Lieutenant-Colonel Graham Seton Hutchison DSO MC |
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Born | 1890 Scotland |
Died | 1946 |
Nationality | Scottish |
Citizenship | British |
Alma mater | Royal Military Academy Sandhurst |
Occupation | Army officer Writer |
Years active | 1909-1946 |
Known for | Far-right activist |
Notable work |
The W Plan History of the Machine Gun Corps The Red Colonel |
Home town | London |
Political party |
Liberal Party British Fascists British Empire Fascist Party |
Movement | National Workers Movement |
Lieutenant-Colonel Graham Seton Hutchison (1890–1946) was a Scottish First World War army officer, military theorist, author of both adventure novels and non-fiction works and fascist activist. Seton Hutchison became a celebrated figure in military circles for his tactical innovations during the First World War but would later become associated with a series of fringe fascist movements which failed to capture much support even by the standards of the far right in Britain in the interbellum period.
Born in Scotland, his father came from Inverness, although the family settled in London. He was educated at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. Seton Hutchison first saw military service when he enlisted in the King's Own Scottish Borderers in 1909, remaining with the regiment until 1913. He spent time in colonial Africa, serving with the British South Africa Police and the Rhodesian Army before the outbreak of the First World War.
He returned to the British Army in 1914 initially with the 2nd Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and the Machine Gun Corps. In 1917 Seton Hutchison, at the time a Major and Machine Gun Officer in the 33rd Division, convinced his commanding officer to group all the machine gunners, who were spread between four brigades, into a single company under his command, a scheme that was soon rolled out across the British Army resulting in the Machine Gun Corps becoming an independent branch of the army. He also became noted for his strong opposition to retreat and recounted a story of how in March 1918 he shot all but two of a group of forty British soldiers fleeing from the German Imperial Army.