|
William James Smythe
Williams James Smythe (1816–1887) was a general and colonel-commandant of the Royal Artillery and a Fellow of the Royal Society. Early life and military career He was born at Coole Glebe, Carnmoney, on 25 January 1816 – the second son of Samuel Smythe, vicar of Carnmoney and of his wife Margaret, daughter of John Owens of Tildarg. He was educated at Antrim until he entered the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich on 11 November 1830. He received a commission as second lieutenant in the Royal Artillery on 20 December 1833. In April 1835 he sailed for the Cape of Good Hope, where he served in the Kaffir War and received the war medal. He was promoted to be first lieutenant on 10 January 1837. He returned to England in October the same year. In July 1839 Smythe became secretary of the Royal Artillery Institution at Woolwich, and filled the office until he embarked for St. Helena in December 1811 to take charge of the observatory at Longwood, and to carry out magnetical an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 thirteen Regular Army regiments, the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery and five Army Reserve regiments. History Formation to 1799 Artillery was used by the English army as early as the Battle of Crécy in 1346, while Henry VIII established it as a semi-permanent function in the 16th century. Until the early 18th century, the majority of British regiments were raised for specific campaigns and disbanded on completion. An exception were gunners based at the Tower of London, Portsmouth and other forts around Britain, who were controlled by the Ordnance Office and stored and maintained equipment and provided personnel for field artillery 'traynes' that were organised as needed. These personnel, responsible in peacetime for maintaining the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
