Thomas Napier (British Army officer)

General Sir Thomas Erskine Napier KCB (10 May 1790 – 5 July 1863) was a British Army officer who became Commander-in-Chief, Scotland.

Sir Thomas Napier

Born10 May 1790
Govan, Lanarkshire, Scotland
Died5 July 1863
Lasswade, Midlothian, Scotland
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
Years of service1805–1863
RankGeneral
Unit52nd Regiment of Foot
Chasseurs Britanniques
Commands heldCommander-in-Chief, Scotland
Battles/wars
RelationsSir William Napier (cousin)

Military career edit

Napier was commissioned into the 52nd Regiment of Foot on 3 July 1805.[1] He took part in the Battle of Copenhagen in August 1807, at the Battle of Corunna in January 1809 and at the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May 1811 during the Napoleonic Wars.[1] He also took part in the Battle of the Nive in December 1813 where he was wounded.[1] He went on to be assistant adjutant-general in Belfast and then served as Commander-in-Chief, Scotland and also as Governor of Edinburgh Castle from 1852 to 1854.[1] From 1854 to 1857 he was Colonel of the 16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment[2] and from 1857 to his death Colonel of the 71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot.[3]

He was the brother of Admiral Sir Charles Napier.[4]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Thomas Erskine Napier". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/19771. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ "Colonels". The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  3. ^ "71st (Glasgow Highland Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot". regiments.org. Archived from the original on 3 January 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Napier". Electric Scotland. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
Military offices
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Scotland
1852–1854
Succeeded by
Governor of Edinburgh Castle
1852–1854
Preceded by Colonel of the 71st (Highland) Regiment of Foot
1857–1863
Succeeded by
Preceded by Colonel of the 16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment
1854–1857
Succeeded by