in 1918 and awarded the Croix de guerre in 1919. He commanded that division until 1 January 1919, when, having been promoted to substantive major general, he took over command of the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division. On 13 December 1921 he moved to India. where he commanded the United Provinces District. Having been appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1926 Birthday Honours, he served as Quartermaster-General of India from 25 February 1927 and, having been promoted to lieutenant general on 13 March 1928 and advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the Kings Birthday Honours 1929, he became Chief of the General Staff in India in 1930. He became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Western Command on 11 April 1931 and then, having been promoted to general on 21 April 1933, he was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Command on 8 May 1933. He was appointed aide-de-camp general to the King on 10 February 1934, and promoted to field marshal on 15 May 1936, before assuming the position of Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS) that same day. In that capacity he advised the Government on the importance of maintaining the capability to mount an expeditionary force for operations on mainland Europe. He was also colonel of the Prince of Wales's West Yorkshire Regiment from 21 March 1934. In May 1937 Leslie Hore-Belisha, the newly appointed Secretary of State for War, sought to implement a new policy of limiting expenditure on the Army, particularly on the development of tanks, and when Deverell failed to show enthusiasm for that policy in the context of an increasing threat from Nazi Germany, Hore-Belisha wrote to him advising him that he had been removed from office. Deverell wrote a reply to the Secretary of State, strongly objecting to the adverse comments that had been made on his own performance, and retired from the British Army on 6 December 1937. Retirement On leaving the British Army he became Deputy Lieutenant of Southampton. His interests included local politics, he served on a borough council, and chaired the local defence committee during the Second World War. He lived at Court Lodge in Lymington, where he died on 12 May 1947 at the age of 72. His body was cremated at Bournemouth Crematorium. Family In 1902 he married Hilda Grant-Dalton; they had a son and a