Alexander Johnston

Alexander Colin Johnston (26 January 1884 – 27 December 1952) was a British Army officer and an English first-class cricketer. Johnston graduated from the Royal Military College at Sandhurst and entered into the Worcestershire Regiment. Following a three years secondment to the Northern Nigeria Regiment, he returned to England and received a further secondment to the Army Signal Service. He served throughout the First World War with distinction, commanding the 10th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment and later the 126th Infantry Brigade; the latter command made him the youngest general in the British Army. He was wounded several times during the war and received awards for gallantry, most notably the Distinguished Service Order with medal bar and the Military Cross. His military service continued after the war, albeit in a non-combat role due to his war injuries. Heavily involved in army education, Johnston retired in 1937, but came out of retirement during the Second World War to serve with the Political Intelligence Department of the Foreign Office.

As a first-class cricketer, Johnston was mostly associated with Hampshire, for whom he played cricket in the County Championship between 1902 and 1919. A prolific batsman before the First World War, he placed second in the national batting averages in 1912, behind C. B. Fry and narrowly missed out on playing Test cricket that year for England. Johnston played 108 first-class matches for Hampshire, scoring 5,442 runs and making ten centuries. He also played at first-class level for the Marylebone Cricket Club, Gentlemen, and the British Army cricket team.

Early life The son of the Scottish cricketer and Royal Engineers officer Duncan Johnston, Alexander Colin Johnston was born in Derby in January 1884. Johnston was educated at Winchester College, where he represented the college cricket team as an opening batsman and leg break bowler. There in his second match against Eton College, he dismissed eight Eton batsmen for 56 runs.

Military career Early career From Winchester, he proceeded to the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, which he graduated from as a second lieutenant in November 1903; prior to taking up an appointment with the Worcestershire Regiment, he spent a year in Colorado and New Mexico as a cowboy. the same year in which he was seconded to the Northern Nigeria Regiment for three years, which formed part of the West African Frontier Force. Whilst serving in Nigeria, he played polo for Western Nigeria. Just under two years later in August 1912, he was seconded to the Army Signal Service.

WWI service With the outbreak of the First World War on 28 July 1914, Johnston travelled with the Worcestershire Regiment to the Western Front as part of the British Expeditionary Force in the opening days of the war. He saw action in the allied defeats at the Mons and Le Cateau in August, while in September he fought in the indecisive First Battle of the Aisne. In that same month he gained promotion to captain. He was awarded the Military Cross in February 1915 for actions at Soissons. Johnston was seconded to the 25th Division as a General Staff Officer, 3rd Grade in January 1916, an appointment which disappointed him; however, his appointment to the 25th proved beneficial, as he gained the rank of brevet major in February – a coveted junior position – an appointment which he took up in March. Johnston was active in the mining operations around the Vimy Ridge during 1916 and took part in the Battle of the Somme which lasted from July to November 1916. During the Battle of the Somme, he was placed in command of the 10th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment, who needed careful leadership to bring them up to fighting efficiency. His skill in command was noted by the battalion's success at the end of the offensive and subsequent Battle of Messines in 1917.

In December 1916, Johnston was decorated by France with the croix de guerre, while in the June 1917 Birthday Honours he was made a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his efforts at the Somme. The following month he took part in the Battle of Passchendaele with the 10th, where his strong leadership of the battalion was rewarded shortly after the battle, when he was placed in command of the 126th Infantry Brigade and assumed the temporary rank of brigadier-general, becoming the youngest general in the British Army. gained through his efforts at Passchendaele. Johnston served with distinction during the course of the war, being mentioned in despatches on five occasions. By July 1919 he had recovered from his wounds, when he returned to service and travelled to the occupied Rhineland later in 1919. After the war, he held a number of important appointments in connection with education in the British Army, and in the same year he was appointed commandant at the Duke of York's Royal Military School in Kent, an appointment he held until 1925. Johnston was appointed chief education officer at Sandhurst in August 1927, a post which he held until August 1929.

After promotion to brevet colonel in January 1931, Johnston served in British India with the Army Educational Corps. There, he was inspector and commandant of the Army School of Education in Belgaum for six years from December 1931 to until his retirement in 1937. Johnston returned to military service during the Second World War, in which he held several staff posts, including as a staff officer in air defence at the Aldershot Command, Eight further appearances followed in 1903, He scored his maiden century (105) the following year, in his first match of the season against Worcestershire, and followed this up later in the season with 108 against Leicestershire; his nine matches in 1904, including one for the Gentlemen of England against the Players of the South at the Bournemouth Cricket Week, yielded him 425 runs at an average of 30.35. Although his average dropped to 18.23 from seven matches in 1905, In 1911, he made six appearances for Hampshire, averaging 41.22. In that same season, he played twice for the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and played for the Gentlemen in the Gentlemen v Players at The Oval; His performance in that season's Gentlemen v Players match also garnered praise from Warner, who noted that in making 89 in the Gentlemen's first innings, he had stood up to the bowling of Sydney Barnes on a difficult Lord's wicket. Following this performance, he narrowly missed out on Test selection for England's match against Australia in the Triangular Tournament, with the selection committee being unable to contact him in time for the match. During the 1914 season, which was cut short by the outbreak of the First World War, Johnston made three appearances for Hampshire in the County Championship, having played earlier in the season for the British Army cricket team against the Royal Navy at Lord's. He played just once for Hampshire following the war, in the 1919 County Championship against Gloucestershire. Described by Warner as being of "England class", he further described Johnston as "a very fine batsman with a beautiful method of play". A part-time leg break bowler, he took 18 wickets, all for Hampshire, at an average of 44.72. Warner further described Johnston as a "great fieldsman", with him typically fielding long and taking 57 catches for Hampshire.

Personal life and death Johnston was associated with the scouts movement in the United Kingdom and was an organiser for the 3rd World Rover Moot in 1939. Johnston died suddenly on 27 December 1952 at his residence in Knaphill, Surrey. He was survived by his wife, Esme, whom he had married in 1912, and their two daughters.