Horace Smith-Dorrien

Who was Horace Smith-Dorrien?

General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien GCB, GCMG, DSO, ADC was a British soldier of the BEF during the First World War. He commanded the British II Corps at the Battle of Mons, the first major action fought by the BEF, and the Battle of Le Cateau, where he fought a vigorous and successful defensive action contrary to the wishes of the Commander-in-Chief Sir John French, with whom he had had a personality clash dating back some years. In the spring of 1915 he commanded British Second Army at the Second Battle of Ypres. He was relieved of command by Sir John French for requesting permission to retreat from the Ypres Salient to a more defensible position.