William Sinclair - Burgess Major General Sir William Livingston Hatchwell Sinclair - Burgess KBE , CB , CMG , DSO ( 18 February 1880 – 3 April 1964 ) was a senior officer in the New Zealand Military Forces . Born in England in 1880 , his family moved to New Zealand in the 1890s . He became a professional soldier in New Zealand ' s military in 1911 . During the First World War , he was attached to the Australian Army and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order , mentioned in despatches six times and was one of only 14 members of the New Zealand military to receive the French Legion of Honour decoration . He later served as Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces from 1931 to 1937 . Early life . William Livingston Hatchwell Burgess was born on 18 February 1880 in Longsight , Manchester , England to a shipping merchant , Archibald Sinclair , and his wife . His parents divorced when he was a child and when his mother remarried , he took on his stepfather ' s surname . His stepfather , George Burgess , was a minister and immigrated to New Zealand with his family in the 1890s . Military career . Burgess joined the New Zealand Volunteer Forces in 1898 . He initially served with the South Canterbury Mounted Rifles in Timaru and then in 1902 was transferred the New Zealand Regiment of Field Artillery Volunteers , based in Auckland . He was commissioned in 1906 , and was promoted to captain three years later . In 1911 , he joined the New Zealand Permanent Forces , the precursor to the New Zealand Military Forces . As one of the first officers in the newly formed New Zealand Staff Corps , he served as adjutant of the 16th ( Waikato ) Regiment . He also commanded No . 4 Area Group in Hamilton . First World War . In late 1913 Burgess was sent to Tasmania on exchange with the Australian Military Forces , and when the First World War broke out in August 1914 he joined the First Australian Imperial Force ( AIF ) rather than returning to New Zealand to volunteer for the New Zealand Expeditionary Force . He embarked for the Middle East with the 3rd Australian Field Artillery Brigade on 20 October 1914 aboard the " Geelong " . During the Gallipoli Campaign Burgess , now a major , commanded the 9th ( Tasmanian ) Battery and was wounded in May 1915 . Poor health led to his eventual evacuation from Gallipoli in October 1915 . For his services during the campaign , he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order . Promoted to lieutenant colonel in March 1916 and given command of the 3rd Australian Field Artillery Brigade , 1st Australian Division , he served on the Western Front . He particularly distinguished himself in action from July to September 1916 during the Battle of the Somme and was awarded the " Croix de Officier " of the " Légion d ’ honneur " ( Legion of Honour ) in May 1917 . This French award is uncommon to New Zealanders : fewer than 100 awards have been made , and Burgess was one of only 14 members of the New Zealand Military Forces to be decorated with the Legion of Honour during the war . In 1917 , Burgess was promoted to brigadier general and appointed Commander , Royal Artillery of the 4th Australian Division . He served in this capacity for the remainder of the war , by the end of which he had been mentioned in despatches six times . He received a number of honours , including being made a Companion of the Order of the Bath and the Order of St Michael and St George . He also received the Distinguished Service Medal from the government of the United States . He was discharged from the AIF on 18 July 1919 . Postwar career . Burgess returned to New Zealand and resumed his career with the New Zealand Military Forces . He was an artillery officer at the Wellington Military District headquarters , based in Palmerston North . He became married in 1921 , which was when he first adopted the additional surname Sinclair , his biological father ' s name , although he did not begin formally using his new surname until 1926 . In 1922 , Burgess was posted to New Zealand Military Forces headquarters in Wellington as a staff officer . Two years later he became director of military intelligence and training for three months before being promoted to colonel and appointed chief of the general staff . Promoted to brigadier in 1928 , Burgess became Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces in 1931 for a four year term . The country ' s economic difficulties made his appointment a difficult one . The depression had resulted in New Zealand ' s compulsory military training scheme being abolished and the Territorial Force needed to be reorganised accordingly . Burgess , now a major general , also implemented a rearmament program in response to increased aggression by the Japanese Empire in China and made a number of recommendations to the New Zealand government . Some recommendations , such as the purchase of aircraft ( which led to the establishment of the Royal New Zealand Air Force and artillery for harbour defences , were enacted . Others , such as the proposal for an infantry battalion and artillery battery be formed for service in British India , were not . He was also an advocate for the mechanisation of the New Zealand Military Forces . He was made a Knight Bachelor in 1934 and a Knight of the Order of the British Empire in 1935 , the same year his term as Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces was extended for two years . Later life . Sinclair - Burgess retired from the military in 1937 , having served six years as Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces . On his retirement , the position was abolished . Following the outbreak of the Second World War he offered his services to the New Zealand government but this was turned down despite the enthusiasm of Edward Puttick , the Chief of Staff at the time . A carpenter in his youth , he built a house for himself at Mahina Bay , near Wellington . It was destroyed in a fire in 1959 , along with all his belongings . Army officers raised the money to replace his medals and insignia . He died at Eastborne , Wellington on 3 April 1964 . His marriage had ended in divorce several years earlier , and he had no children . He is buried in the servicemen ' s section of Wellington ' s Karori Cemetery .