General Sir William Platt (14 June 1885 – 28 September 1975) was a senior officer of the British Army during both the First and the Second World Wars.

[4] From 1908 to 1914, he served on the North-West Frontier in India where he won the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and was mentioned in despatches for the first of six such citations.

In late 1927, Platt returned to the War Office in London, taking the post of Deputy Assistant Adjutant General on the Adjutant-General's staff.

[23] From 1937[24] to 1938, he was aide-de-camp to the King and in late 1938 Platt was promoted to major-general[25] to take up the appointment as Commandant of the Sudan Defence Force.

[26] In this role he carried the Arabic title of al-qa'id al-'amm ("the Leader of the Army") and was often referred to simply as "the Kaid".

From 3 March to 1 April, Platt's leadership played a large part in the successful outcome of the Battle of Keren.

A large Italian force under Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, was dug in at Amba Alagi in what it considered impregnable positions.

[citation needed] From 1941 to 1945, Platt was the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the East Africa Command, which although no longer a theatre of war was an important source of manpower.