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From Private to Field-Marshal
The personal account of the only British soldier to rise from private to Field-Marshal and Chief of the Imperial General Staff -- the position of the professional head of the British Army. Robertson retired in 1920 as Sir William Robertson, Bart., GCB, GCMG, KCVO, DSO.
396 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1921
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About the author
William Robert Robertson
8 books1 followerSir William Robert Robertson, 1st Baronet was a British Army officer.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 23, 2018
I happened upon this dusty volume in an antique shop and was drawn by the title . It seems that the author was the only ever British soldier to rise from Private to Field Marshall.
He joins up in 1877 and the world he describes certainly belongs to another century. He continuously refers to the ancient army practices of 1870s in comparison to the more enlightened era in which he writes - 1920s !! So that in itself draws a smile.
The enjoyable part of the book is seeing the world through the eyes of a successful career soldier of 1890 - 1918 and realising how much the world has changed. Our eyes draw very different conclusions and ask very different questions !
There are many amusing anecdotes and insights and i was continuously consulting Wikipedia as I read - the Fashoda incident of 1898 being one of my favourite gemstones. 12 French soldiers plant a flag in Sudanese Fashoda and are then joined by Kitchener and 150 British soldiers also bearing a flag .Quoi Faire ?? Well after 7 weeks of eying each other up the French decide they need the Brits to help them keep the Germans at bay !!!
I think that reading a historic diary by a contemporary such as Robertson (whose writing to us appears often naive and Victorian ) is nonetheless an excellent exercise. It affords us a direct view of the changed world and an understanding of their era seen from their world view. Be prepared to skip a few pages however .
He joins up in 1877 and the world he describes certainly belongs to another century. He continuously refers to the ancient army practices of 1870s in comparison to the more enlightened era in which he writes - 1920s !! So that in itself draws a smile.
The enjoyable part of the book is seeing the world through the eyes of a successful career soldier of 1890 - 1918 and realising how much the world has changed. Our eyes draw very different conclusions and ask very different questions !
There are many amusing anecdotes and insights and i was continuously consulting Wikipedia as I read - the Fashoda incident of 1898 being one of my favourite gemstones. 12 French soldiers plant a flag in Sudanese Fashoda and are then joined by Kitchener and 150 British soldiers also bearing a flag .Quoi Faire ?? Well after 7 weeks of eying each other up the French decide they need the Brits to help them keep the Germans at bay !!!
I think that reading a historic diary by a contemporary such as Robertson (whose writing to us appears often naive and Victorian ) is nonetheless an excellent exercise. It affords us a direct view of the changed world and an understanding of their era seen from their world view. Be prepared to skip a few pages however .
May 3, 2023
Fascinating story of a fascinating life. Still the only soldier to have joined the British army as a Private and died a Field Marshal. Really interesting on the late Victorian army, and as CIGS for most of the Kaiser’s War an unmatched insight into the real history. Just a pity he didn’t outlive Lloyd-George so he could have said what he really thought !
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews