Alfred Burt

Alfred Burt was the son of F J Burt of Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire. He was commissioned in the 3rd Dragoon Guards from the Militia on 6 June 1896. He certainly had the build of a dragoon. He was a notable heavyweight boxer, who contested the army championships, as well as a keen horseman, both on the hunting field and the polo field. But Burt was more than a ‘hearty’. He was an observer at the Graeco-Turkish War (1897), at the Prussian Guard Corps manoeuvres (1907) and at the Austrian manoeuvres in Galicia (1909) and a war correspondent during the Spanish-Moroccan War (1910). He served as Adjutant of 3rd Dragoon Guards (September 1899–July 1904), which included active service in the South African War (1899–1902).

In April 1912 he was appointed Brigade Major Welsh Border Mounted Brigade, a post he retained until December 1914. He commanded 3rd Dragoon Guards from October 1915 until October 1917, after which he spent three months as acting GOC 6th Cavalry Brigade, still in the rank of lieutenant-colonel.

Burt reached general officer rank at the age of 43 in April 1918 when he became GOC 7th Cavalry Brigade, 3rd (Cavalry) Division. He retained the position until the end of the war, except for a short break in July when he was recovering from the after effects of carbon monoxide poisoning incurred in attempting to rescue men from a bomb crater caused by an air attack on his headquarters. Burt was awarded the Albert Medal for his part in the rescue.

He was Chief of the Military Mission to Latvia and Lithuania (June 1919–February 1920). Alfred Burt retired from the army on 16 March 1920.