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{{Use Canadian English|date=April 2019}} | {{Use Canadian English|date=April 2019}} | ||
{{Infobox military person | |||
|name=Huntly Douglas Brodie Ketchen | |||
|image=Huntly Ketchen - Project Gutenberg eText 18963 a.jpg | |||
|caption= | |||
|birth_date=May 22, 1872 | |||
|death_date=July 28, 1959 | |||
|placeofburial_label= | |||
|placeofburial= | |||
|birth_place= | |||
|death_place= | |||
|placeofburial_coordinates= | |||
|nickname= | |||
|allegiance= | |||
|branch= | |||
|serviceyears=1890s–1929? | |||
|rank=[[Major general|Major General]] | |||
|servicenumber= | |||
|unit= | |||
|commands= | |||
|battles=[[Second Boer War]]<br>[[World War I|First World War]] | |||
|battles_label= | |||
|awards= | |||
|relations= | |||
|laterwork= | |||
}} | |||
Major General '''Huntly Douglas Brodie Ketchen''', {{post-nominals|country=CAN|CB}}, {{post-nominals|country=CAN|CMG}}<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=13033|page=5|date=1 January 1917|city=e}}</ref> (May 22, 1872<ref name="members"/> – July 28, 1959<ref name="dies"/>) was a [[Canadians|Canadian]] soldier and politician. He served in the [[Legislative Assembly of Manitoba]] as a [[Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba|Conservative]] representative from 1932 to 1945.<ref name="members">{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.mb.ca/hansard/members/mla_bio_deceased.html#K0 |title=MLA Biographies - Deceased |work=Legislative Assembly of Manitoba |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330155427/http://www.gov.mb.ca/hansard/members/mla_bio_deceased.html |archive-date=2014-03-30 }}</ref> | |||
Major | ==Military career== | ||
Ketchen was born to a [[Scotland|Scottish]] family living in [[Sholopore]], [[India]]. His father, Major James Ketchen, served in the [[British Indian Army]]. The younger Ketchen was educated at [[Wellington College, Berkshire]] and the [[Royal Military College, Sandhurst]], England, and was commissioned into the British Army as a [[second lieutenant]] in the [[Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers]], but resigned after a couple of years. He came to [[Canada]] in 1894, serving for a time with the [[North-West Mounted Police]]. Following the outbreak of the [[Second Boer War]], Ketchen volunteered for service with [[Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)|Lord Strathcona's Corps]], a privately funded unit of Canadian soldiers, and was commissioned a [[Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines)|lieutenant]] on 17 March 1900 as the corps embarked for [[South Africa]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=27174|page=1792|date=16 March 1900}}</ref> | |||
He later saw active service in [[World War I]], commanding the Sixth Canadian Infantry Brigade in [[France]] from 1915 to 1918. | |||
[[File:The Canadian Army on the Western Front, 1914-1918 Q1733.jpg|left|thumb|Canadian officers on the Western Front, including the [[6th Canadian Infantry Brigade|6th Brigade]]'s commander, Brigadier-General Huntly Ketchen, December 1916]] | [[File:The Canadian Army on the Western Front, 1914-1918 Q1733.jpg|left|thumb|Canadian officers on the Western Front, including the [[6th Canadian Infantry Brigade|6th Brigade]]'s commander, Brigadier-General Huntly Ketchen, December 1916]] | ||
Ketchen was nearly dismissed after being used as a scapegoat for following orders from the British. The [[Actions of St Eloi Craters|Battle of St-Eloi]] in April 1916. After British troops had taken a large crater near the ruins of the [[Belgium|Belgian]] town of [[St Eloi]], his brigade was ordered to hold the gain against German counter-attacks.<ref>[http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/chap3_e1.htm 90 Years and Counting] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080212001754/http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/chap3_e1.htm |date=2008-02-12 }}, ''Military Communications and Electronics Museum, [[Kingston, Ontario]]'', Retrieved 5 November 2007</ref> Due to dreadful mismanagement of the Canadian forces by Ketchen and his divisional commander [[Richard | Ketchen, promoted to temporary brigadier general in June 1915,<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=29305|page=9395|date=21 September 1915|supp=y}}</ref> was nearly dismissed after being used as a scapegoat for following orders from the British. The [[Actions of St Eloi Craters|Battle of St-Eloi]] in April 1916. After British troops had taken a large crater near the ruins of the [[Belgium|Belgian]] town of [[St Eloi]], his brigade was ordered to hold the gain against German counter-attacks.<ref>[http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/chap3_e1.htm 90 Years and Counting] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080212001754/http://www.c-and-e-museum.org/chap3_e1.htm |date=2008-02-12 }}, ''Military Communications and Electronics Museum, [[Kingston, Ontario]]'', Retrieved 5 November 2007</ref> Due to dreadful mismanagement of the Canadian forces by Ketchen and his divisional commander [[Richard Turner (Canadian Army officer)|Richard Turner]], German soldiers overran the crater, causing 1,400 Canadian casualties and retaking the land around the crater, negating the gains made at heavy cost just a few days before.<ref>Sources are divided over who was responsible for the defeat, some retrospectively blaming Alderson as the senior commander. The [[Dictionary of Canadian Biography]] indicates that Turner and Ketchen were to blame, a stance seemingly corroborated by the actions of Plumer.</ref> General [[Herbert Plumer|Sir Herbert Plumer]], the commander of the [[Second Army (United Kingdom)|Second Army]] who was responsible for the front, demanded Ketchen's immediate dismissal. When Turner claimed that if Ketchen was dismissed he would resign, the commander of the [[Canadian Corps]], Lieutenant-General [[Edwin Alderson|Alderson]], sought Turner's dismissal as well. Both officers were supporters of Militia Minister Sir [[Sam Hughes]], who made it clear in no uncertain terms to Commander in Chief, [[Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig|Sir Douglas Haig]], that if Turner went then Haig could no longer rely on Canadian support.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} This led to the diplomatic compromise of Alderson being relieved of his command and replaced by [[Julian Byng, 1st Viscount Byng of Vimy|Julian Byng]], while Turner and Ketchen retained their commands.<ref>[http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=7888 Alderson, Sir Edwin Alfred Hervey], ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography'' article by Desmond Morton, Retrieved 5 November 2007</ref> | ||
==Political career== | ==Political career== | ||
Ketchen reached the rank of Major-General in the [[Canadian Army]] and retired on pension in 1929. From 1920 to 1923, he served as president of the [[Canadian Legion]] in Manitoba and was also president of the South Winnipeg Conservative Association.<ref name="who"/> He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the [[1932 Manitoba general election|1932 provincial election]] for the constituency of [[Winnipeg (provincial electoral district)|Winnipeg]], which elected ten members by a [[single transferable ballot]].<ref name="members"/> Ketchen finished seventh on the first ballot, and was declared elected. Running for re-election in the [[1936 Manitoba general election|1936 election]], he finished eighth on the first ballot and was declared elected<ref name="members"/> on the sixteenth count. The Conservative Party was the primary opposition party in Manitoba during this period, and Ketchen sat with his party caucus on the opposition benches. In 1940, the Conservative Party joined with the [[Manitoba Liberal Party|Liberal-Progressive Party]] and other parties in a [[coalition government]]. Ketchen initially sat as a government backbencher, but soon became disillusioned with the coalition arrangement. In the [[1941 Manitoba general election|1941 provincial election]], he ran as a dissident Conservative opposing the coalition.<ref name="members"/> He finished sixth on the first count, and was again declared elected on the sixteenth. The coalition supporters won 50 of 55 seats in the legislature in the 1941 election. Ketchen appears to have served as [[Leader of the Opposition (Manitoba)|Leader of the Opposition]] in the legislature from 1941 to 1943. The Conservative Party remained a part of the coalition throughout the 1940s. Ketchen did not run for re-election in 1945. He died in hospital in Winnipeg at the age of 87.<ref name="dies">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9itgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cG8NAAAAIBAJ&pg=3471,4020398 |title=Gen. Ketchen Dies at 87 |newspaper=Star-Phoenix |location=Saskatoon |date=July 28, 1959 |access-date=2013-03-23}}</ref> | Ketchen reached the rank of Major-General in the [[Canadian Army]] and retired on pension in 1929. From 1920 to 1923, he served as president of the [[Canadian Legion]] in Manitoba and was also president of the South Winnipeg Conservative Association.<ref name="who"/> He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the [[1932 Manitoba general election|1932 provincial election]] for the constituency of [[Winnipeg (provincial electoral district)|Winnipeg]], which elected ten members by a [[single transferable ballot]].<ref name="members"/> Ketchen finished seventh on the first ballot, and was declared elected. Running for re-election in the [[1936 Manitoba general election|1936 election]], he finished eighth on the first ballot and was declared elected<ref name="members"/> on the sixteenth count. The Conservative Party was the primary opposition party in Manitoba during this period, and Ketchen sat with his party caucus on the opposition benches. In 1940, the Conservative Party joined with the [[Manitoba Liberal Party|Liberal-Progressive Party]] and other parties in a [[coalition government]]. Ketchen initially sat as a government backbencher, but soon became disillusioned with the coalition arrangement. In the [[1941 Manitoba general election|1941 provincial election]], he ran as a dissident Conservative opposing the coalition.<ref name="members"/> He finished sixth on the first count, and was again declared elected on the sixteenth. The coalition supporters won 50 of 55 seats in the legislature in the 1941 election. Ketchen appears to have served as [[Leader of the Opposition (Manitoba)|Leader of the Opposition]] in the legislature from 1941 to 1943. The Conservative Party remained a part of the coalition throughout the 1940s. Ketchen did not run for re-election in 1945. He died in hospital in Winnipeg at the age of 87.<ref name="dies">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=9itgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cG8NAAAAIBAJ&pg=3471,4020398 |title=Gen. Ketchen Dies at 87 |newspaper=Star-Phoenix |location=Saskatoon |date=July 28, 1959 |access-date=2013-03-23}}</ref> | ||
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== References == | == References == | ||
{{reflist | {{reflist}} | ||
{{authority control}} | {{authority control}} | ||
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[[Category:1872 births]] | [[Category:1872 births]] | ||
[[Category:1959 deaths]] | [[Category:1959 deaths]] | ||
[[Category:Canadian Militia officers]] | |||
[[Category:19th-century British Army personnel]] | |||
[[Category:Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs]] | [[Category:Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs]] | ||
[[Category:People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire]] | [[Category:People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire]] | ||
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[[Category:Canadian military personnel of the Second Boer War]] | [[Category:Canadian military personnel of the Second Boer War]] | ||
[[Category:Military personnel of British India]] | [[Category:Military personnel of British India]] | ||
[[Category:British people in British India]] | |||
[[Category:British emigrants to Canada]] | |||
[[Category:20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba]] | |||
Latest revision as of 00:45, 30 January 2026
Huntly Douglas Brodie Ketchen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | May 22, 1872 |
| Died | July 28, 1959 |
| Years of service | 1890s–1929? |
| Rank | Major General |
| Battles/wars | Second Boer War First World War |
Major General Huntly Douglas Brodie Ketchen, CB, CMG[1] (May 22, 1872[2] – July 28, 1959[3]) was a Canadian soldier and politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba as a Conservative representative from 1932 to 1945.[2]
Military career[edit | edit source]
Ketchen was born to a Scottish family living in Sholopore, India. His father, Major James Ketchen, served in the British Indian Army. The younger Ketchen was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, England, and was commissioned into the British Army as a second lieutenant in the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, but resigned after a couple of years. He came to Canada in 1894, serving for a time with the North-West Mounted Police. Following the outbreak of the Second Boer War, Ketchen volunteered for service with Lord Strathcona's Corps, a privately funded unit of Canadian soldiers, and was commissioned a lieutenant on 17 March 1900 as the corps embarked for South Africa.[4]
He later saw active service in World War I, commanding the Sixth Canadian Infantry Brigade in France from 1915 to 1918.
Ketchen, promoted to temporary brigadier general in June 1915,[5] was nearly dismissed after being used as a scapegoat for following orders from the British. The Battle of St-Eloi in April 1916. After British troops had taken a large crater near the ruins of the Belgian town of St Eloi, his brigade was ordered to hold the gain against German counter-attacks.[6] Due to dreadful mismanagement of the Canadian forces by Ketchen and his divisional commander Richard Turner, German soldiers overran the crater, causing 1,400 Canadian casualties and retaking the land around the crater, negating the gains made at heavy cost just a few days before.[7] General Sir Herbert Plumer, the commander of the Second Army who was responsible for the front, demanded Ketchen's immediate dismissal. When Turner claimed that if Ketchen was dismissed he would resign, the commander of the Canadian Corps, Lieutenant-General Alderson, sought Turner's dismissal as well. Both officers were supporters of Militia Minister Sir Sam Hughes, who made it clear in no uncertain terms to Commander in Chief, Sir Douglas Haig, that if Turner went then Haig could no longer rely on Canadian support.[citation needed] This led to the diplomatic compromise of Alderson being relieved of his command and replaced by Julian Byng, while Turner and Ketchen retained their commands.[8]
Political career[edit | edit source]
Ketchen reached the rank of Major-General in the Canadian Army and retired on pension in 1929. From 1920 to 1923, he served as president of the Canadian Legion in Manitoba and was also president of the South Winnipeg Conservative Association.[9] He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the 1932 provincial election for the constituency of Winnipeg, which elected ten members by a single transferable ballot.[2] Ketchen finished seventh on the first ballot, and was declared elected. Running for re-election in the 1936 election, he finished eighth on the first ballot and was declared elected[2] on the sixteenth count. The Conservative Party was the primary opposition party in Manitoba during this period, and Ketchen sat with his party caucus on the opposition benches. In 1940, the Conservative Party joined with the Liberal-Progressive Party and other parties in a coalition government. Ketchen initially sat as a government backbencher, but soon became disillusioned with the coalition arrangement. In the 1941 provincial election, he ran as a dissident Conservative opposing the coalition.[2] He finished sixth on the first count, and was again declared elected on the sixteenth. The coalition supporters won 50 of 55 seats in the legislature in the 1941 election. Ketchen appears to have served as Leader of the Opposition in the legislature from 1941 to 1943. The Conservative Party remained a part of the coalition throughout the 1940s. Ketchen did not run for re-election in 1945. He died in hospital in Winnipeg at the age of 87.[3]
He married, in 1905, Margaret Elizabeth Robinson.[9]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ "No. 13033". The Edinburgh Gazette. 1 January 1917. p. 5.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "MLA Biographies - Deceased". Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Gen. Ketchen Dies at 87". Star-Phoenix. Saskatoon. 28 July 1959. Retrieved 23 March 2013.
- ↑ "No. 27174". The London Gazette. 16 March 1900. p. 1792.
- ↑ "No. 29305". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 September 1915. p. 9395.
- ↑ 90 Years and Counting Archived 2008-02-12 at the Wayback Machine, Military Communications and Electronics Museum, Kingston, Ontario, Retrieved 5 November 2007
- ↑ Sources are divided over who was responsible for the defeat, some retrospectively blaming Alderson as the senior commander. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography indicates that Turner and Ketchen were to blame, a stance seemingly corroborated by the actions of Plumer.
- ↑ Alderson, Sir Edwin Alfred Hervey, Dictionary of Canadian Biography article by Desmond Morton, Retrieved 5 November 2007
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Canadian Press Association (1911). Who's who in western Canada. p. 228.