John Hanbury-Williams

Major-General Sir John Hanbury-Williams, (19 October 1859 – 19 October 1946) was a British Army officer, who served as Military Secretary to the Secretary of State for War and later Brigadier-General in charge of Administration (Scotland). He served on the International Olympic Committee (IOC), representing Canada between 1911 and 1921. During the First World War he was head of the British military mission with the Russian Stavka with direct access to Tsar Nicholas II. Early life John Hanbury-Williams was the youngest son of Ferdinand Hanbury-Williams, of Coldbrook Park, Monmouthshire. He was educated at Wellington College. Career Hanbury-Williams attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and in 1878 he was commissioned into the 43rd Light Infantry. He was ADC to Lieutenant General Sir E Hamley in the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882. That same year he took part in the Battle of Tel-El-Kebir, and was mentioned in despatches. He was extra ADC to Sir M. E. Grant Duff, Governor of Madras in 1884 and 1885. Hanbury-Williams was Adjutant of the 3rd Oxfordshire Light Infantry from 1892 to 1897. He served in the Second Boer War between 1899 and 1900 and was mentioned in despatches. He was Military Secretary to Sir Alfred Milner from 1897 to 1900 and Military Secretary to the Secretary of State for War from 1900 to 1903. He was the Canadian Governor-General's Secretary and Military Secretary from 1904 to 1909. He was Brigadier-General in charge of Administration (Scotland) from 1909 to 1914. In 1911 he was elected as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to represent Canada and served on the IOC until 1921. He was employed on the General Staff in 1914. During the First World War he was head of the British military mission with the Russian Stavka and was mentioned in despatches. He was popular with the Russian leaders because he was a relative of Charles Hanbury Williams. David Lloyd George later recorded in his War Memoirs (published in the 1930s) that he was charming, hardworking and able to point out faults without causing offence. However, historian George Cassar writes that he had little knowledge of Eastern Europe and could not speak Russian, so had to converse with Russian generals in French; he had only limited dealings with his French counterpart General de Laguiche.