Major-General Arthur Robert MacDonnell (1835-1900) R.E., J.P., was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

soldier who served with the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

during

1868 Expedition to Abyssinia The British Expedition to Abyssinia was a rescue mission and punitive expedition carried out in 1868 by the armed forces of the British Empire against the Ethiopian Empire (also known at the time as Abyssinia). Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia, t ...

under

Sir Robert Napier Robert Napier may refer to: People * Robert Napier (engineer) (1791–1876), Scottish marine engineer * Sir Robert Napier (judge) (died 1615), English judge, Member of Parliament, Chief Baron of the Exchequer in Ireland * Sir Robert Napier, 1st Bar ...

. McDonnell was born at

Dalkey Dalkey ( ; ) is an affluent suburb of Dublin, and a seaside resort southeast of the city, and the town of Dún Laoghaire, in the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown in the historic County Dublin, Ireland. It was founded as a Viking settlement ...

Co. Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

, the youngest son of Richard MacDonnell,

Provost of Trinity College, Dublin The following persons have been provost of Trinity College Dublin. References {{University of Dublin, Trinity College Trinity College, Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxt ...

. He studied at the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of Sig ...

, and was gazetted into the

in 1854. After service in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, in 1868 he took part in the

Abyssinian Expedition The British Expedition to Abyssinia was a rescue mission and punitive expedition carried out in 1868 by the armed forces of the British Empire against the Ethiopian Empire (also known at the time as Abyssinia). Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia, t ...

under

, during which he was made Brevet Major. In command of Companies 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the Bombay Sappers, he saw action at the

Battle of Aroghee The Battle of Magdala was the conclusion of the British Expedition to Abyssinia fought in April 1868 between British and Abyssinian forces at Magdala, from the Red Sea coast. The British were led by Robert Napier, while the Abyssinians were l ...

and the

Battle of Magdala The Battle of Magdala was the conclusion of the British Expedition to Abyssinia fought in April 1868 between British and Abyssinian forces at Magdala, from the Red Sea coast. The British were led by Robert Napier, while the Abyssinians were ...

. At the capture of Magdala, he served alongside Harry Prendergast V.C., commander of the Madras Sappers, and was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

as "having rendered valuable and important services." In 1884, he retired from the army with the rank of Major-General. His first wife, Araminta Preston, was the daughter of Rev. Arthur Preston, grandson of William Beresford, 1st Baron Decies. His second wife, Florence, was a daughter of Sir Henry Nightingale, 13th Bt., of Newport Pond. He died at his home near

Nairn Nairn (; gd, Inbhir Narann) is a town and royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nairn enters the Moray Firth. It is the tradit ...

, where he was

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

. Arthur MacDonnell was a brother of Captain Frederick MacDonnell (1832-1858) of the Punjab Cavalry, who served with distinction in over twenty engagements but was shot and killed during the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

. Their elder brother, Major Charles MacDonnell (1823-1853) of the

29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot The 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1694. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot to become the 1st Battalion, the Worcestershire R ...

, was killed at the Battle of Sobraon. Another of the brothers was Sir

Richard Graves MacDonnell Sir Richard Graves MacDonnell (; 3 September 1814 – 5 February 1881) was an Anglo-Irish lawyer, judge and colonial governor. His posts as governor included Governor of the British Settlements in West Africa, Governor of Saint Vincent, Gove ...

.Notes on the MacDonnells of Tynekill
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacDonnell, Arthur Robert 1835 births 1900 deaths Royal Engineers soldiers People from Dalkey Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich 19th-century Anglo-Irish people Military personnel of British India Irish Anglicans