He was appointed Military Secretary to the Commander-in-Chief, India in 1881 and went on the Burma expedition in 1885. He was Quartermaster-General for India from 1885 to 1889, and introduced a system of organised native brothels for British other ranks in the hope of reducing the incidence of venereal diseases. He became the second Director of Military Intelligence at the War Office in 1891. He was aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria in 1891. As an active member of the Royal Geographical Society, he presented several lectures and wrote numerous papers on the effects of physical geography on the tactics and success of military operations. Additionally, he wrote several books about military geography and the history of the British Indian Army. He was promoted to major-general in 1889, lieutenant-general in 1892, and general in March 1896. Chapman was made Commander Scottish District in 1896, a post he held until 1901. He was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1905 and retired in 1906. He was Master Gunner, St James's Park, the ceremonial commander of the Royal Artillery, between 1919 and 1926.