531: The canton and the town). The long [iː] of Swiss German is historically and still often today spelled ⟨y⟩ rather than ⟨ii⟩ , preserving the original identity of the two names even in writing. The Latin name Confoederatio Helvetica was neologised and introduced gradually after the formation of the federal state in 1848, harking back to the Napoleonic Helvetic Republic . It appeared on coins from 1879, inscribed on
14949-543: The citizens, the membership application was withdrawn. Nonetheless, Swiss law is gradually changing to conform with that of the EU, and the government signed bilateral agreements with the European Union. Switzerland, together with Liechtenstein, has been surrounded by the EU since Austria's entry in 1995. On 5 June 2005, Swiss voters agreed by a 55% majority to join the Schengen treaty , a result that EU commentators regarded as
15100-551: The concentration camps. The biggest critic of the camps was the English humanitarian and welfare worker Emily Hobhouse . She published a prominent report that highlighted atrocities committed by Kitchener's soldiers and administration, creating considerable debate in London about the war. Kitchener blocked Hobhouse from returning to South Africa by invoking martial law provisions. Historian Caroline Elkins characterized Kitchener's conduct of
15251-520: The confederation suffered a setback in 1515 with the Swiss defeat in the Battle of Marignano . This ended the so-called "heroic" epoch of Swiss history. The success of Zwingli 's Reformation in some cantons led to inter-cantonal religious conflicts in 1529 and 1531 ( Wars of Kappel ). It was not until more than one hundred years after these internal wars that, in 1648, under the Peace of Westphalia , European countries recognised Switzerland's independence from
15402-515: The constitution forbade sending troops to serve abroad, marking the end of foreign service. It came with the expectation of serving the Holy See , and the Swiss were still obliged to serve Francis II of the Two Sicilies with Swiss Guards present at the siege of Gaeta in 1860 . An important clause of the constitution was that it could be entirely rewritten, if necessary, thus enabling it to evolve as
15553-547: The constitution was revised with uncommonly strong elements of direct democracy , which remain unique today. Switzerland was not invaded during either of the world wars. During World War I , Switzerland was home to the revolutionary and founder of the Soviet Union Vladimir Illych Ulyanov ( Vladimir Lenin ) who remained there until 1917. Swiss neutrality was seriously questioned by the short-lived Grimm–Hoffmann affair in 1917. In 1920, Switzerland joined
15704-463: The defeat of the conventional Boer forces, Kitchener succeeded Roberts as overall commander in November 1900. He was also promoted to lieutenant-general on 29 November 1900 and to local general on 12 December 1900. He subsequently inherited and expanded the successful strategies devised by Roberts to force the Boer commandos to submit, including concentration camps and the burning of farms. Conditions in
15855-537: The defence budget and ethical considerations prevented the substantial funds from being allocated, and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 was seen as a valid alternative. Plans for building nuclear weapons were dropped by 1988. Switzerland joined the Council of Europe in 1963. Switzerland was the last Western republic (the Principality of Liechtenstein followed in 1984) to grant women
16006-583: The development of what were essentially early urban strongholds and city governments in Eastern Switzerland. By 1200, the Swiss Plateau comprised the dominions of the houses of Savoy , Zähringer , Habsburg , and Kyburg . Some regions ( Uri , Schwyz , Unterwalden , later known as Waldstätten ) were accorded the Imperial immediacy to grant the empire direct control over the mountain passes. With
16157-423: The eastern regions. Facing pressures from Germanic tribes, in 58 BC, the Helvetii, influenced by Orgetorix , a wealthy aristocrat, decided to abandon the Swiss Plateau for better opportunities in western Gallia. After Orgetorix's mysterious death, the tribe continued their migration but was decisively defeated by Julius Caesar's armies at the Battle of Bibracte , in present-day eastern France. Following their defeat,
16308-663: The end of the 15th century. The expansion led to increased power and wealth for the confederation. By 1460, the confederates controlled most of the territory south and west of the Rhine to the Alps and the Jura mountains , and the University of Basel was founded (with a faculty of medicine) establishing a tradition of chemical and medical research. This increased after victories against the Habsburgs ( Battle of Sempach , Battle of Näfels ), over Charles
16459-532: The entire war. Kitchener was born in Tarbert near Listowel , County Kerry , in Ireland , son of army officer Henry Horatio Kitchener (1805–1894) and Frances Anne Chevallier (1826–1864); daughter of John Chevallier , a clergyman, of Aspall Hall, and his third wife, Elizabeth ( née Cole). Both sides of Kitchener's family were from Suffolk , and could trace their descent to the reign of William III ; his mother's family
16610-633: The extinction of its male line in 1263, the Kyburg dynasty fell in AD 1264. The Habsburgs under King Rudolph I (Holy Roman Emperor in 1273) laid claim to the Kyburg lands and annexed them, extending their territory to the eastern Swiss Plateau. The Old Swiss Confederacy was an alliance among the valley communities of the central Alps. The Confederacy was governed by nobles and patricians of various cantons who facilitated management of common interests and ensured peace on mountain trade routes. The Federal Charter of 1291
16761-648: The headwaters of several major rivers, such as the Rhine , Inn , Ticino and Rhône , which flow in the four cardinal directions, spreading across Europe. The hydrographic network includes several of the largest bodies of fresh water in Central and Western Europe, among which are Lake Geneva (Lac Léman in French), Lake Constance (Bodensee in German) and Lake Maggiore . Switzerland has more than 1500 lakes and contains 6% of Europe's freshwater stock. Lakes and glaciers cover about 6% of
16912-413: The highest in terms of quality of life, albeit with some of the highest costs of living . Switzerland holds an international reputation for its established banking sector, alongside its distinctive recognition for their watchmaking and chocolate production. It has four main linguistic and cultural regions: German, French, Italian and Romansh . Although most Swiss are German-speaking, national identity
17063-548: The honour, though three ( Wilhelm II , German Emperor; Franz Joseph I , Emperor of Austria-Hungary; and Hirohito , Emperor of Japan) were stripped of it when their countries became enemies of Britain and its allies in the two world wars. Also awarded the rank were one Frenchman ( Ferdinand Foch ) and one Australian ( Sir Thomas Blamey ), honoured for their contributions in World War I and World War II respectively, and one South African statesman ( Jan Smuts ). A report commissioned by
17214-544: The job himself as a stopgap following the resignation of Colonel Seely over the Curragh Incident earlier in 1914. Kitchener was in Britain on his annual summer leave, between 23 June and 3 August 1914, and had boarded a cross-Channel steamer to commence his return trip to Cairo when he was recalled to London to meet with Asquith. War was declared at 11pm the next day. Against cabinet opinion, Kitchener correctly predicted
17365-597: The last widely recognised state without full UN membership. Switzerland is a founding member of the EFTA but not the European Economic Area (EEA). An application for membership in the European Union was sent in May 1992, but did not advance since rejecting the EEA in December 1992 when Switzerland conducted a referendum on the EEA. Several referendums on the EU issue ensued; due to opposition from
17516-437: The man who had vanquished Gordon, asking whether it had been really necessary for Kitchener to desecrate the Mahdi's tomb.The body of the Mahdi was disinterred and beheaded. This symbolic decapitation echoed General Gordon's death at the hands of the Mahdist forces in 1885. The headless body of the Mahdi was thrown into the Nile. Kitchener is sometimes claimed to have kept the Mahdī's skull and rumoured that he intended to use it as
17667-483: The most enduring images of the war, having been copied and parodied many times since. Kitchener built up the " New Armies " as separate units because he distrusted the Territorials from what he had seen with the French Army in 1870. This may have been a mistaken judgement. The British reservists of 1914 tended to be much younger and fitter than their French equivalents a generation earlier. Cabinet Secretary Maurice Hankey wrote of Kitchener: The great outstanding fact
17818-499: The name for themselves after the Swabian War of 1499, used alongside the term for "Confederates", Eidgenossen (literally: comrades by oath ), used since the 14th century. The data code for Switzerland , CH, is derived from Latin Confoederatio Helvetica ( Helvetic Confederation ). The toponym Schwyz itself was first attested in 972, as Old High German Suittes , perhaps related to swedan 'to burn' (cf. Old Norse svíða 'to singe, burn'), referring to
17969-522: The national territory. Lake Geneva is the largest lake and is shared with France. The Rhône is both the main source and outflow of Lake Geneva. Lake Constance is the second largest and, like Lake Geneva, an intermediate step by the Rhine at the border with Austria and Germany. While the Rhône flows into the Mediterranean Sea at the French Camargue region and the Rhine flows into the North Sea at Rotterdam , about 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) apart, both springs are only about 22 kilometres (14 miles) apart in
18120-400: The official day of rest, and guaranteed freedom of religion to all citizens of the Sudan. He attempted to prevent evangelical Christian missionaries from trying to convert Muslims to Christianity. At this stage of his career Kitchener was keen to exploit the press, cultivating G. W. Steevens of the Daily Mail who wrote a book With Kitchener to Khartum . Later, as his legend had grown, he
18271-401: The patriciate was only temporary. After a period of unrest with repeated violent clashes, such as the Züriputsch of 1839, civil war (the Sonderbundskrieg ) broke out in 1847 when some Catholic cantons tried to set up a separate alliance (the Sonderbund ). The war lasted less than a month, causing fewer than 100 casualties, most of which were through friendly fire . The Sonderbundskrieg had
18422-478: The personal protection of the royals during the coronation. In this capacity, Kitchener was also the Field Marshal, In Command of the Troops, and assumed command of the 55,000 British and imperial soldiers present in London. During the Coronation ceremony itself, Kitchener acted as Third Sword, one of the four swords tasked with guarding the monarch. Later, in November 1911, Kitchener hosted the King and Queen in Port Said , Egypt while they were on their way to India for
18573-496: The pettiness of this (Curzon simply signed himself "Curzon" as a hereditary peer, although he later took to signing himself "Curzon of Kedleston"). They also clashed over the question of military administration, as Kitchener objected to the system whereby transport and logistics were controlled by a "Military Member" of the Viceroy's Council . After what Curzon's most recent biographer described as "prolonged intrigue" and "deceitful methods", including correspondence which Kitchener asked
18724-494: The purpose of distracting the Ansar (whom the British called " Dervishes ") from attacking the Italians. Kitchener won victories at the Battle of Ferkeh in June 1896 and the Battle of Hafir in September 1896, earning him national fame in the United Kingdom and promotion to major-general on 25 September 1896. Kitchener's cold personality and his tendency to drive his men hard made him widely disliked by his fellow officers. One officer wrote about Kitchener in September 1896: "He
18875-458: The rank after shorter periods of service. Three British monarchs ( George V , Edward VIII , and George VI ) assumed the rank on their accessions to the throne, while Edward VII and Charles III were already field marshals, and two British consorts, Albert, Prince Consort and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , were appointed by their respective queens. Other ceremonial appointments were made as diplomatic gestures. Twelve foreign monarchs have held
19026-440: The recipients to destroy after reading, the Commander-in-Chief won the crucial support of the government in London, and the Viceroy had no option but to resign. Later events proved Curzon was right in opposing Kitchener's attempts to concentrate all military decision-making power in his own office. Although the offices of Commander-in-Chief and Military Member were now held by a single individual, senior officers could approach only
19177-414: The right to vote . Some Swiss cantons approved this in 1959, while at the federal level, it was achieved in 1971 and, after resistance, in the last canton Appenzell Innerrhoden (one of only two remaining Landsgemeinde , along with Glarus ) in 1990. After obtaining suffrage at the federal level, women quickly rose in political significance. The first woman on the seven-member Federal Council executive
19328-546: The sixth century, following Clovis I 's victory over the Alemanni at Tolbiac in 504 AD, and later Frankish domination of the Burgundians. Throughout the rest of the sixth, seventh and eighth centuries, Swiss regions continued under Frankish hegemony ( Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties) but after its extension under Charlemagne , the Frankish Empire was divided by the Treaty of Verdun in 843. The territories of present-day Switzerland became divided into Middle Francia and East Francia until they were reunified under
19479-400: The time); perhaps due to a Curzon-inspired whispering campaign; but most importantly because Morley, who was a Gladstonian and thus suspicious of imperialism, felt it inappropriate, after the recent grant of limited self-government under the Indian Councils Act 1909 , for a serving soldier to be Viceroy (in the event, no serving soldier was appointed Viceroy until Lord Wavell in 1943, during
19630-455: The title of chief of staff, he was in practice a second-in-command and was present at the relief of Kimberley before leading an unsuccessful frontal assault at the Battle of Paardeberg in February 1900. Kitchener was mentioned in despatches from Roberts several times during the early part of the war; in a despatch from March 1900 Roberts wrote how he was "greatly indebted to him for his counsel and cordial support on all occasions". Following
19781-426: The tread of horses and men's feet I heard and seemed to feel as well as hear, but a voiced continuous shouting and chanting-the Dervish invocation and battle challenge "Allah e Allah Rasool Allah el Mahdi!" they reiterated in vociferous rising measure, as they swept over the intervening ground". Kitchener had the ground carefully studied so that his officers would know the best angle of fire, and had his army open fire on
19932-416: The war as a " scorched earth policy", as his forces razed homesteads, poisoned wells and implemented concentration camps, as well as turned women and children into targets in the war. The Treaty of Vereeniging ending the war was signed in May 1902 following a tense six months. During this period Kitchener struggled against the Governor of the Cape Colony ( Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner ), and against
20083-439: The west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is geographically divided among the Swiss Plateau , the Alps and the Jura ; the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, whereas most of the country's population of 9 million are concentrated on the plateau, which hosts its largest cities and economic centres, including Zurich , Geneva , and Basel . Switzerland originates from
20234-502: The wider world by Axis-controlled territory. Over the course of the war, Switzerland interned over 300,000 refugees aided by the International Red Cross , based in Geneva. Strict immigration and asylum policies and the financial relationships with Nazi Germany raised controversy, only at the end of the 20th century. During the war, the Swiss Air Force engaged aircraft of both sides, shooting down 11 intruding Luftwaffe planes in May and June 1940, then forcing down other intruders after
20385-441: Was Elisabeth Kopp , who served from 1984 to 1989, and the first female president was Ruth Dreifuss in 1999. In 1979 areas from the canton of Bern attained independence from the Bernese, forming the new canton of Jura . On 18 April 1999, the Swiss population and the cantons voted in favour of a completely revised federal constitution . In 2002 Switzerland became a full member of the United Nations, leaving Vatican City as
20536-412: Was a Master of Expedients". At the War Council (5 August) Kitchener and Lieutenant General Sir Douglas Haig argued that the BEF should be deployed at Amiens , where it could deliver a vigorous counterattack once the route of German advance was known. Kitchener argued that the deployment of the BEF in Belgium would result in having to retreat and abandon much of its supplies almost immediately, because
20687-445: Was able to be rude to the press, on one occasion in the Second Boer War bellowing: "Get out of my way, you drunken swabs". He was created Baron Kitchener , of Khartoum and of Aspall in the County of Suffolk , on 31 October 1898. During the Second Boer War , Kitchener arrived in South Africa with Field Marshal Lord Roberts on the RMS Dunottar Castle along with massive British reinforcements in December 1899. Officially holding
20838-445: Was also the only field marshal to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom . No officer whose career was spent in the British Army has ever reached the rank of field marshal without having served in the cavalry , infantry , Royal Armoured Corps , Royal Artillery , or Royal Engineers . One non-British officer has been appointed field marshal in the British Army; Ferdinand Foch of France, in recognition of his contributions in
20989-458: Was always inclined to bully his own entourage, as some men are rude to their wives. He was inclined to let off his spleen on those around him. He was often morose and silent for hours together ... he was even morbidly afraid of showing any feeling or enthusiasm, and he preferred to be misunderstood rather than be suspected of human feeling." Kitchener had served on the Wolseley expedition to rescue General Charles George Gordon at Khartoum, and
21140-441: Was assigned by the Palestine Exploration Fund to a mapping-survey of the Holy Land , replacing Charles Tyrwhitt-Drake , who had died of malaria. By then an officer in the Royal Engineers , Kitchener joined fellow officer Claude R. Conder ; between 1874 and 1877 they surveyed Palestine, returning to England only briefly in 1875 after an attack by locals at Safed , in Galilee . Conder and Kitchener's expedition became known as
21291-399: Was complicated and controversial; over the course of the war, it admitted as many as 300,000 refugees while refusing tens of thousands more, including Jews persecuted by the Nazis. After the war, the Swiss government exported credits through the charitable fund known as the Schweizerspende and donated to the Marshall Plan to help Europe's recovery, efforts that ultimately benefited
21442-429: Was convinced that the expedition failed because Wolseley had used boats coming up the Nile to bring his supplies. Kitchener wanted to build a railroad to supply the Anglo-Egyptian army, and assigned the task of constructing the Sudan Military Railroad to a Canadian railroad builder, Percy Girouard , for whom he had specifically asked. Kitchener achieved further successes at the Battle of Atbara in April 1898, and then
21593-418: Was extended by two years in 1907. Kitchener was promoted to the highest Army rank, field marshal , on 10 September 1909 and went on a tour of Australia and New Zealand . He aspired to be Viceroy of India , but the Secretary of State for India , John Morley , was not keen and hoped to send him instead to Malta as Commander-in-Chief of British forces in the Mediterranean , even to the point of announcing
21744-446: Was going to command the Army in France he would see them damned first". He was created Earl Kitchener , of Khartoum and of Broome in the County of Kent , on 29 June 1914. During this period he became a proponent of Scouting and coined the phrase "once a Scout, always a Scout". At the outset of the First World War , the prime minister, Asquith, quickly had Kitchener appointed Secretary of State for War ; Asquith had been filling
21895-405: Was integrated into the Roman province of Raetia . Sometime around the start of the Common Era , the Romans maintained a large camp called Vindonissa , now a ruin at the confluence of the Aare and Reuss rivers, near the town of Windisch . The first and second century AD was an age of prosperity on the Swiss Plateau. Towns such as Aventicum , Iulia Equestris and Augusta Raurica reached
22046-427: Was nicknamed "no More K", and concentrated on establishing good relations with the Viceroy, Lord Hardinge . Kitchener presided over the Rawalpindi Parade in 1905 to honour the Prince and Princess of Wales's visit to India. That same year Kitchener founded the Indian Staff College at Quetta (now the Pakistan Command and Staff College ), where his portrait still hangs. His term of office as Commander-in-Chief, India,
22197-431: Was of French Huguenot descent. His father had only recently sold his commission and bought land in Ireland, under the Encumbered Estates Act of 1849 designed to encourage investment into Ireland after the Irish Famine . In later life Kitchener only once revisited his childhood home, in the summer of 1910 at the invitation of Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne ; he astonished the estate's owners by recalling
22348-403: Was part of the territory of the Kings of the Burgundians , who introduced the French language to the area. The Alemanni settled the Swiss Plateau in the fifth century and the valleys of the Alps in the eighth century, forming Alemannia . Modern-day Switzerland was then divided between the kingdoms of Alemannia and Burgundy . The entire region became part of the expanding Frankish Empire in
22499-404: Was promoted to brevet colonel on 11 April 1888 and to the substantive rank of major on 20 July 1889 and led the Egyptian cavalry at the Battle of Toski in August 1889. At the beginning of 1890 he was appointed Inspector General of the Egyptian police 1888–92 before moving to the position of Adjutant-General of the Egyptian Army in December of the same year and Sirdar (Commander-in-Chief) of
22650-470: Was the first officer not to be promoted upon appointment as CDS, although he was promoted to the honorary rank of field marshal in June 2012. The most recent promotions to field marshal came in 2012, eighteen years after the moratorium on routine promotions to the rank, when Queen Elizabeth II promoted Prince Charles, her son and heir apparent, to the five-star ranks in all three services, in recognition of support provided for her in her capacity as Head of
22801-399: Was vacant during parts of the 18th and 19th centuries (when all former holders of the rank were deceased). After the Second World War, it became standard practice to appoint the Chief of the Imperial General Staff (later renamed Chief of the General Staff ) to the rank on his last day in the post. Army officers occupying the post of Chief of the Defence Staff , the professional head of all
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