FIELD MARSHAL SIR CLAUD WILLIAM JACOB GCB GCSI KCMG.
Born 21st November 1863 - Died 2nd June 1947
One of
two sons of Major-General William Jacob
and Eliza Jacob, he was born at Mehidpore,
Bombay, India on 21st November 1863. He entered Sherborne, from where he passed
into Sandherst and received his commission in the Worcestershire Regiment
in 1882. At the end of 1884, stationed at Quetta, he secured his transfer
to the Indian service. He first saw action with the Zhob Valley expedition
of 1890. He was subsequently selected to command the Zhob Levy Corps, which
kept the peace along the Wazaristan and Southern Afghanistan border.
In 1912
he was appoined GSO1 of the Meerut Division. At the outbreak of WWI in 1914,
an Indian Corps was sent to France; Claud went with the Meerut Division. He
became the only Indian officer to remain in France and rose to a high comand
there. Just before Christmas 1914, a critical situation arose on the front
of the Indian corps, which was badly shaken by a German attack. When his seniors
failed, Claud stepped into the breach and by his personal example as well
by his tactical grasp, went far to retrieve the situation.
At the beginning of 1915, he was appointed to command the Dehra Dun Brigade, and led it at Neuve Chapelle in March. His practical sense and moral courage were shown in a way that, after a personal reconnaissance, he countermanded an assault that he saw would be in vain - in contrast with other commanders. In May, he was given the Meerut Division and committed to the fruitless and costly subsidiary action of Pietre at the time of the battle of Loos. In November, when the Indian Corps was preparing to leave the Western Front, he was appointed to take over the 21st Division of the "New Armies" on November 18th 1915. He brought his command to excellent fighting pitch by precept and example. He was created a CB in that year.
In September
1916, he was appointed to command the 2nd Corps in the fifth Army. During
the battle of the Somme, he carried Thiepval by an admirally planned assault.
They performed well at the Acre operations and in the pursuit of the Germans
to the Hindenburg Line in 1917.
Having been promoted to Lieutenant-General in 1917, he commanded a corps of the Rhine Army for a time. In 1920 he returned to India as Chief of General Staff. In the course of that year he was promoted to General and appointed ADC to King George V. In 1924 he returned to England, but then in November was given the Northern Command in India. When Lord Rawlinson died in the following year, he acted as temporary Commander-in-Chief. Many anticipated that the succession would fall on him, and this was believed to be the desire of the militrary authorities in London, but they failed to make it suficiently clear. Thus the choice fell on Sir William Birdwood instead, and in November Claud returned home again to take up the appointment of Secretary to the Military Department of the India Office. He was promoted Field-Marshal in November 1926 and remained at the India Office until May 1930. His last official post was that of Constable of the Tower of London, which he held from 1937-1943. He was made KCMG in 1919, KCSI in 1924, GCB in 1926 and GCSI in 1930. He died on 2nd June 1947 aged 84.
On 27th August 1884 he married Clara Pauline Wyatt, daughter of the Reverend Joseph Light Wyatt, a well known missionary and student of Oriental languages in India, and also a lecturer in Tamil at Cambrdige University from 1895 - 1929.
They had two children:
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