Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Cecil Kaye CSI CIE CBE (27 May 1868 – 5 March 1935) was an officer in the British Indian Army.
Cecil Kaye | |
|---|---|
| Born | 27 May 1868 Madron, Cornwall, England |
| Died | 5 March 1935 (aged 66) New Delhi, India |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | British Army British Indian Army |
| Years of service | 1889–1925 |
| Rank | Lieutenant-Colonel |
| Unit | Derbyshire Regiment Indian Staff Corps 21st Punjabis 20th Duke of Cambridge's Own Infantry (Brownlow's Punjabis) |
| Commands | Department of Central Intelligence |
| Battles / wars |
|
| Spouse(s) | Margaret Sarah (´Daisy´) Bryson |
| Relations | M. M. Kaye (daughter), John William Kaye (first cousin) |
Biography
editKaye was born in Madron, Cornwall, the son of William Kaye, of the Bengal Civil Service, and Jane Margaret (née Beckett). He came from a family with a strong tradition of seeking careers in the British civil or military service in India; he was a first cousin of the historian Sir John William Kaye.[1]
In 1889, after attending Winchester College, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 2nd Battalion, Derbyshire Regiment,[2] receiving promotion to lieutenant on 1 November 1890.[3] On 26 June 1892 Kaye was seconded for service with the Indian Staff Corps,[4][5] later seeing active service at the North-West Frontier in 1897–1898, and being awarded the India Medal.[2] He was promoted to captain on 6 March 1900,[6] and served during the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900–1901.[2]
While at Tianjin he met Margaret Sarah Bryson, whom he married in 1905, having a son and two daughters, including M. M. Kaye.[2] He was promoted to major in the 21st Punjabis on 6 March 1907.[7] In 1908 Kaye was appointed deputy adjutant to the Quartermaster-General in the Intelligence Branch of the General Staff at Indian Army Headquarters in Simla.[2] He was made a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) on 1 January 1913.[8]
In August 1914, he was appointed Deputy Chief Censor, working closely with the Department of Criminal Intelligence, and gaining a reputation as a skilled cryptographer.[2]
On 6 October 1914 he was promoted from major to temporary lieutenant-colonel in the 20th Duke of Cambridge's Own Infantry (Brownlow's Punjabis),[9] and this was confirmed on 6 March 1915.[10]
On 1 January 1917, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Star of India (CSI) in recognition of his "meritorious services ... in connection with the war",[11] and was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1919.[2]
On 29 September 1919, he was appointed temporary Director of the Department of Central Intelligence, and this was confirmed on 7 May 1920.[2] He retired from that post in 1924.[2] He was awarded a knighthood on 1 January 1925,[12] receiving his accolade from the King at Buckingham Palace on 12 February 1925.[13] He retired from the Indian Army on 13 April 1925.[14]
In 1925, he wrote Communism in India, in which he described the operations of the DCI against the Bolsheviks during his time in office. Kaye then served as a minister in the Indian princely state of Tonk until 1930. After his retirement he lived in Srinagar, and was a regular contributor to the journal Near East and India. He died of a heart attack at New Delhi on 5 March 1935.[2]
References
edit- ^ M.M. Kaye, The sun in the morning, p. 21. Penguin, Harmondsworth, 1992.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Popplewell (2014)
- ^ "No. 26113". The London Gazette. 9 December 1890. p. 6922.
- ^ "No. 26323". The London Gazette. 6 September 1892. p. 5095.
- ^ "No. 26506". The London Gazette. 24 April 1894. p. 2321.
- ^ "No. 27193". The London Gazette. 18 May 1900. p. 3150.
- ^ "No. 28027". The London Gazette. 4 June 1907. p. 3838.
- ^ "No. 28677". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1912. p. 3.
- ^ "No. 28944". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 October 1914. p. 8365.
- ^ "No. 29149". The London Gazette. 30 April 1915. p. 4175.
- ^ "No. 29886". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 December 1916. p. 3.
- ^ "No. 33007". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1924. p. 2.
- ^ "No. 33020". The London Gazette. 13 February 1925. p. 1070.
- ^ "No. 33058". The London Gazette. 19 June 1925. p. 4118.
Bibliography
edit- Popplewell, Richard (May 2014). "Kaye, Sir Cecil". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/53776. Retrieved 10 September 2014. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- "Kaye, Lt-Col. Sir Cecil". Who Was Who. A & C Black. April 2014. Retrieved 10 September 2014.