General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Sir Alexander Hope GCB (2 December 1769 – 19 May 1837) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer and the last

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the Royal Military College while it was at

Great Marlow Great Marlow is a civil parishes in England, civil parish within Wycombe district in the England, English county of Buckinghamshire, lying north of the town of Marlow, Buckinghamshire, Marlow and south of High Wycombe. The parish includes the Ha ...

and the first Governor after its move to Sandhurst.

Military career

Born the son of

John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun (7 September 1704 – 12 February 1781) was the son of Charles Hope, 1st Earl of Hopetoun and Lady Henrietta Johnstone. He married on 14 September 1733 to Anne Ogilvy, daughter of James Ogilvy, 5th Earl of Findlater ...

, Alexander Hope was commissioned as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the

63rd Regiment of Foot The 63rd Regiment of Foot was a British Army regiment raised in 1756. Under the Childers Reforms, it amalgamated with the 96th Regiment of Foot to form the Manchester Regiment in 1881. History Formation and service in the Seven Years' War The for ...

in 1786. He commanded the

14th Regiment of Foot 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 and preceding 15. In relation to the word "four" ( 4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a stella octangula number. ...

at the skirmish at

Geldermalsen Geldermalsen () is a town and former municipality in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. Town of Geldermalsen The town centre of Geldermalsen contains a two-aisled Gothic church dating from the 15th century, with a Romanesque tower ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, in 1795 during the

Flanders Campaign The Flanders Campaign (or Campaign in the Low Countries) was conducted from 20 April 1792 to 7 June 1795 during the first years of the War of the First Coalition. A coalition of states representing the Ancien Régime in Western Europe – Aus ...

and was severely wounded, losing an arm and being left permanently lame. He was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of

Tynemouth Tynemouth () is a coastal town in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, North East England. It is located on the north side of the mouth of the River Tyne, hence its name. It is 8 mi (13 km) east-northeast of Newcastle upon T ...

and Cliff Fort in 1797, Lieutenant-Governor of

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

in 1798 and Deputy Assistant Adjutant General to the Forces in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

in 1799.Memorial inscription in the Chapel He went on to serve as Deputy Quartermaster General to the Forces. He became Governor of the Royal Military College in 1812 and, although he stood down as Governor of the College in 1819, he became Governor of the College again in 1824 before he went on to be Lieutenant-Governor of the

Royal Hospital Chelsea The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse, the ancient sense of the word "hospital", it is a site located on Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea. It is an ...

in 1826. He was promoted full General in 1830. He was made Colonel of the 74th Foot in 1809, the 47th Foot in 1813 and the 14th Foot from 1835 to his death. He was also

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Dumfries Burgh from 1796 to 1800 and for

Linlithgowshire West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...

from 1800 to 1834.

Family

In 1805 Hope married Georgiana Brown and together they had four sons, including

George William Hope George William Hope (4 July 1808 – 18 October 1863), was a British Tory politician. He served as Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies under Sir Robert Peel from 1841 to 1846. Background and education Hope was the son of the Honour ...

and James Robert Hope-Scott, father of

James Hope, 1st Baron Rankeillour James Fitzalan Hope, 1st Baron Rankeillour, PC (11 December 1870 – 14 February 1949), was a British Conservative politician. He served as Chairman of Ways and Means from 1921 to 1924 and again from 1924 to 1929. Background and education A mem ...

, and one daughter.The Peerage.com
/ref> Upon his death, he was buried with Georgina in

Aberlady Aberlady ( sco, Aiberleddy, Gaelic: ''Obar Lobhaite'') is a coastal village in the Scottish council area of East Lothian. The village had an estimated population of in . Etymology The name ''Aberlady'' has Brittonic origins. The first part of ...

churchyard.

Legacy

The Memorials to Governors in the Chapel of the present-day

Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

, includes: ″In Memory of Gen. the Honble. Sir Alexander Hope, G.C.B., Colonel 14th Foot. Born 9th Dec, 1769; died 17 May 1837. Commanded the 14th Regiment at Gueldermalsen, 1795 ; wounded. D.A.A.G. to the Forces in Holland, 1799. Twice Special Envoy to the King of Sweden. Governor R.M. College, Great Marlow, 1811–12. Governor of this College, 1812–19, and again, 1824–26. Lieut.-Governor Chelsea Hospital, 1826–37.″

References

, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hope, Alexander 1769 births 1837 deaths

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

British Army generals Governors of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies British MPs 1796–1800 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1832–1835