William Garnett Braithwaite

Born 21 Oct 1870 - Died 15 Oct 1937

Service number: WWI 15/4 AWMM
South African N/N AWMM
Also known as: —
Armed force / branch: Army AWMM
Last rank: WW1 Brigadier General/Military AWMM New Zealand Infantry, 2 Brigade AWMM
War: South African War, 1899-1902 AWMM
World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM

William Garnett Braithwaite — Brigadier-General W.G. Braithwaite from facing page 64, New Zealand Rifle Brigade by Lt-Col. W.S. Austin, 1924 - No known copyright restrictions No Known Copyright Restrictions

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Biographical information

Son of Garnett and Elizabeth Braithwaite.

Husband of Gwendolen Elizabeth Hewett.

Adjutant of 1 Battalion, British Army, 1898-1900.

Served in South Africa with the British forces, 1899-1902.

Deputy Assistant Adjutant General (DAAG), March 1901 - August 1902.

Brevet Major Adjutant of Volunteers, 1902-1904.

Officer of Cadet Co., Royal Military College (RMC), Sandhurst, 1906-1907.

Adjutant, RMC, 1907-1910.

General Staff Officer class 3 (GSO3) of NZ Forces, 25 May 1911 - August 1914.

General Staff Officer class 1 (GSO1) of HQ 1 NZEF, August 1914.

Commander of 2 NZ Infantry Brigade, 1916 - February 1918.

Returned to British Army, 16 February 1918.

Commander of 16 Infantry Brigade, British Army, October 1918.

Chronicles Of The N.Z.E.F. - Records of Matters Concerning the Troops, No.39, March 13 1918, page 52 provides the following commentary on Braithwaite in a piece entitled An Experienced Soldier:

"Easily the best known of our Brigadier-Generals was the elate Commander of the 2nd Infantry Brigade, old Bill Braithwaite, as he was warm-heartedly termed by the whole Division. He has been with use right from the start, and there are none amongst us who will ever forget his familiar figure, and not a few whom he had brought up to the scratch. He is a soldier of long experience and service, and there is not much that escapes his attention. He is a large man, genial and hearty, and makes his opinions known in no uncertain language. The boys liked the Brigadier, and we shall miss him now that he has transferred to the British Corps as B.G.G.S., and is struck off the strength of the N.Z.E.F.

Brigadier-General William Garnett Braithwaite, C.M.G., D.S.O., was the elder son of the late Garnett Braithwaite-Wilson of Plumtree Hall, Milnthorpe, Westmorland, and was born at Plumgarths, near Kendal, Westmorland, on October 21st, 1870. He was educated at Marlborough (1882-18880 and at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, 1890.

In May, 1891, he joined the 23rd Royal Welsh Fuisiliers, and was appointed Lieutenant in May, 1894, Captain in July, 1899, Major in May, 1910, Lieutenant-Colonel in August, 1915, and Brevet-Colonel in June, 1917.

From 1892 to 1897 he served in India with the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, and fought through the South African War from 1899 to 1902 as Adjutant to the 1st Battalion, and on the Staff as Brigade Major, 6th (Fusilier) Brigade, and later as D.A.A.G. He was present at the Relief of Ladysmith, the battles of Colenso and Pieters Hill, the Relief of Mafeking, the action at Fourteen Streams (wounded), and at the subsequent operations in the Western Transvaal, including the action at Frederikstadt. During his South African service he was three times mentioned in despatches, and gained the Queens Medal with five clasps, and the Kings Medal, and the D.S.O.

From 1905 to 1909 he was Instructor and Adjutant with the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and in 1910 he passed through Staff College, Camberley. From May, 1911, to the outbreak of war he was on the General Staff in New Zealand as General Staff Officer, Auckland District, and later as Chief of the General Staff at Headquarters, Wellington.

He left New Zealand with the main body of the Expeditionary Force (October, 1914) as G.S.O. (1), serving in that capacity with the New Zealand and Australian Division in Egypt, and through the Gallipoli Campaign from the landing at ANZAC to November 13th, 1915, when he assumed temporary command of the New Zealand Infantry Brigade, at that time holding the Apex Sector of the ANZAC Defences, which command he continued to hold during the evacuation on the most memorable night of December 19th, 1915. On December 21st he was transferred to the command of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade, on on March 1st following to the command of the of the newly formed Second New Zealand Division, which Brigade he has commanded on the Western Front in France and Flanders up to the present time. Together with his Brigade, he has gone through the trench days of Armentieres, the Somme, Messines, and the third battle of Ypres.

In the present campaign the Brigadier-General has been seven times mentioned in despatches, has been decorated with the C.M.G., has gained his promotion to the brevet rank of Colonel, and has done much valiant service.

In 1901 he married Gwendolen Elizabeth, daughter of the late Lieut.-General E.V.O. Hewett, C.M.G., R.E." AWMM

Sources

External links: Military personnel file
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R21005433
Further Reference
New Zealand History online. New Zealand in the South (Boer) War
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/war/south-african-boer-war/introduction
Further Reference
Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Published on Te Ara, The Encyclopedia of New Zealand online.
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3b45/braithwaite-william-garnett
Further Reference
Wikidata Entity
http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q15971118
Further Reference
Wikidata Entity
http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q15971118
Further Reference
References: New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1914-1919). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Volume I. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
Page No: 73
Haigh, J., Polaschek, A. (Eds.). (1993). New Zealand and the Distinguished Service Order. Christchurch, N.Z.: Authors.
Chronicles of the N.Z.E.F.: Records of Matters Concerning the Troops and Gazette of Patriotic Effort [London, England] : New Zealand War Contingent Association, [1916-1919]
Records of Matters Concerning the Troops. (1918, March 13) Chronicles Of The N.Z.E.F. . No. 39, p. 52; cartoon (1918, August 2). No. 49, p. 5.
Stewart, H. (1921). The New Zealand Division 1916-1919 : a popular history based on official records. Auckland, N.Z.: Whitcombe & Tombs.
Official History of New Zealand: Volume II, France by H. Stewart, pp. 9, 15, 81, 108, 114, 116, 139, 150, 192, 212, 307, 313, 323
The Evening Post
Evening Post. 19 Oct. 1937: 11 .
Stowers, R. (2009). Rough riders at war : history of New Zealand's involvement in the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902 and information on all members of the 10 New Zealand contingents. Hamilton, N.Z.: R. Stowers.
Beattie, P.J. & Pomeroy, M. (2013-2020). Onward : portraits of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (vols 1-5). Auckland, New Zealand: Fair Dinkum Publications
Vol. 5: Includes portrait
Austin, W. (1924). The official history of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade (The Earl of Liverpool's Own). Wellington, N.Z.: L T Watkins.
McDonald, W. (2013). Honours and Awards to the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in the Great War, 1914-1918. (3rd ed.). Hamilton, N.Z.: Richard Stowers.
Waite, F. (1919). The New Zealanders at Gallipoli. Auckland, N.Z.: Printed and published under Authority of the New Zealand Government by Whitcombe & Tombs.

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William Garnett Braithwaite