General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry.
In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
Sir Colin Halkett (7 September 1774 – 24 September 1856) was a
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
Halkett came from a military family. His father was Major General Frederick Godar Halkett and his younger brother was
General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry.
In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
Hugh Halkett
Hugh Halkett, Royal Guelphic Order, GCH, Order of the Bath, CB, (30 August 1783 – 10 December 1863) was a British army officer who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. During his military career, he served in both the Brit ...
.
Military career
Halkett began his military career in the Dutch Guards and served in various companies for three years, leaving as a
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
in 1795.
From 1800 to 1801 he commanded Dutch troops on the Island of
Guernsey
Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...
. On 28 July 1803, a letter of service was issued to
Major
Major most commonly refers to:
* Major (rank), a military rank
* Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits
* People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames
* Major and minor in musi ...
Halkett (and to Lieutenant Colonelvon der Decken) empowering him "to raise a battalion of infantry with an establishment of four hundred and fifty-nine men" and offering him the rank of lieutenant colonel should he increase the number to eight hundred men. These men formed the nucleus of what was to become the
King's German Legion
The King's German Legion (KGL; ) was a formation of the British Army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Consisting primarily of expatriate Germans, it existed from 1803 to 1816 and achieved the distinction of being the on ...
in December 1803. On 17 November 1803, Halkett was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and given command of the 2nd Light Infantry
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
,
Rügen
Rügen (; Rani: ''Rȯjana'', ''Rāna''; , ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic ci ...
and
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
.
Peninsular War and Waterloo Campaign
In 1811 he was given command of the Light Brigade of the
King's German Legion
The King's German Legion (KGL; ) was a formation of the British Army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Consisting primarily of expatriate Germans, it existed from 1803 to 1816 and achieved the distinction of being the on ...
. He held this command throughout the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...
from Albuera to Toulouse. On 1 January 1812 he was promoted to
colonel
Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
. At the
Battle of Salamanca
The Battle of Salamanca (in French and Spanish known as the Battle of the Arapiles) took place on 22July 1812. An Anglo-Portuguese Army, Anglo-Portuguese army under the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Earl of Wellington (future ...
(22 July 1812), he commanded 1st Brigade of the 7th Division under Major General
Hope
Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large.
As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...
.
Halkett was promoted to Major General on 4 June 1814.
On 18 June 1815, at the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
he commanded the 5th Brigade in the 3rd Division, under the command of Major General Carl von Alten. He was wounded four times during the course of the battle.
Late in the afternoon, Wellington rode up to the 5th Brigade. The situation was desperate, and casualties were mounting. Halkett asked the Duke, 'My Lord, we are dreadfully cut up; can you not relieve us for a little while?’ 'Impossible!’ Wellington replied. 'Very well My Lord, we'll stand until the last man falls', was Halkett's answer.
Government House
Government House is the name of many of the official residences of governors-general, governors and lieutenant-governors in the Commonwealth and British Overseas Territories. The name is also used in some other countries.
Government Houses in th ...
, still in use today. During this time he married Letitia Cricket, widow of Captain Tyle of the
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
. He had a son, Frederick (John) Colin Halkett, on 10 June 1826. He was promoted to
lieutenant general
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...
on 22 July 1830 and appointed Commander-in-Chief of the
Bombay Army
The Bombay Army was the army of the Bombay Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire.
It was established in 1668 and governed by the East India Company until the Government of India Act 1858 transferr ...
in January 1832. He was Governor of the
Royal Hospital Chelsea
The Royal Hospital Chelsea is an Old soldiers' home, Old Soldiers' retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse — the ancient sense of the word "hospital" — by King Charles II of Eng ...
Saint Helier
St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; ) is the Capital city, capital of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. It is the most populous of the twelve parishes of Jersey, with a population of 35,822, over one-third of the island' ...
are named after him.
Distinctions
*Britain
**
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...
(GCB)
** Gold Cross for Albuera, Salamanca, Vittoria, Nive
**
Waterloo Medal
The Waterloo Medal is a military decoration that was conferred upon every officer, non-commissioned officer and soldier of the British Army (including members of the King's German Legion) who took part in one or more of the following battles: Li ...
*Hanover
**
Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order (), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Kingdom of Hanover, Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its name from the House ...
(GCH)
*Portugal
**
Order of the Tower and Sword
The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit (), before 1917 the ancient and most noble order of the Tower and of the Sword, of valour, loyalty and merit (), is one of the four former ancient Portuguese milita ...
Military Order of William
The Military William Order, or often named Military Order of William (Dutch language, Dutch: , abbreviation: MWO), is the oldest and highest Dutch honours system, honour of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is named after St. William of Gellone ...