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Robert Wilson (British Army officer, born 1777)

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For other people named Robert Wilson, see Robert Wilson (disambiguation).
Sir Robert Wilson
Sir Robert Wilson
Born17 August 1777
London, United Kingdom
Died9 May 1849 (1849-05-10) (aged 71)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom United Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
RankGeneral
Battles/warsFrench Revolutionary Wars
Napoleonic Wars
AwardsKnight Bachelor

General Sir Robert Thomas Wilson (17 August 1777 – 9 May 1849) was a British general and politician who served in Flanders, Egypt, Iberian Peninsula, Prussia, and was seconded to the Imperial Russian Army in 1812. He sat as the Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Southwark from 1818 to 1831. He served as the Governor of Gibraltar from 1842 until his death in 1849.

Early career

Born in London, he was the grandson of a Leeds wool merchant, and the fourth child of painter and portraitist Benjamin Wilson (painter). Orphaned at the age of twelve he was raised and educated by his uncle and guardian, William Bosville, later attending Westminster School.

He eloped in his twenties with Jemima, the daughter of Colonel William Belford. She bore him thirteen children in the following 15 years.

Military life

He had a distinguished career in the Army and the diplomatic service. In 1794, as an ensign in the 15th Light Dragoons, Wilson fought in the celebrated Battle of Villers-en-Cauchies where a handful of cavalry smashed a much larger French force. He was made a Knight Bachelor in 1801.[1] In 1804 he became a lieutenant-colonel in the 19th Light Dragoons. He was expelled from Russia as a spy after the Treaty of Tilsit. During the Peninsular War he organized Portuguese soldiers into the Loyal Lusitanian Legion.[2] During the British retreat from the Iberian peninsula in January 1809, Wilson refused to comply with the withdrawal and instead decided to oppose the incoming 9,000-man corps commanded by the French General Pierre Belon Lapisse. He installed half of his 1,200 Lusitanian Legion in the fortress of Almeida and arranged the rest in a thin screen. He then harried the opposition with such remorseless energy that Lapisse, convinced he was confronted by a far more numerous enemy, switched entirely to the defensive.[3] In summer 1809, Wilson's Legion again formed an important part of the Anglo-Portuguese network of advance posts and was placed on the Spanish frontier to provide early warning of French moves while the British commander Wellington advanced on Oporto.[4] In Wellington's advance on Talavera in spring 1809, Wilson's Lusitanians again formed a valuable flank guard. In the aftermath of the Battle of Talavera, when the French General Victor and his corps threatened to cut Wellington's forces off from the south, Wilson's small flank column of 1,500 men surprised Victor's 19,600 men from the north. In the face of this unclear threat, Victor panicked and precipitously withdrew to Madrid.[5] On 12 August 1809, Wilson with 4,000 men, including two battalions of the Legion, was defeated by French forces under Marshal Michel Ney at the Battle of Puerto de Baños. Facing treble the number of French, Wilson nevertheless managed to maintain his position for nine hours.[6] He lost nearly 400 men while inflicting 185 casualties on the French.[7] Wilson returned to Russia in 1812 as a liaison officer. He was a sharp observer during the events of Napoleon's disastrous retreat from Moscow and was present at the Battle of Krasnoye. He also assisted in the November 1815 escape of the Bonapartist Lavalette from Paris.[8]

Parliament

In 1817, near the start of the Great Game, he published the anti-Russian "A Sketch of the Military and Political Power of Russia".[9]

In 1818, Wilson became an MP for Southwark.[10] In 1821, now a Radical MP he attended the funeral of Queen Caroline (the wife of George IV), a very controversial figure whose treatment by her husband had led her to be celebrated by the 'loud' section of the general populace. Her supporters, considering that they were not being allowed by the authorities to celebrate this occasion as they wished, became unruly. Soldiers escorting the cortege but also on duty because of the Establishment's fear of the mob, upon being stoned, fired over the heads of the crowd. Wilson strode up and stated that, "It is quite disgraceful to continue firing in this manner, for the people are unarmed. Remember you are soldiers of Waterloo; do not lose your honours gained on that occasion. You have had cannon shot at your head, never mind a few stones." The firing ceased as the officer in charge recognised Wilson, and the troops, although maintaining their cohesion 'retired'.[11] A few weeks later Wilson was dismissed from the Army by the Duke of York.[12] He was, however, to serve his country again.

Later career

Wilson was reinstated in the Army and promoted to lieutenant-general in 1830.[13] He reached the rank of full general in 1841 and was appointed Governor of Gibraltar in 1842. He wrote a great deal about history and politics.[2]

Death

Wilson died suddenly on 9 May 1849 at Marshall Thompson's Hotel in Cavendish Square, London. He is buried along with his wife in Westminster Abbey.[14]

References

Notes
  1. ^ Royal Kalendar and Court & City Register 1847
  2. ^ a b Chandler, p 490
  3. ^ Gates, p 149
  4. ^ Robertson, p 78
  5. ^ Gates, p 186
  6. ^ Southey, p 48
  7. ^ Smith, p 331
  8. ^ "The Late General Sir Robert Thomas Wilson KC". The Daily News (UK). 10 May 1849. Retrieved 13 December 2015 – via British Newspaper Archive. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |subscription= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ Peter Hopkirk, The Great Game, 1994, Chapter 4
  10. ^ "Historical list of MPs: constituencies beginning with "S", part 4". Leigh Rayment's House of Commons pages. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  11. ^ Jasper Ridley, Lord Palmerston, Panther Books, 1972
  12. ^ "No. 17747". The London Gazette. 18 September 1821.
  13. ^ "No. 18709". The London Gazette. 23 July 1830.
  14. ^ "Sir Robert Thomas Wilson". Westminster Abbey. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
Secondary sources
  • Chandler, David (1979). Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. New York: Macmillan. ISBN 0-02-523670-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Gates, David (2002). The Spanish Ulcer. London: Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-9730-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Hopkirk, Peter (1990). The Great Game: On Secret Service in High Asia. London. ISBN 0-7195-4727-X.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Robertson, Ian C. (2000). Wellington at War in the Peninsula. Barnsley: Pen & Sword. ISBN 0-85052-660-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Southey, Robert (1828). History of the Peninsula War. Vol. Vol.IV. London: John Murray. {{cite book}}: |volume= has extra text (help)
  • Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

Further reading

Three biographies exist:

  • Giovanni Costigan, Sir Robert Wilson: A Soldier of Fortune in the Napoleonic Wars, Madison, Wisconsin, 1932
  • Herbert Randolph, ed., Life of General Sir Robert Wilson, 2 vols., London, 1862
  • Ian Samuel, An Astonishing Fellow. The life of General Sir Robert Wilson, The Kensall Press, London, 1985
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Southwark
1818–1831
With: Charles Calvert to 1830
John Rawlinson Harris 1830
Charles Calvert from 1830 		Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Governor of Gibraltar
1842–1848 		Succeeded by
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