Lt. Col. Gideon Gorrequer KH ( 1780 – 18 July 1841) was an Anglo-French soldier who is best known for serving as the aide-de-camp and acting military secretary to Sir Hudson Lowe during the exile of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

upon

St. Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

, and for the diary that he kept whilst in this position.

Early life

The Philippes de Gorrequer family came to

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

in the mid-18th century. They were originally a family with

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

stock from

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

. The Philippes family had lived near Plouvien for a number of years.

Career

Gorrequer joined the army at 16 as an Ensign in the 18th Foot in 1797, and was subsequently promoted to Lieutenant in 1798, Captain in 1804, Brevet-Major in 1814, and Lt.-Colonel in 1826. Gorrequer first came into contact with Sir Hudson Lowe whilst serving in Sicily and the Ionian Islands. When Lowe was appointed as the Governor of St. Helena, he offered Gorrequer the position of Aide-de-Campe and Acting Military Secretary. Gorrequer accepted this position and arrived on St. Helena in the ''Phaeton'' on 14 April 1816. He was made a Knight of the Royal Hanoverian and Guelphic Order for his services.

Diary

For many years Gorrequer's papers, including his diary, were kept locked in the Court of Chancery, until they were finally made available in 1958.

Death

Gorrequer died suddenly whilst walking in Jermyn Street on 18 July 1841. He is buried at

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

References

1780s births 1841 deaths 19th-century English diarists Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery Royal Irish Regiment (1684–1922) officers Knights of the Order of the Crescent People from Saint Brélade British Army personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars King's Own Royal Regiment officers Jersey military personnel English people of Breton descent {{UK-army-bio-stub