Brigadier General W R McNicoll

This three quarter portrait of Brigadier General W.R. McNicholl in uniform was painted while Longstaff was in France from May to June or September to October 1918. Brigadier General McNicholl who was in charge of the 10th Battalion, located his headquarters just east of Curlu, near Clery. It was an AIF battalion like most others in August 1918, there were barely 300 rifles in line and even more than others, the men were almost dazed with lack of sleep. In this condition, McNicholl's troops would attack and gain command of Clery where he set up a command post on Clery ridge, which offered him high visibility of the area and prepared the ground for an Australian offensive on Mont St Quentin.