Henry Heath (British Army officer)

Major-General Henry Newport Charles Heath, CB, (15 October 1860 – 29 July 1915) was a British Army general during the First World War, who commanded the 48th (South Midland) Division from 1914 to 1915.

Early career
Heath was born into a military family, the second surviving son of Major-General Alfred Heath, Royal Artillery. He attended Clifton College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, before joining the 1st Battalion, South Stafford Regiment in 1881. He served in the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War and the 1884-85 Nile Expedition, where he was mentioned in despatches for his role at the Battle of Kirbekan.

He transferred into the 1st Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry in 1889, promoted to captain with a brevet majority. He later attended the Staff College, and on leaving took up a posting as a staff officer in the intelligence department at Army Headquarters in 1898. He remained on the staff during the first part of the Boer War, as assistant adjutant-general and the chief staff officer for the lines of communication, and in October 1901 returned to his regiment to command the 2nd Battalion, moving to the 1st Battalion the following year.

Senior command
Heath returned to the staff in 1904, promoted to colonel and made the assistant adjutant-general of the Second Corps, then posted to Army headquarters in 1906 and made GSO.1 in 1908. From 1910 to 1914 he commanded the regular 11th Infantry Brigade, at Colchester.

At the outbreak of the First World War, Heath had recently relinquished command of 11th Brigade to Aylmer Hunter-Weston. He was later given command of a newly mobilised Territorial division, the 48th (South Midland) Division, and commanded it when it first went to France; however, in mid-June, he relinquished command after falling ill. He died shortly thereafter, on 29 July, aged 54.