He was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and at Heidelberg before passing into the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.
[4] He served in the Second Boer War 1899–1900 as an Adjutant in 33rd Brigade Royal Field Artillery,[3] and took part in operations in Natal in late 1899, including engagements at Rietfontein and Lombard′s Knop and the defence of Ladysmith.
[4] Following his return to the United Kingdom, he served as divisional adjutant in Kildare until late 1902,[5][6] after he was promoted to major on 20 August 1902.
[3] In July 1923 he succeeded Major General Nevill Smyth as GOC of the Territorial Army's 47th (2nd London) Division.
[15] He was promoted to lieutenant general while still commanding the division in October 1926,[16] and was in April 1927 appointed general officer commanding-in-chief (GOC-in-C) of the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR):[3][17] he was the last person to hold this post until after the Second World War.