Major-General Sir Nevill Maskelyne Smyth VC KCB MiD
2nd Dragoon Guards
1st Infantry Brigade AIF
2nd Australian Division
58th British Division
by Robert Simpson
Nevill Maskelyne Smyth was born on 14th August 1868 in Westminster St Margaret, London. He was one of two sons to Warington Wilkinson Smyth and Anna Maria Antonia Story-Maskelyne, who had been married on 9th April 1864 in St James Westminster, London. Warington had been born in Naples Italy on 26th August 1817 (but was a British citizen due to his parents). Anna had been born in England in 1827. Warington was a geologist and mineralogist and in his latter life taught mining. His father, William Henry Smyth, was an Admiral in the navy and a scientific writer. Anna’s father was a barrister. Nevill was their second son, and their second and last child. Apparently the family can be linked to the kings of England, Henry III and Edwards I, II and III. William Henry Smyth’s sister, Henrietta Grace Powell was the mother of Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell (a Lieutenant-General in the British Army and founder of the Scouts), so Robert and Nevill were cousins. In the 1871 census, they were living at 96 Inverness Lane in Paddington, London. His father was not there. By the 1881 census, Nevill was at The Orchard (a private school) in Mortlake Surrey and he was listed as a boarder. Nevill was educated at Westminster School and the Royal Military College Sandhurst, where he passed with honours.
His elder brother was Herbert Warington Smyth, who was born on 4th June 1867 in London. He studied at Cambridge, attaining a Bachelor of Law. Herbert served in South Africa during the Boer War and in WW1 as a Sub-Lieutenant in the RNVR on HMS Hyacinth.
Nevill was appointed as a 2nd Lieutenant on 22nd August 1888, a Lieutenant on 25th December 1895, a Captain on 8th December 1897 and a Major on 22nd August 1902, according to Hart’s Army list. The London Gazette has an entry in July 1895, saying Second Lieutenant N M Smyth of the 2nd Dragoon Guards was to be Lieutenant, dated 26th April 1895. In 1888, he was posted to the Queens’ Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards) in India. During the Zhob Valley expedition, he was attached to the Royal Engineers to assist with a railway survey. The Guards were posted to Cairo in Egypt in 1895. He was Mentioned in Despatches on 3rd November 1896, for his services in the initial stages of the Mahdist Wars. With despatches, he rode through retreating dervishes to the Sirdar, who was with the flotilla at Debba. He was listed in the London Gazette as Captain N M Smyth (attached Intelligence Department), special services. At the battle of Atbara, he was involved with reconnaissance before and with the battle. He was involved with suppressing Khalifa Sherif’s rising on the Blue Nile and preliminary operations and the final defeat and death of the two Khalifas at Gedid. Nevill was also awarded the Order of the Medjidie, Fourth Class in 1897. The London Gazette of 10th May 1898 had an entry that Lieutenant Nevill M. Smyth was to be a Captain from 8th December 1897. On 2nd September 1898, he was involved in the Battle of Omdurman and was first to enter the citadel (Sair). He assisted in surveys in Sudan and charted the Nile cataracts from Wadi Halfa to Abyssinia. Nevill established the fact of South African horse sickness in the Sudan. He was mentioned 4 times.
He was awarded the Victoria Cross for the following deed on 2nd September 1898, when as a Captain, he galloped into a group of War Correspondents, among whom an Arab had run amok. He received the Arab’s charge and killed him (by shooting him), and was wounded in the arm in the process. Doing so, he saved the life of at least one of the correspondents. It was published in the London Gazette of 15th November 1898, and stated that an Arab had run amok amongst camp followers. On 30th September 1898, the London gazette published a Despatch from Major-General Sir Herbert Kitchener who wrote that Captain N. M. Smyth, 2nde Dragoon Guards (wounded) had been brought to his notice for good service.
Nevill was Intelligence Officer and Aide-de-Camp to Colonel Lewis in November 1899, and was involved during the operations leading to the defeat of the Khalifa in the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat. He was Mentioned in Despatches, and was awarded the Order of Osmanieh, Fourth Class in 1900. The Edinburgh Gazette of 4th November 1902 had the entry that Captain N. M. Smyth, V.C. of the 2nd Dragoon Guards was to be a Brevet Major.
In Hart’s annual Army list of 1908, he is listed as a Captain in the 2nd Dragoon Guards. He was also listed in that publication under the heading “Officers now holding Rank in the Army who have received the Victoria Cross”, under “Smyth, Captain Nevill Maskelyne, 2 Dragoon Guards (now Major, 6 Dragoon Guards).” As part of the Sennar District Staff in the Egyptian Army, he was awarded the silver Sudan Medal. He took part in 4 of the operations, Dongola (1896), Operations in Sudan (1897), Atbara Campaign (1898) and Expedition to Khartoum (1898). The rolls also show he was in the Intelligence Department of Staff and with 2nd Dragoon Guards. He was issued the Queens South Africa medal with the clasps Orange Free State, Transvaal and South Africa 1902. The roll for the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen’s Bay) has him listed as Smyth VC, N M, Captain and Battalion Major, with the unit he served with in South Africa being 19th Hussars. An incident in the Boer War in April 1902 was recorded in the Dragoon Guards history thus “A small party of 8 NCOs and men under Capt Smyth VC had been isolated on the kopje, their horses having been shot. The Boers repeatedly called on them to surrender, but they refused and held out for another 20 minutes, until all but Smyth were shot. He then managed to crawl away through the long grass, catch a riderless horse, and gallop back to the regiment.”
Then he was transferred to the Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) in India, and returned to South Africa in 1908. He became their Commanding Officer after being promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel on 1 May 1909 and they returned to England in 1912. He was then promoted to Colonel and seconded to the Egyptian Army, where in the Khartoum district he was Commandant and active in combatting the slave trade in 1913-14. An entry in the London Gazette of 2nd May 1913, has an entry under Cavalry saying “6th Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers), Lieutenant-Colonel Nevill M. Smyth, V.C., on completion of his period of service in command of a regiment, is placed on the half-pay list. Dated 1st May, 1913.”
Nevill was issued with an aviator certificate 561 for the Royal Aero Club on 16th July 1913. The certificate was taken on a Deperdussin Monoplane at the Deperdussin School at Hendon. He was noted as being born in London on 14th August 1868, nationality British, and rank or profession as Colonel in the Cavalry. His address was listed as Cavalry Club, 127 Piccadilly, W.
As a Temporary Brigadier-General, Nevill joined the AIF with the 1st Infantry Brigade Headquarters. His record shows he was a Colonel, late of the RMLI. His next of kin was his brother, recorded as Mr Warington Smyth of 8 Wyndham House Sloane Garden, London. He was originally appointed as a Colonel. Upon the death of Bridges in May 1915, a position was left vacant for command of the 1st Brigade. “Most of the battalions of the division were at this time were commanded by officers who were either rather too old to possess the necessary vigour, or had been newly been promoted in place of those killed, wounded, or unequal to the test of war. General Birdwood therefore asked G.H.Q. for a British Officer, and Colonel Nevill Smyth, previously commanding a district in Egypt, was sent to him. Smyth had won the Victoria Cross in a previous war, and this made it probable that he possessed the chief qualification for leading Australian troops.” His service record states as a Colonel he was to take temporary command of the 2nd Infantry Brigade on 20th July 1915. (His Statement of Service record says 20th May?). He was transferred on 26th July 1915, to take temporary command of the 1st Infantry Brigade. He commanded them at the Battle of Lone Pine. After the attack, he wrote a report personally handwritten in pencil, where he outlined the attack and defence of the positions from 6th to 9th August. He also wrote a list of those whose good service was “respectfully brought to notice”. On 3rd September 1915, he took over temporary command of the 6th Brigade 2nd Australian Division and remained on ANZAC. He then relinquished command on 28th September and re-joined the 1st Infantry Brigade at Lemnos (according to his service records). During the evacuation from the peninsula, he was one of the last officers to leave. He was mentioned in Sir Ian Hamilton’s despatch of 11th December 1915, which was published in the London Gazette of 28th January 1916 under Staff of A&NZ Forces. An entry on 6th January reads “The assault had been entrusted to the 1st Australian Brigade (Brigadier-General N. M. Smyth)”. “High praise is due to Brigadier-General N. M. Smyth and his battalion commanders. The irresistible dash and daring of officers and men in the initial charge were a glory to Australia.” At Gallipoli, he won the respect and admiration of the Australians by his leadership and example.
An entry on 14th January 1916 recorded that Nevill was to be a Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath for services rendered in connection with military operations in the field. He relinquished command of the 1st Infantry Brigade on 16th February 1916. On 21st February 1916, he was transferred to command the 14th Infantry Brigade Staff and was transferred to 1st Infantry Brigade Headquarters on 1st March 1916 with the temporary rank of Brigadier-General to command. On 7th June 1916, he was to temporarily command the 1st Australian Division on Major-General Walker CB DSO going to hospital, a position he relinquished on 27th October 1916 when Major-General Walker resumed duty. He resumed command of the 1st Infantry Brigade on 28th October 1916. His Statement of Service records shows he was granted the temporary rank of Major General, on being transferred to command the 2nd Division on 28th December 1916, while Major-General Legge was evacuated as being sick.
During the Battle of Pozieres on 23rd July 1916, Nevill wrote a letter which described the fate of a runner from the 2nd Battalion. The Germans were continually shelling Bapaume Road on that day and the runners had to run through it. One runner fell before the road, and the other, who was from the 2nd Battalion, kept going. Knowing the information was important to ensure a further advancement occurred with the co-operation of a bombardment, he ran with the note in his hand, so that when he fell, he held it up. A passing group of men, seeing the letter, took it to the officer it was addressed to, and enabled the further advance to be successfully carried out. He described the man as fair and muscular, with 2nd Battalion badged on his sleeves, his sleeves were rolled up and he had a red band around his arm, which denoted he was a runner. Unfortunately he did not know the runner’s name or number. He did the drawings below after the war, and they ended up in the 2nd Battalion War Diary.
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His Division was involved with the capture of Pozieres and Mouquet Farm. On 13th November 1916, Nevill was Mentioned in Despatches and also on 9th April 1917. The London Gazette of 23rd February 1917 contains the following memoranda; “Col. (temp. Brig.-Gen.) N. M. Smyth, V.C., C.B., to be temp. Maj.-Gen. 28th Dec. 1916.” A letter was written by Base Records describing the entry in the Second Supplement No. 29890 if the London Gazette, which contained the entry “The following despatch has been received by the secretary of State for War, from General Sir Douglas Haig, G.C.B., Commander-in-Chief, of the British Armies in France :- I have the honour to submit the name of the undermentioned officer serving under my command, whose distinguished and gallant services, and devotion to duty I consider of deserving special mention;- Brigadier-General (temporary) N. M. Smyth V.C., C.B.” It was not sent to anyone as no next of kin was shown on his AIF records. He was awarded Order de Leopold Commandeur, recorded in Supplement 30202 on 26th July 1917. He was Mentioned in Despatches again, in Sir Douglas Haig’s despatch of 7th November 1917, for distinguished and gallant service and devotion to duty in the field during the period of 26th February to midnight 20th September 1917. He was involved with operations of the 2nd Australian Division near Bapaume and the capture of the Hindenburg Lines. He was, apparently, particularly adept in planning highly successful ‘peaceful penetration’ raids on the German trenches. The King approved the reward for distinguished service in the Field, that Colonel (Temporary Major-General N. M. Smyth VC CB was to be a Major-General on 1st January 1918. On 29th April 1918, he was awarded the Croix de Guerre by HM the King of the Belgians.
On 22nd August 1918, Nevill relinquished his appointment of GOC of the 2nd Australian Division and his appointment in the AIF was terminated, on proceeding to join the Imperial Army for duty. A memo from AIF Administrative Headquarters on 12th June 1918 to the Bill Section shows that Major General Smyth of 2nd Division Headquarters has applied and is eligible for discharge in England in consequence of appointment terminated in AIF and returning for duty with the Imperial Army. His final discharge was on 22nd 5 1918 (according to that form-maybe wrong month written). He briefly commanded the 58th (2/1st London) Division and then the 59th (2nd North Midland) which he led during the liberation of Lille in October 1918. At times he borrowed an aeroplane to fly over the front lines to view them. He told Lieutenant-General Sir John Monash that “The fortune of war has indeed treated me kindly in enabling me to have had the honour of being associated with your historic force.”
His Medal index Card for WW1 shows he entered Egypt as the theatre of war he first served in in 1914 as a Colonel in the Egyptian Army Staff. He was then transferred to 1st Australian Brigade as Acting Brigadier General (and his 1914-15 star was issued with that rank and corps on it), transferred to AIF as Major General (and his British War Medal and Victory Medals have that on them) and finally to the 4th London Division. He applied for his medals on 15th February 1922. His medals were issued under Issue Voucher X/9056d/ on 11th March 1922, as were his Emblems for his Mention in Despatches. The medal roll for the 1914-15 star show he disembarked on May 1915. In all he was mentioned 11 times in his long career.
On 23rd July 1918, Nevill married Evelyn Olwen Williams at Holy Trinity Church in Chelsea London, according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Established Church. He was a bachelor of 49 years old and a Major General VC CB living at 8 Wyndham House and she was a 34 year old spinster with no profession. Her residence is not legible. His father, Sir Warington Wilkinson Smyth, was an agent for the mineral property of the Price of Wales and her father, Osmond Williams, was Baronet Colonel Lord of Merioneth. Sir Arthur Osmond Wynn Williams was a Welsh Liberal Party politician. Evelyn was born on 24th February 1884 at Llanfihangel Han Man, Merionethshire, Wales. Her mother was Frances Evelyn Greaves and they had been married on 25th July 1880 at Lillington, Warwickshire, England. In WW1, under the name Olwen Osmond Williams, Evelyn served as a Driver (Chauffeur Royaumont) with the French Red Cross from 1st December 1914 to 1st March 1917. In 1915, a Welsh newspaper said that Miss Olwen Osmond-Williams had returned home from France where she was helping wounded French soldiers. Another article stated she was “a noble example of a Welsh woman devoting herself to helping wounded French soldiers.” Her medal roll is under the heading British Committee French Red Cross and shows she was a Driver who served in theatre of war 1a from 12-14 to 3-17. There is a photo of her, titled “Chauffeur Williams at Royaumont Hospital France”. She then returned home to nurse her sick mother.
Nevill was appointed General Officer Commanding the 47th (1/2nd London) Division, a Territorial Force, on 30th July 1919. It was recorded in the London Gazette of 6th August 1919 under the heading Major-Generals to Command Divisions of the Territorial Force. He was appointed Colonel of the 3rd Dragoon Guards on 1 October 1920, relinquished command of his Division on 30th July 1923, retired from the British Army on 5th July 1924, and relinquished his Colonelcy on 16th October 1925. He was awarded a Croix d’Officier Legion d’Honneur, as recorded in the London Gazette of 29th January 1919.
On 30th August 1920 his oak leaves were to be sent out, but were cancelled as he was non-AIF. Another entry in his service records stated “not issued – on account of no address being available”. A Mention in Despatch certificate was sent out date unknown, and another one was sent on 15th June 1921 and was returned to London for delivery as he was an Imperial Officer. Another entry on his Statement of Service page was stamped War History Index with the comment not AIF written beside it. His Records of Officer’s Service in the Australian Imperial Force shows that Colonel N. M. Smyth VC took over temporary command of the 2nd Infantry Brigade on 20th July 1915 and was then transferred to temporary command of 1st Infantry Brigade on 26th July 1915. On 18th September 1915, he was granted the temporary rank of Brigadier-General while commanding the Brigade.
The 1920 rolls have them living at Thurloe Villa in Thurloe Place Kensington, with Nevill listed as Major-General Sir. They had three children; Osmond Neill Hunter Mackay Smyth (born March quarter 1920 in Kensington and died 15th August 1952 in Taiwan of drowning), Olwen Annarella Smyth (born in December quarter of 1921) and Dacre Henry Deudraeth Smyth (born 5th May 1923 in Kensington and died 2 December 2008 in Victoria). He was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 3rd Dragoon Guards on 1st October 1920. The London Gazette of 22nd November 1920 had an entry that Nevill was to be a temporary Major-General from 28th December 1916 to 11th June 1918. On 6th December 1923 Nevill left by himself on Demeothenes for Sydney. He was listed as Major-General Sir Nevill Smyth VC KCMG of Marazion Cornwall, whose profession was the army and his future home was Australia. He returned to London on the Maloja on 9th May 1924 with a note in the shipping record that he was travelling between England and Australia. He retired from the British Army in July 1924. An entry in the London Gazette of 23rd October 1925 reads: – Cavalry “3rd/6th D.G.—Maj.-Gen. Sir N. M. Smyth, V.C., K.C.B.. rt. pay, resigns the apt. of Col. 16th Oct. 1925.”
On 2nd January 1925, the whole family left Plymouth on Themistocles, bound for Australia, which was to be their future permanent home. They arrived at Melbourne. Nevill had no occupation listed. They settled at a property called Kongbool at Balmoral in Victoria and in electoral rolls from 1925 to 1937, Nevill was listed as a grazier. They owned the property from 1934 to 1949 and it is now listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. The homestead complex has a historical and architectural significance.
H0361 Kongbool Balmoral
On 3rd November 1928, Nevill wrote to Base Records asking them if they would “kindly furnish me with a new A.I.F. badge to replace the one issued to me with my discharge certificate from the A.I.F. I regret to state that my A.I.F. badge was lost on Sunday 18th September 1927 at State Government House, Melbourne and after making enquiries nothing has resulted. I enclose one shilling for the new badge, as directed by General Sir Harry Chauvel.” He signed the letter Nevill M Smyth Major-General late 1st Infantry Brigade AIF (1915-16) and commanding 2nd Australian Division 1917 to May 1918. In November 1928, a duplicate Returned Service badge was posted out to him at Balmoral Victoria. He signed the return card on the 7th. It listed him as Brigadier-General N M Smyth VC KCB with the unit 1 1BHQ.
The Portland War Memorial was unveiled by General Sir Neville Smyth V.C. on 6th July 1930- Right Side Inscription
Nevill was mentioned in Who’s Who in Australia in the 1933-34, 1935 and 1938 editions. His recreations were listed as flying, big game hunting, polo, riding and painting. He was a member of the Cavalry Club in London and the Naval and Military Club of Melbourne. Nevill joined the National Party of Australia and unsuccessfully stood for a Victorian seat in the Australian Senate. In 1934, he wrote the forward to the 3rd Battalion history book “Randwick to Hargicourt” by Eric Wren. In part, he wrote “The valour, endurance and intelligence of the Australian soldier shone conspicuously under the most trying conditions of the war of 1914 to 1919, and the authentic record of the 3rd Australia Battalion reveals deeds so heroic and so prodigious that I commend its perusal to every Australian and to every person who revers the noble deeds of our forebears, and draws inspiration from the pictures which fill the imagination when we read the actions of such men as Abercromby, Lord Nelson, Broke, Livingstone, General Gordon, and others to whose noble characters, unheard of by the world, are only known to a few.” He also added, “I wish to dispel a fallacy which may still prevail that the Australian soldier owed his supremacy in action to sudden bursts of undisciplined valour, and I venture to state definitely that the victories of the brigade could never have been won without a high sense of battle discipline, and in the 3rd Battalion precision, skill, steadiness and co-ordination were unsurpassed.”
Sir Nevill Maskelyne Smyth passed away on 21st July 1941 at Kongbool, Balmoral, Victoria. His passing was listed in Who’s Who in Australia. Administration of his will was recorded on 22nd June 1942, with effects of 2669 pounds, 8 shillings and 9 pence in England going to his widow Dame Evelyn “Oliver” Smyth. He was buried in Balmoral Cemetery. His death was mentioned in English newspapers, noting he was the son of the late Sir Warington Smyth F.R.S. of Cornwall. His presentation Drum Banner is in Chester Cathedral in Cheshire as a commemoration to him. His nickname was “The Sphinx”.
In 1949, Evelyn moved to Portland at 279 Hanlon Parade. She attended the 1953 Coronation as Lady Evelyn Olwen Smyth, an official guest at the coronation service. In 1956, she went for a 2 month holiday to England. Lady Evelyn passed away on 29th September 1960 at her residence and is buried at Balmoral Cemetery with her husband. She was living at “Marazion” Dutton Way in Portland at that time and effects of nearly 700 pounds in England went to Dacre.
Their daughter, Olwen Annarella, joined the WAAF and as a Section Officer, married Squadron Leader Robert James Hardiman DFC on 15th January 1944 at Holy Trinity Church Brompton, by the Reverend Allan T Bolton. After the war, they moved to Australia in 1947 and settled in Victoria.
Their son, Osmond, drowned in Taiwan trying to rescue a friend who also drowned while swimming in a mountain stream. A rapid current got him, Osmond dived in and both went under. Osmond was there at the time as the Australian member of the United Nations Commission for the Unification of Korea, and was on holidays before returning to Australia. He was buried in Tamsui Cemetery according to the newspaper article, but must have been moved, as he is no longer listed in the records. It looks like he was shifted to Balmoral Cemetery, with his father. His friend is buried in Tamsui Cemetery – Grave 45, date 1952, CONWAY EVANS, Adrian “To the glory of God and the beloved memory of Adrian Conway Evans, H.B.M. Vice Consul in Formosa. Born June 14th 1905. Drowned while bathing August 15th 1952 together with his friend Osmond Smyth who gave his own life in trying to save him.”
Their other son, Dacre, entered the navy in 1940. He originally served on HMAS Australia, and was present at the Battle of the Coral Sea, the D-Day landings and while at sea off Japan, saw the explosion from the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima and wrote a poem about it (although he did not know what it was at the time). He was also involved with the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam and rose to the rank of Commodore. After retiring, he became an artist. In 1952 he married Jennifer Haggard, whose father Geoffrey served on the AE2. Dacre was also served as aide-de-camp to the Queen from 1975 to 1978. “He was appointed an officer in the Order of Australia in 1997, and in 2004 President Jacques Chirac awarded him France’s highest military honour, the Legion of Honour.”
On 22nd April 1967, Dacre wrote to the Secretary, Department of the Army in Canberra, asking “With reference to the recently announced issue of the Anzac Medallion, it is requested that, as his only surviving son (my Mother also being deceased), I may be issued with the Anzac Medallion to which my late father, Major General Sir Nevill M. Smyth, V.C., K.C.B., would have been entitled. He commanded the 1st Australian Infantry Brigade at Gallipoli from 20th May 1915 until the evacuation in 1916, and I am desirous of adding this medallion to his other decorations and awards which are now in my possession.” He signed it DHD Smyth Commodore. A handwritten note on the bottom of the letter reads “Discussed with DAR. As Gen Smyth commanded an Aust Bde & has already been issued with RS Badge, Anzac Medallion to be issued.” and dated 31st May 1967.
Evelyn’s medals are Order of St. John (Officer) (engraved Commander-Sister), British War and Victory medals (impressed O. O. Williams), 1953 Coronation medal, French Medaille d’Honneur des Epidemies (embossed Miss O Williams 1917) with French Nursing Mention in Despatches wings (oak leaf).
A memorial to Major-General Smyth has been placed on the West Wall of St Mary’s Anglican Church, Balmoral, Victoria, Australia. The sanctuary also contains a finely carved lectern in the form of an eagle, dedicated to his memory. A resident of Balmoral until his passing, he is honoured as follows on the brass plaque:-
TO THE GLORY OF GOD
AND IN LOVING MEMORY OF.
MAJOR GENERAL SIR NEVILL SMYTH V.C., K.C.B..
BORN IN LONDON 1868.
DIED KONGBOOL, BALMORAL, 1941.
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COMMANDED 1ST AUST. INF. BDE. 1915-16
GALLIPOLI, LONE PINE, BATTLE OF THE SOMME.
G.O.C. 2ND AUST. DIV. 1917-19, G.O.C. 58TH LONDON
DIV. & 59TH DIV. 1918.
ZHOB VALLEY EXP. 1890-1, SOUDAN 1896 – 99
STH AFRICAN WAR
St. Marys Anglican Church in Balmoral
ANZAC Biographies
On our website you will find the biographical details of ANZAC (as well as British) servicemen & women
whose medals or other memorabilia form part of the collection belonging to the
Maryborough Military & Colonial Museum,
Maryborough, Queensland, Australia.