{{Short description|British Army general (1869–1943)}} {{Use British English|date=November 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}} {{Infobox military person |honorific_prefix = [[Major general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] |name= Sir Wilkinson Bird |honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|KBE|CB|CMG|DSO}} |image= |image_size= |alt= |caption= |nickname= |birth_date= {{Birth date|1869|5|4|df=yes}} |birth_place= |death_date= {{Death date and age|1943|1|6|1869|5|4|df=yes}} |death_place= |burial_place= |allegiance= United Kingdom |branch= [[British Army]] |service_years= 1888–1923 |rank= [[Major general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] |unit= [[Queen's Royal Regiment]]<br/>[[Royal Irish Rifles]] |commands= [[7th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|7th Brigade]]<br/>2nd Battalion, [[Royal Irish Rifles]] |battles= [[Second Boer War]]<br/>[[First World War]] |awards= [[Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire]]<br/>[[Companion of the Order of the Bath]]<br/>[[Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George]]<br/>[[Distinguished Service Order]]<br/>[[Mentioned in Despatches]] |relations= |other_work= }} [[Major general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] '''Sir Wilkinson Dent Bird''', {{postnominals|size=100|sep=,|KBE|CB|CMG|DSO}} (4 May 1869 – 6 January 1943) was an officer of the [[British Army]] during the late-19th century and the [[First World War]].
==Early life and military career== Dent was born on 4 May 1869, the son of J.D. Bird, a captain in the [[20th Hussars]]. After studying at [[Wellington College, Berkshire|Wellington]] and the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], he took a commission as a [[second lieutenant]] in the [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)]] on 22 August 1888.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=25848|page=4512|date=21 August 1888}}</ref>
He was promoted to [[Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines)|lieutenant]] on 1 December 1890, and to [[Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)|captain]] on 21 April 1897.<ref>Hart′s Army list, 1903</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26844/page/2218 | title=Page 2218 | Issue 26844, 20 April 1897 | London Gazette | the Gazette }}</ref> That year, he served with the [[Niger Expedition]], where he was [[mentioned in despatches]] and received a [[brevet promotion]] to [[Major (British Army and Royal Marines)|major]] on 6 June 1897. His next posting took him to the [[North-Western Frontier]] of India.<ref name="Who Was Who">''Who Was Who''</ref>
Bird served with his regiment in the [[Second Boer War]], where he was present at the [[Relief of Mafeking]] and was again mentioned in despatches, but was severely wounded and returned home in 1900. For his service, he was awarded the [[Distinguished Service Order]] (DSO).<ref name="Who Was Who"/><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=11296|page=466|date=23 April 1901|city=e}}</ref>
Bird was back as a regular captain in his regiment in July 1902.<ref>{{London Gazette| issue=27477 |page=6150 |date=26 September 1902}}</ref> From 1903 to 1905 he was chief instructor at the [[School of Musketry]], and from 24 June 1905<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=27924|page=4309|date=22 June 1906}}</ref> to 1909 a lecturer at the [[Pakistan Command and Staff College|Staff College, India]]. He was promoted to a brevet lieutenant-colonelcy in December 1909,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=28318|page=9594|date=17 December 1909}}</ref> and appointed a General Staff Officer, Grade 2, at the War Office the following year.<ref name="Who Was Who"/>
In September 1913 Bird, promoted in September 1910 to major,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=28421|page=6977|date=4 October 1910}}</ref> was transferred from the Queen's to the Royal Irish Rifles (later the [[Royal Ulster Rifles]]) and promoted to lieutenant colonel.<ref name="Who Was Who"/><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=28758|page=6695|date=23 September 1913}}</ref>
==First World War== He was in command of the battalion at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, when it was sent to France with the [[7th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|7th Brigade]], [[3rd Infantry Division (United Kingdom)|3rd Division]].<ref>Edmonds, p. 419</ref> On 26 August, at the [[Battle of Le Cateau]], he assumed command of the 7th Brigade when its commander, Brigadier General [[Frederick McCracken]], was disabled by an artillery shell.<ref>Edmonds, pp. 172–174</ref>
Bird was severely wounded at the [[First Battle of the Aisne]], on 15 September; his leg had to be amputated as a result, and on recovery he returned to the general staff rather than regimental service. He was promoted to brevet colonel in February 1915<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=12776|page=307|date=23 February 1915|city=e}}</ref> and appointed a [[personal aide-de-camp]] to King [[George V]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29074|page=1687|date=16 February 1915|supp=y}}</ref> He was made a general staff officer, grade 1 in 1915, and appointed director of staff duties at the [[War Office]] in February 1916, taking over from Major General [[Colin Mackenzie (British Army officer)|Colin Mackenzie]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29467|page=1489|date=8 February 1916|supp=y}}</ref> In May 1918, after being promoted to temporary major general,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=30707|page=6209|date=24 May 1918|supp=y}}</ref> he took up the post of lieutenant governor of the [[Royal Hospital, Chelsea]].
==Post-war years== He retired from the army in 1923, having received a promotion to major general in 1921.<ref name="Who Was Who"/> He was appointed the [[Lees Knowles Lecturer]] at [[Trinity College, Cambridge]] for the year 1927.<ref>[http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/index.php?pageid=399 Home > About Trinity > Public Lectures > Lees Knowles Lectures > Past Lees Knowles Lecturers], [[Trinity College, Cambridge]].</ref>
From December 1929 to 1939, Bird served as the [[colonel]] of the [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)]], taking over from General [[Sir Charles Monro, 1st Baronet|Sir Charles Monro]].<ref name="Who Was Who"/><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=33582|page=1144|date=21 February 1930}}</ref>
==Family== Bird married Winifred Barker in early 1902; the couple had two daughters.<ref name="Who Was Who" /> The eldest daughter was born in Westminster on 1 January 1903.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Births |date=3 January 1903 |page=1 |issue=36968}}</ref>
==Notes== {{reflist}}
==References== *''[[History of the Great War]]: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1914'', by [[J. E. Edmonds]]. Macmillan & Co., London, 1922. [https://archive.org/details/militaryoperatio01edmouoft Digitised copy] *"BIRD, Major-General Sir Wilkinson Dent". (2007). In ''Who Was Who''. Online edition. *{{cite book|last=Falls|first=Cyril|title=The history of the first seven battalions, the Royal Irish Rifles, in the Great War|year=1925|url=http://435728.com/web_documents/fallsrir.htm}}
==External links== * {{Librivox author |id=16512}}
{{s-start}} {{s-mil}} {{s-bef|before=[[Sir Charles Monro, 1st Baronet|Sir Charles Monro]]}} {{s-ttl|title=Colonel of the [[Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)|2nd (The Queen's Royal) Regiment of Foot]]|years=1929–1939}} {{s-aft|after=[[Ivo Vesey|Sir Ivo Vesey]]}} {{s-end}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Wilkinson}} [[Category:1869 births]] [[Category:1943 deaths]] [[Category:Academics of the Staff College, Quetta]] [[Category:Queen's Royal Regiment officers]] [[Category:Royal Ulster Rifles officers]] [[Category:British Army major generals]] [[Category:People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire]] [[Category:British Army personnel of the Second Boer War]] [[Category:Companions of the Distinguished Service Order]] [[Category:British Army generals of World War I]] [[Category:Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] [[Category:Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George]] [[Category:Companions of the Order of the Bath]] [[Category:British amputees]] [[Category:Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst]]