In 1916 Monro briefly commanded the British First Army in France before becoming Commander-in-Chief India later that year. He was a fine choice, because his "Standard was whether a man was an Empire-builder." One of his responsibilities was the campaign in Mesopotamia. On 1 August 1916 British Chief of Staff William Robertson ordered him to "keep up a good show" in Mesopotamia but not to make any further attempts to take Baghdad this restriction was overruled on the War Committee by Curzon and Chamberlain. On his way to India Monro inspected the forces in Mesopotamia commanded by General Maude. After receiving Monro's favorable report on 18 September 1916 the War Committee authorized Maude to attack. On 1 October 1916, Monro was promoted to the substantive rank of general. Baghdad was taken on 11 March 1917. In off hours Monro continued to charm with his "whimsical, almost fantastic type of humour."