Major General Sir William Livingston Hatchwell Sinclair-Burgess, (18 February 1880 – 3 April 1964) was a senior officer in the New Zealand Military Forces. Born in England, his family moved to New Zealand in the 1890s. He became a professional soldier in the New Zealand Military Forces in 1911. In Australia on an exchange with the Australian Army when the First World War broke out, he was attached to the Australian Imperial Force. He served in the Gallipoli campaign and on the Western Front in a series of artillery commands. During the war, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order, mentioned in despatches six times and was one of only 14 personnel of the New Zealand Military Forces to receive the French Legion of Honour. Returning to New Zealand after the war, he later served as Commandant of the New Zealand Military Forces from 1931 until his retirement in 1937. He died in 1964 at the age of 84. Early life William Livingston Hatchwell Sinclair was born on 18 February 1880 in Longsight, Manchester, England, to a shipping merchant, Archibald Sinclair, and his wife, Eliza Maria Sandford. His parents divorced when he was a child, and when his mother remarried, he took on his stepfather's surname, Burgess. His stepfather, George Burgess, was a minister of a Congregational church 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. When the First World War broke out in August 1914, he joined the 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 P&O liner