VISCOUNT BYNG

Southland Times, Issue 25305, 7 June 1935, Page 7

VISCOUNT BYNG

DEATH ANNOUNCED SOLDIER, GOVERNOR AND POLICE CHIEF WAR-TIME ACTIVITIES (United Press Assn.—Telegraph (Rec. 11.20 p.m.) London, June 6. The death has occurred of Viscount Byng of Vimy, He was 72 years of age. Julian Hedworth George Byng, general, Dominion governor and police chief, was born in September, 1862, his father being the second Earl of Strafford. He joined the 10th Hussars in India in 1883 and on his way home saw active service on the Red Sea coast in 1884. He then attended the Staff College and was a major when the South African War started. Sent on special service to the Cape, he raised and led the South African Light Horse which served with the army in Natal and took part in the relief of Ladysmith. He was successful as the leader of a column and soon reached the rank of colonel. After the war he was for a time in charge of the Cavalry School and then at the head of a cavalry brig* ade from 1907 to 1909, when he was promoted major-general; He was for two years the leader of a territorial division and in 1912 was sent to Egypt to command the army of occupation. In October, 1914, he was summoned to England to take ■. the 3rd Cavalry Division to France and was put in command of the Cavalry Corps in June, 1915. Two months later he was sent to the Dardanelles as head of the 9th Army Corps in the Suvla area, from which he evacuated his men very successfully in December. His corps then went to Egypt, but he was brought to the Western Front to command the l(tn Army Corps and in May, 1916, took over the Canadian Army Corps, which he led for a year. These troops did brilliant work, notably the capture ot the Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917. tn June, 1917, Byng, who had meanwhile been promoted lieutenant-general for distinguished service, was put in charge of the 3rd Army which he led till the end of the war. Late in November he made his very successful surprise attack with tanks in the Cambrai sector, for which he was made a full general. By this he gained 60 square miles, but the Germans in a big counter-attack recaptured all but 16 square miles of this and secured seven square miles that previously had been held by the British, whose advance had given them a very vulnerable salient. Moreover, the British and French forces had been depleted to help the Italians. Byng’s troops were on the left of the ill-fated sth Army in.’the battles of March, 1918, and were involved to a certain extent in its defeat, but their front was not broken and eventually it was they who held up the German advance. Five months later they played an important part in breaking the Hindenburg Line and in the general advance that followed. Byng was raised to the peerage as Baron Byng of Vimy and Tborpe-le-Soken and received a grant of £50,099. He retired from active service in 1919. Long afterwards it became known that in January of that year nearly 4000 British troops mutinied at Calais and held the town. Byng at the head of two divisions encircled the mutineers and tactfully restored discipline. In June, 1921, he was made GovernorGeneral of Canada, where his democratic attitude rendered him very popular. He mixed with all classes and gave informal dinners to all sorts and conditions of men. He visited every comer of the Dominion, travelling 142,000 miles. In 1926, near the end of his term, he was put in a position where he was bound to offend one or other of the parties. The Liberals were annoyed because he refused them a dissolution and allowed the Conservatives, who had defeated them, to carry on a government, which, however, only lasted a few days, after which the Conservatives were granted a dissolution. The trouble was due to the fact that in Canada importance is attached to holding office during an election campaign. But Byng’s popularity was unshaken by this episode. On his return in October, 1926, he was made a viscount, but the gazetting of the honour was held up for 15 months (because he refused to pay the fees, remarking that he did not see why he should pay nearly £BOO for an honour for which a politician paid nothing. In July, 1928, Byng was made Commissioner of Metropolitan Police, as a big man was required to carry out reforms. Within a few months he had restored public confidence in the force which had been shaken by the Hyde Park and other incidents. A strong believer in the personal touch, he visited police stations and talked to the men instead of relying on subordinates’ reports. He organized a flying squad to deal with motor bandits, increased the number of C.I.D. men, gave more promotion by merit and utilized men with special qualifications where their knowledge was most useful. In a few months he had instilled a new spirit into the force and become very popular. He also proved to have a natural gift for detective work. In view of Labour criticisms when he was appointed, Byng offered to resign when Mr MacDonald took office, but was told that he had the Government’s complete confidence. In 1928 Lady Byng was left a large fortune by her uncle, Pandeli Ralli. She has written several novels, notably “Anne of the Marshland.”