Brigadier-General Frank Percy Crozier, (1 January 1879 – 31 August 1937) was a British Army officer. His first military experience was in the Second Boer War (1899–1902) and with the Royal West African Frontier Force in Nigeria. During the First World War, he commanded the 9th (Service) Battalion of the 107th (Ulster) Brigade in the Battle of the Somme, earning him the promotion to brigadier general and command of the 119th (Welsh) Brigade in the Battle of Cambrai and German spring offensive.
After the war, he briefly served as an advisor of the newly established Lithuanian Army and commander of the Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary at the time of the Partition of Ireland. However, he quickly became disillusioned with the conduct of the auxiliaries during the conflict. Crozier became a pacifist and published several controversial autobiographical books.
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Military career
Crozier was born in Bermuda into a family of military traditions. Both of his grandfathers served in the army and his father was a major in the Royal Scots Fusiliers. Crozier was not accepted into the military due to his short height and low weight. In 1898, seeking adventure, he travelled to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and briefly worked at a tea plantation. At the outbreak of the Second Boer War, Crozier travelled to South Africa and joined a mounted infantry regiment as the recruitment standards had been lowered. He saw action in the British colonies of Natal and Transvaal, including the Battle of Spion Kop. He also served in the Royal West African Frontier Force in Nigeria. Military duties took their toll and Crozier started drinking. In 1905, after a bout of malaria, he returned to England and joined first the Manchester Regiment as a lieutenant and then the part-time 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment as a captain in the Special Reserve. However, in 1908, he was forced to resign due to repeated dishonoured cheques and became bankrupt. Discredited at home, he sailed to Canada and took up farming. That did not last long and Crozier returned home in 1912 amidst the Home Rule Crisis. In Belfast, Crozier joined the Ulster Volunteers as a mercenary (his own description).