Lieutenant-General Sir John Plumptre Carr Glyn (11 January 1837 – 28 March 1912) was a British general who saw active service in the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

and the Anglo-Ashanti War.

Early life

John Plumptre Carr Glyn was born Witchampton, east

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

.1901 Census of England
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Military career

He joined the

Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

in August 1854 just before the opening of hostilities in the

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

. He saw active service during the second year of the campaign and was present at Sebastopol from 17 June until the fall of the fortress on 11 September 1855. He was promoted from

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

to lieutenant without

purchase Purchasing is the procurement process a business or organization uses to acquire goods or services to accomplish its goals. Although there are several organizations that attempt to set standards in the purchasing process, processes can vary g ...

on 29 December 1854. He next saw active service, in 1874, as a major in the 2nd Battalion of the

, under Colonel Sir Garnet Wolseley during the

Third Anglo-Ashanti War The Anglo-Ashanti wars were a series of five conflicts that took place between 1824 and 1900 between the Ashanti Empire—in the Akan interior of the Gold Coast—and the British Empire and its African allies. Despite initial Ashanti victorie ...

. He was personally involved in the Battle of Amoaful on 31 January 1874 and five days later when the fighting ended with the

Battle of Ordashu The Battle of Ordashu was fought on 4 February 1874 during the Third Anglo-Ashanti War when Sir Garnet Wolseley defeated the Ashantis. The attack was led by the 42nd Regiment of Foot. Lieutenant Mark Sever Bell won the Victoria Cross The ...

. He was also present at the capture of the capital,

Kumasi Kumasi is a city and the capital of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is the second largest city in the country, with a population of 443,981 as of the 2021 census. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region ...

, which had been abandoned by the Ashanti. The Ashanti War gave him his brevet of lieutenant-colonel on 1 April 1874. The only mention, found to date, of his involvement in the Anglo-Zulu Wars is the following: Lt-Col Bengough arrived in Natal with the

77th Foot The 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot (The Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line regiment of the British Army, raised in 1787. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the Duke of Ca ...

in December 1878. He was placed in command of the 2nd Battalion

Natal Native Contingent The Natal Native Contingent was a large force of auxiliary soldiers in British South Africa, forming a substantial portion of the defence forces of the British colony of Natal. The Contingent saw action during the 1879 Anglo-Zulu War. The Nat ...

, which formed part of Durnford's Column, and which was left to protect the frontier at Kranz Kop on the departure of that force to join Glyn's Column. He was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

in 1879. On 16 December 1884, while on half pay, he was gazetted to be Lieutenant-Colonel, to command the 22nd Regimental District (the Cheshire Regiment). In 1892 he succeeded Sir Evelyn Wood as the

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

the Eastern District at home and held the post until 1896. He was promoted to the rank of major-general in 1889 and 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 normall ...

in January 1898. The 1901 Census of England indicates that he had retired and was living in the parish of Holt, Dorset. He was appointed

colonel commandant Colonel commandant is a military title used in the armed forces of some English-speaking countries. The title, not a substantive military rank, could denote a senior colonel with authority over fellow colonels. Today, the holder often has an honor ...

of the

Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

on 18 January 1908.

The Ashanti Ring

The Ashanti Ring, also known as the Wolseley ring, was a group of 19th century

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 ...

officers loyal to

Garnet Wolseley Field Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley (4 June 183325 March 1913) was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army. He became one of the most influential British generals after a series of victories in Canada, West Africa and E ...

and considered by him to be clever, brave, experienced and hard-working. The 'ring' itself was rooted in Wolseley's appointments for the Ashanti Campaign of 1873–4, in which Wolseley led British troops to take control of the Gold Coast. After the

Wolseley started to keep a note of the best officers he met, and began gathering a network of able military men loyal to him. There were other circles around other military leaders; later these would dwindle as more formal selection and promotion procedures became established. Men from this group accompanied Wolseley on his various projects for about a decade. They are sometimes called the Ashanti Ring, or, in a

pun A pun, also known as a paronomasia in the context of linguistics, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from t ...

ning reference to Wolseley's first name, the

Garnet Garnets () are a group of silicate minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. Garnet minerals, while sharing similar physical and crystallographic properties, exhibit a wide range of chemical compositions, de ...

Ring. Later they were the ''Africans'' against the ''Indians'' of the rival Roberts Ring of Lord Roberts and Herbert Kitchener during the

Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...

Family life

Glyn's father was Rev. Carr John Glyn (1799–1897), who was a godfather and namesake to Handley Carr Glyn Moule, a theologian and bishop of Durham. On 11 September 1866 John Glyn married Ellen (d. 20 April 1928), eldest daughter of James Robert Dalton Dewar of Kent. In the 1901 Census, Ellen is listed as a Belgium British subject. *Their daughter Ada Carr-Glyn was baptised at The Church of the Holy Rood

Buckland Newton Buckland Newton is a village and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated beneath the scarp slope of the Dorset Downs, south of Sherborne. In the 2011 census the civil parish had a population of 622. The village covers around 6000&nb ...

in Dorset on 9 December 1870. She married Lt-Col Dudley Granville Richard Ryder, son of Dudley Henry Ryder and Georgiana Emily Calcraft, on 24 October 1889. She died in 1950. *Daughter, Nellie Georgiana Carr married Sir George Henry Sutherland (d. 11 May 1937) on 11 June 1890. She died on 18 April 1891. *Son John Carr Glyn was unmarried. Glyn died on 28 March 1912.

Honours

Lt-Genl Sir John Plumptre Carr-Glyn was invested as a

Knight Commander Knight Commander (or Dame Commander) is the second most senior grade of seven British orders of chivalry, three of which are dormant (and one of them continues as a German house order). The rank entails admission into knighthood, allowing the rec ...

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

(KCB).

Early life

Military career

The Ashanti Ring

Family life

Honours

References

Further reading