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 Walter Raleigh Gilbert, 1st Baronet, (18 March 1785,

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordered ...

– 12 May 1853, Stevens' Hotel,

Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the l ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

) was an English army officer in the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

Life

He was the third son of the Reverend Edmund Gilbert (d. 1816), Vicar of Constantine and Rector of Helland,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, and his wife Elizabeth Margaret Garnett, the daughter of Henry Garnett of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. Like Sir Humphrey Gilbert, he was a member of the Devon family of Gilbert of Compton and he was named after Sir Humphrey's half brother Sir

Walter Raleigh Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebell ...

. He gained a cadetship in the Bengal Infantry in 1800, and in September the following year was posted to the 15th

Bengal Native Infantry The regiments of Bengal Native Infantry, alongside the regiments of Bengal European Infantry, were the regular infantry components of the East India Company's Bengal Army from the raising of the first Native battalion in 1757 to the passing in ...

(commanded by Colonel John Macdonald) as ensign. Arriving in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in October 1801, he then became Lieutenant on 12 September 1803 and Captain on 16 April 1810. Participating in the defeat of Perron's brigades at Koil,

Aligarh Aligarh (; formerly known as Koil) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the capital, New Delhi. ...

, the battles of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

, Laswari and the storming of

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

. He also attracted the attention of Lord Lake by his participation in the four unsuccessful attacks on Bharatpur. In 1814, in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

, he married Isabella Rose Ross, the daughter of Thomas Ross, a major in 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 ...

- the marriage produced Sir Francis Hastings Gilbert, 2nd Baronet in 1816 (later British consul at Scutari), Geraldine Adelaide (b. 1830 in Bodmin). Next he was successively Barrack-Master and Cantonment Magistrate at Cawnpore, Commandant of the Calcutta native militia, and Commandant of the Ramgarh local battalion. Promoted to Major on 12 November 1820, he then became Lieutenant-Colonel of the newly formed 39th Bengal native infantry in 1824, Colonel of the 35th native infantry and of the 1st Bengal European Fusiliers in 1832, Major-General in June 1838 and finally Lieutenant-General in November 1851. During the

First Anglo-Sikh War The First Anglo-Sikh War was fought between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company in 1845 and 1846 around the Firozpur district of Punjab. It resulted in the defeat and partial subjugation of the Sikh empire and cession of Jammu ...

he commanded a division of Sir Hugh Gough's army at the battles of Mudki and Ferozeshahr (December 1845), and at Sobraon (10 February 1846) - Gough mentioned him favourably in his dispatches. He was one of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

viceroys at

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

alongside Herbert Benjamin Edwardes. He was made a KCB in April 1846 and again commanded a division under Gough in the

Second Anglo-Sikh War The Second Anglo-Sikh War was a military conflict between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company which took place from 1848 to 1849. It resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab region, Punjab and what sub ...

, at the 1849 battles of Chilianwala and Gujrat before leading his division (which included Robert Napier) across the

Jhelum Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...

River to pursue the remnants of the Sikh army and receiving their surrender in

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...

on 3 and 6 March. He next pursued the Sikhs' Afghan allies from

Attock Attock ( Punjabi, ), formerly known as Campbellpur (Punjabi, ), is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 36th largest city in the Punjab and 61st largest c ...

right up to the

Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (Urdu: درۂ خیبر; ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by tr ...

, and in reward was appointed GCB in June 1849 and a Baronet in 1850. He led the detachment of the British Army which captured

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

in March 1849. Becoming known as a sportsman as well as a soldier in

, on his death a memorial obelisk was erected on the Bodmin Beacon, though his baronetcy became extinct on his son Francis's death. Sir Walter is buried on the west side of the southern section of the central north-south path in

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

External links

*
www.cornwall-calling.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Walter 1785 births 1853 deaths Military personnel from Cornwall British East India Company Army generals British military personnel of the First Anglo-Sikh War British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Sikh War People from Bodmin Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Maratha War Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery