Lieutenant General Sir William Francis Drummond Jervois GCMG CB FRS (10 September 1821 – 17 August 1897) was a British military engineer and diplomat.

In 1858, as a major, he was appointed Secretary of a Royal Commission set up to examine the state and efficiency of British land-based fortifications against naval attack; and this led to further work in Canada and South Australia.

[4] As a second captain he saw service in the 7th Xhosa War, 1846–1847 during which he drew military sketches of British Kaffraria (now part of the Eastern Cape Province) in South Africa.

[4] Returning to Britain in 1848, he commanded a company of Sappers and Miners at Woolwich and then in June 1849 was ordered to Alderney with instructions to manage the construction of substantial fortifications.

[6][7] Jervois became Secretary of a Royal Commission set up on 20 August 1859 to examine the state and efficiency of British land-based fortifications against naval attack.

[4] Following the withdrawal of British garrison troops from Australia in 1870, Jervois and Lieutenant Colonel Peter Scratchley were commissioned by a group of colonies to advise on defence matters.

Although distrustful of Malays, he was sympathetic to the Chinese and would later bolster public support for oriental immigration during his time as Governor of South Australia.

Jervois' term also coincided with unusually good rainfall and a massive agricultural expansion, including his own efforts to establish an irrigation scheme on the Murray River.

[16] He laid the foundation stones of the University of Adelaide, the Institute and the Art Gallery, and commissioned a new vice-regal summer residence at Marble Hill.

[15][17] In this role, Jervois provided advice on harbour defence, guided the colonial government on Imperial matters, was active in the country's social life, and worked to promote equality.

[3] Jervois died on 17 August 1897, at the age of 75, as a result of injuries sustained in a carriage accident, and was buried at Virginia Water, Surrey.