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 ...

Sir Thomas Sydney Beckwith (17 February 177015 January 1831) 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 ...

officer who served as quartermaster general of the British forces in

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during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

, and a 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 ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

.Stephens, H. M. (2004)
Beckwith, Sir Thomas Sydney (1772–1831)
rev. Roger T. Stearn, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press. He is most notable for his distinguished service during 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 ...

and for his contributions to the development and command of the

95th Rifles 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 ...

Family

His father was Major General John Beckwith, who commanded the 20th Regiment of Foot. His brothers were Captain John Beckwith, Sir George Beckwith and Brigadier General Ferdinand Beckwith. He was also the uncle of Major-General John Charles Beckwith. He entered the Army himself in 1791, joining the

71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot The 71st Regiment of Foot was a Highland regiment in the British Army, raised as the 73rd (Highland) Regiment of Foot in 1777. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot to become the 1st Battalion, Highl ...

, and served with them in India. In 1817, he married Lady Mary Douglas, eldest daughter of Sir William Douglas, 4th Baronet of Kelhead. His wife, whose brothers

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

and

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

succeeded as

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, was elevated to the rank of a daughter of a marquess by royal warrant. Their only son, Thomas Sydney Beckwith, was a captain in the Rifle Brigade, and died in Gibraltar on 21 March 1828.

Service with the 95th Rifles

In 1800, he was appointed to command a company in Colonel

Coote Manningham Major General Coote Manningham (1765–1809) was a British army officer who played a significant role in the creation and early development of the 95th Rifles of which he was Colonel in Chief. Military career Born the second son of Charles ...

's "Experimental Corps of Riflemen", which later was designated the 95th Regiment and subsequently 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 ...

. He was promoted to major within the corps in 1802. The next year, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and took command of the 1st Battalion. Beckwith was one of the favourite officers of Sir John Moore in the famous camp of Shorncliffe, and aided that general in the training of the troops which afterwards became the

Light Division The Light Division is a light infantry Division (military), division of the British Army. It was reformed in 2022, as part of Future Soldier (British Army), Future Soldier reforms. Its origins lay in "Light Companies" formed during the late 1 ...

. He served on the expeditions to

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in 1806 and

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in 1807, before joining the expedition to the Peninsula under Major General Arthur Wellesley. He took part in the

Battle of Vimeiro In the Battle of Vimeiro (sometimes shown as "Vimiera" or "Vimeira" in contemporary British texts) on 21 August 1808, the British under General Arthur Wellesley (who later became the Duke of Wellington) defeated the French under Major-Gene ...

, and the expedition into Spain under Sir John Moore, in which the Rifles bore the brunt of the rearguard fighting. The next year, he returned to Portugal and was appointed to command the 1st Brigade of the Light Division. Beckwith took part in Craufurd's great march to the field of Talavera. In 1810, during the French invasion of Portugal, he was present at the Battle of the Coa and the

Battle of Busaco The Battle of Buçaco () or Bussaco was fought on 27 September 1810 during the Peninsular War in the Portuguese mountain range of Serra do Buçaco, resulting in the defeat of French forces by Lord Wellington's Anglo-Portuguese Army. Having ...

. During the subsequent operations to drive the French from Portugal, he fought at the

Battle of Fuentes de Onoro A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

, and distinguished himself at the

Battle of Sabugal The Battle of Sabugal was an engagement of the Peninsular War which took place on 3 April 1811 between Anglo-Portuguese forces under Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) and French troops under the command of Marshal André Ma ...

Quartermaster General

In 1812, he was appointed Assistant Quartermaster General to the British forces in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. As such, he went to

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

to command a force that he divided into two brigades, one composed of the 102nd Regiment of Foot (which had 'til then been stationed at St. George's Garrison as part of the

Bermuda Garrison The Bermuda Garrison was the military establishment maintained on the British Overseas Territory and Imperial fortress of Bermuda by the regular British Army and its local-service militia and voluntary reserves from 1701 to 1957. The garrison ev ...

), Royal Marines, and a company of Independent Foreigners recruited from French prisoners-of-war, was under the command of the commanding officer of the 102nd Regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel

Charles James Napier General Sir Charles James Napier, ( ; 10 August 178229 August 1853) was an officer and veteran of the British Army's Peninsular and 1812 campaigns, and later a major general of the Bombay Army, during which period he led the British military co ...

(who was also his second-in-command), and the other under Lieutenant-Colonel Williams of the Royal Marines. Beckwith went in command of this force to

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

in 1813. At the

Battle of Craney Island The Battle of Craney Island was fought on June 22, 1813 during the War of 1812. British forces under George Cockburn and John Borlase Warren attempted an amphibious landing on Craney Island, Virginia but were repulsed by defending American ...

, Beckwith's troops, 700 Royal Marines and soldiers of the 102nd Regiment of Foot along with a company of Independent Companies of Foreigners, came ashore at Hoffler's Creek near the mouth of the Nansemond River to the west of Craney Island on the morning of June 22, 1813, and were repulsed by shore batteries while attempting to land. He subsequently captured

Hampton, Virginia Hampton is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 137,148 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, seve ...

where the Independent Companies of Foreigners committed numerous atrocities, motivated in part by anger over suffering a perceived massacre at the hands of American forces. In 1814, he was promoted to major general and appointed quartermaster general to the troops in Canada under Sir

George Prevost Sir George Prevost, 1st Baronet (19 May 1767 – 5 January 1816) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who is most well known as the "Defender of Canada" during the War of 1812. Born in New Jersey, the eldest son of Genevan ...

. Prevost's expedition into New York was defeated at the

Battle of Plattsburgh The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. Two British forces, an army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévos ...

. The Peninsular veterans in the force considered that Prevost and his staff (including Beckwith) were at least partly responsible for the defeat (in Beckwith's case, for failure to provide sufficient intelligence on the geography and enemy dispositions). Beckwith was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

in 1812 and a

Knight Commander of the 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 ...

in 1815. In 1827, he was made colonel commandant of his old corps, the Rifle Brigade.

Later service in India

In 1829, he was appointed commander in chief of the

. In 1830, he was promoted lieutenant general, but died of fever the following year at

Mahableshwar Mahabaleshwar () is a small town and a municipal council in Satara district, Maharashtra, India. It is a place of pilgrimage for Hindus because the Krishna River has its origin here. The British colonial rulers developed the town as a hill sta ...

Legacy

* Beckwith Township in Ontario, Canada, is named after him. * Sydney Point,

Panchgani Panchgani, called Paachgani, is a hill station and municipal council in Satara district in Maharashtra, India. Panchgani attracts tourists throughout the year. It is also known for having many convent boarding schools. Panchgani is around 108 ...

: A views point in the hill station of Panchgani,

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

is named after him

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beckwith, Thomas Sydney 1770 births 1831 deaths Knights Bachelor Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath British Army personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars British Army personnel of the War of 1812 British Army lieutenant generals Pre-Confederation Ontario people Rifle Brigade officers Governors of Bombay Commanders-in-chief of Bombay 71st Highlanders officers People from Ford, Northumberland Military personnel from Northumberland People from Satara district