His military career included service in the War Office , where he was instrumental in the creation of the Territorial Force in This campaign, in combination with the Kiel mutiny , the Wilhelmshaven mutiny , the proclamation of a republic on 9 November and civil unrest across Germany, led to the armistice of 11 November It is considered by some historians to be one of the greatest victories ever achieved by a British-led army.
He gained a favourable reputation during the immediate post-war years, with his funeral a day of national mourning. However he also had some prominent contemporary detractors and, beginning in the s, has been widely criticised for his wartime leadership.
Haig was born in a house on Charlotte Square , Edinburgh. Later in , he switched to Edinburgh Collegiate School , and then in to Orwell House, a preparatory school in Warwickshire. He then attended Clifton College. He devoted much of his time to socialising β he was a member of the Bullingdon Club β and equestrian sports.
He was one of the best young horsemen at Oxford and part of the University polo team. Although he passed his final exam at Oxford a requirement for university applicants to Sandhurst , he was not eligible for a degree as he had missed a term's residence owing to illness, and if he had stayed for longer he would have been above the age limit 23 to begin officer training at the Royal Military College at Sandhurst , which he entered in January Because he had been to university, Haig was considerably older than most of his class at Sandhurst.
Early in his military career, Haig played polo for England on a tour of the United States August He would remain a polo enthusiast all his life, serving as Chairman of the Hurlingham Polo Committee from until , President of the Army Polo Committee, and founder of the Indian Polo Association. Haig saw overseas service in India sent out November , where he was appointed the regiment's adjutant in He was promoted to captain on 23 January Haig left India in November to prepare for the entrance exam for the Staff College, Camberley, which he sat in June Although he was placed in the top 28 the number of places awarded by exam he was not awarded a place as he had narrowly failed the compulsory mathematics paper.
