Francis Earl Johnston

Brigadier-General Francis Earl Johnston, C.B. (1 October 1871 - 7 August 1917) was a New Zealand army officer of the First World War. He was commander of the 1st New Zealand Infantry Brigade in France.

He was born in Wellington, the eldest son of merchant (and later politician) Charles John Johnston. Educated at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire and the Royal Military College Sandhurst, where he was awarded the Sword of Honour as the best of his intake. Commissioned in the Prince of Wales’s North Staffordshire Regiment in 1891. Married (1) Morna Fell on 12 Apr 1907; she died in Cairo on 15 Dec 1915. Married (2) Gwen Seaton.

Commander of the Infantry Brigade, NZ Expeditionary Force (subsequently 1st NZ Infantry Brigade), and later 3rd NZ Rifle Brigade, the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps ANZAC.

* 1914 Departed NZ for Egypt 16 Oct 1914 with the “Main Body”; disembarked Alexandria 3 Dec.
* 1915 12 Apr embarked for Battle of Gallipoli, commanding 1st NZ Infantry Brigade. Sick list 17-25 June. Promoted temporary Brigadier General 9 July. Sick 5-9 Sept and 23 Sept - 2 Oct. Left for Alexandria 17 Nov because his wife was dying.
* 1916 6 Apr embarked at Port Said for France; arrived France 11 Apr. Served in France. Mentioned in General Haig’s despatch of 13 Nov.
* 1917 Relinquished command of 1st NZ Infantry Brigade 15 Feb. Assumed command of NZ Reserve Group, Sling, 27 Feb.
* 1917 Returned to France 25 July. Command of 3rd NZ Rifle Brigade, 31 July. Killed in action 7 Aug by sniper, north of Douve on the road from Warneton to Gapaard.

Buried at Bailleul Communal Cemetery Extension Nord, France. Grave no. III. C. 260.

Obituary: The Dominion, 10 Aug 1917

Killed in Action

Brig.-General F.E. Johnston, C.B

Shot by a sniper

News was received yesterday of the death at the front of Brigadier-General Johnston, C.B., Commander of the 1st New Zealand Infantry Brigade in France. The cable to the Defence Department stated that Brigadier-General Johnston had been killed by a sniper’s bullet while inspecting the front-line trenches. The news was received on all sides with deep regret, for the late Brigadier-General Johnston, recognised as a most efficient and gallant officer, had a winning personality, and was esteemed by all ranks in his command, and indeed by all who knew him. Following the death of Brigadier-General Brown so closely, it will be realised that those of the higher command in the New Zealand Force are suffering severely as the result of the danger they share with the men, who are doing so much to reflect credit on our arms.

Brigadier-General Francis Earl Johnston was the eldest son of the Hon. C.J. Johnston, M.L.C., Speaker of the Legislative Council. He was an old Wellington boy, having been born here on October 1, 1871, and was thus 45 years of age. He joined the Prince of Wales’s (North Staffordshire) Regiment as second lieutenant on December 5, 1891, and was promoted lieutenant on November 30, 1895, captain on May 13, 1900, and major on February 16, 1911. He accompanied the expedition to Dongola, Sudan, in 1896, and took part in the operations on September 19, receiving the Egyptian medal with clasp and also the English medal. He served in the South African war from 1900 to 1902, taking part in operations in the Transvaal (October, 1900, to May 31, 1902). He was mentioned in dispatches on July 18 and 29, 1902, and received the Queen’s medal with three clasps and the King’s medal with two clasps. On July 16, 1914, while on furlough in New Zealand from India, he was appointed to the command of the Wellington military district, in which he was born, for one year, succeeding Colonel Chaytor in the office. On the outbreak of war with Germany in August, 1914, he received command of the Infantry Brigade, New Zealand Expeditionary Force, which subsequently became the 1st New Zealand Infantry Brigade. He left with the Main Body, and subsequently served with his brigade in Egypt, on the Canal, through the Gallipoli campaign, and with it in France, except for a break when he was invalided to England, when he took charge of the Sling Camp. Throughout he won the esteem of his men, and everywhere he was recognised as a brave and able leader. For his services on Gallipoli he received the C.B. Brigadier-General Johnston married a daughter of the late Mr. A.G. Fell, of Wellington. His wife subsequently joined him in Egypt, and died there a few months afterwards. Brigadier-General Johnston recently married again in England, his second wife being Miss Gwen Seaton, a distant connection of the family.

General sympathy will be felt for the Hon. C.J. Johnston and Mrs. Johnston in this, their third war bereavement. In July of last year their youngest son, Captain O.R.F. Johnston, was killed in action while leading his men at the taking of Fricourt, in the Battle of the Somme. Their son-in-law, Major R.F. Levin, was killed in action at Gallipoli, his wife (née Miss Johnston) surviving him by but a few months. The Hon. C.J. Johnston is at present recruiting his health in America.

A Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of the late Brigadier-General Johnston will be sung at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Hill Street, at 9 o’clock this morning.

A FIGHTING FAMILY

The Johnston family, of Karori, has responded nobly to the call of the Motherland in this titanic war, and two of its sons, the late Brigadier-General F.E. Johnston and the late Captain O.R.F. Johnston, as already mentioned, have made the supreme sacrifice. Three other sons, Mr. Guy Johnston (before the war associated with his father in the management of the city firm of Johnston and Co., Featherston Street), Mr. H.F. Johnston (formerly of the legal firm of Brandon, Hislop, and Johnston), and Mr. C.F. Johnston (who farmed on his estate at Fielding), are all at present in France. Mr. Guy Johnston is with the New Zealand Army, while his brothers are serving with the Imperial Forces.

Extract from Letter of George Vavasour, 20 Aug 1917

About the first thing I heard when I got back yesterday, was that our Brigadier, Earl Johnston had been killed.

It happened in this manner - The particular section that we were holding was nothing more than a line of strong points and not the wonderfully complete system of which one hears so much, practically without any communication trenches. The Brigadier, who was always up amongst his men, walked calmly up over the open in broad day light, to inspect the front line, and got there alright but, on his way back, was shot through the heart, by a bullet from a German sniper.

Death, was I believe, instantaneous. His loss is felt very much by every one in the Brigade. He was killed while I was away on this course at ___ on the eighth of August. I had seen him only a few days before, on the occasion of a distribution of honours by a French General. We were all (subs) drawn up in line and he came and stood on my right while the Ceremony was going on.

It is hard to realise that he had been killed.

Yes, this is a beast of War, one never knows who is going to be next. If he hadn’t gone up until the communication trenches were finished, he would have been alright, but he was not the sort of man to do a thing like that, but went where his duty called him - regardless of all danger.

(George Vavasour, Second Lieutenant, NZ Rifle Brigade, killed 12 Oct 1917, aged 26.)

Extract from Lt.-Col. C. H. Weston's [http://net.lib.byu.edu/estu/wwi/memoir/NZ/kiwiTC.htm "Three Years with the New Zealanders"]

In December also, Brigadier General F. E. Johnston, C.B., was sent over to the New Zealand base camp at Sling to take charge of the training there, which needed reorganizing... General Johnston had commanded the Brigade from its formation in 1914 and was much liked by all ranks. Although born in New Zealand, he was a Regular Soldier, and had seen service in India and Egypt with the North Staffordshire Regiment. General Johnston had the faculty of taking a human interest in the officers and men of his Brigade, an interest that is generally repaid tenfold by its recipients. Certainly a smile and a pleasant word from the General made the day's work appreciably lighter. He returned to the Brigade in August, 1917, only to meet his death a few days later.