Aylmer Hunter-Weston

Who was Aylmer Hunter-Weston?

Lieutenant-General Sir Aylmer Gould Hunter-Weston KCB DSO GStJ was a British Army general who served in World War I at Gallipoli and in the very early stages of the Somme Offensive. He was also a Member of Parliament.

Nicknamed "Hunter-Bunter", Hunter-Weston has been seen as a classic example of a "donkey" general — he was described by his superior Sir Douglas Haig as a "rank amateur", and has been referred to by one modern writer as "one of the Great War's spectacular incompetents". However, another historian writes that although his poor performance at the battles of Krithia earned his reputation "as one of the most brutal and incompetent commanders of the First World War" "in his later battles he seemed to hit upon a formula for success ... these small achievements were largely forgotten".