Sanford John Palairet Scobell was born on 26 September 1879, the son of Sanford George Treweeke Scobell, of Down House in Redmarley and of Osborne House, The Park, Cheltenham, by his wife Edith, fourth daughter of Septimus Henry Palairet, of the Grange in Bradford-upon-Avon, who was of Huguenot descent.
15 Facts About John Scobell
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John Scobell's father was a major in the Queen's Own Worcestershire Hussars and the regiment's Honorary Lieutenant Colonel in 1896; he was the son of Rev John Scobell, rector of Southover and All Saints in Lewes, who was part of the Scobell family of Nancealverne.
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In 1910, Scobell married Cecily Maude, daughter of Charles C Hopkinson, of Belgrave Lodge in Cheltenham; they had two daughters and two sons.
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John Scobell was promoted to the rank of lieutenant on 29 August the following year and served in the Somaliland campaign in 1904.
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John Scobell was a staff officer at Southampton between August and November 1914, before becoming a brigade major in the newly formed 35th Brigade of the 12th Division; he went to France with the unit and remained in the post until February 1916.
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John Scobell was part of the X Corps' staff when the Somme Offensive began in 1916 and later served with the 49th Division during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917.
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From 23 October 1919 to 23 March 1920, John Scobell was a GSO with the Military Mission to Russia during the Russian Civil War; he was then transferred to the Black Sea and Turkey, where he remained until August 1923.
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John Scobell was there until 1 April 1932, when he took command of the Quetta Infantry Brigade in India.
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John Scobell was promoted to major general on 16 June 1934, but relinquished his post and went on the half-pay list in September of that year.
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John Scobell returned to the full pay list as a district commander in India on 25 November 1935.
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John Scobell retired in 1939, but was recalled that October with the outbreak of the Second World War.
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John Scobell commanded troops in Malta between 1939 and 1942, but went on the retired list again in 1942.
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John Scobell took up the ceremonial position of Lieutenant of the Tower of London, which he vacated in 1945.
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John Scobell was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1916 and was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1919, a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1935, and a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1942.
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John Scobell died on 2 March 1955, at a nursing home in Camberley, Surrey.