Philip Chetwode, 1st Baron Chetwode

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Field Marshal Philip Walhouse Chetwode, 1st Baron Chetwode, 7th Baronet of Oakley GCB OM GCSI KCMG DSO (21 September 18691950) was a British cavalry officer during World War I.

Chetwode was the son of Sir George Chetwode, 6th Baronet, and Alice Jane Bass. He served on the Western Front in smaller cavalry commands receiving little distinction. In 1917 he was transferred to Palestine where he commanded a Cavalry Division at the First Battle of Gaza and the Second Battle of Gaza.

When Edmund Allenby took command of the Allied forces in Palestine, Chetwode was promoted to command of XX Corps. He led the corps with distinction at the Third Battle of Gaza. He led the main attack at the Battle of Jerusalem, capturing the city after one day of fighting. The next year he again led his corps with distinction at the Battle of Megiddo.

After the war Chetwode was promoted field marshal and appointed Commander-in-Chief, India. He was portrayed in the film Lawrence of Arabia, albeit very briefly, by John Robinson, during the British staff officers' meeting in Syria. (The character is not specifically named as Chetwode, but he is an infantry general named "Philip.") The main building and its central hall at the Indian Military Academy is named after him.

His daughter, Penelope Chetwode, married the poet (later Poet Laureate) John Betjeman. They had a son, Paul, in 1937 and a daughter, the writer and journalist Candida Lycett Green, in 1942 but lived apart for many years, although they never formally divorced.

Military Offices
Preceded by
The Lord Birdwood
Commander-in-Chief, India
1930 – 1935
Succeeded by
Sir Robert Archibald Cassels
Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
New Creation
Baron Chetwode
1945 – 1950
Succeeded by
Philip Chetwode
Baronetage of England
Preceded by
George Oakley
Baronet
(of Oakley)
Succeeded by
Philip Chetwode

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