Lieutenant-General James Melville Babington was born on 31 July 1854 in the town of Corstorphine in Scotland. He entered the military in 1873 and in 1884 was part of the Bechuanaland Expedition under Charles Warren, gaining his first experience of Southern Africa conditions.
During the Second Boer War he commanded the 1st Cavalry Brigade and was at the Battle of Magersfontein. He was regarded as an expert in the management and deployment of mounted troops and played a major role in the defeat of Boers in battles during the guerrilla phase of the war.
He left South Africa in September 1901 and was sent to New Zealand in 1902 to take up a position as Commander of the New Zealand Defence Force.
