Major General Anthony Bacon (1796–2 July 1864) was a notable cavalry officer and commander in the

Napoleonic wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

Family background

Bacon was born at

Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and '' Taf'') is a district, community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, whose ...

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, the son of

Anthony Bushby Bacon Anthony Bushby Bacon (also known as Anthony Bushby or Anthony Smith or, occasionally, Anthony Bacon II; and, as a child, William Addison) (1772 - 11 August 1827) was a British industrialist turned landed gentleman. Anthony was the eldest of the fi ...

(1772–1827) of Elcot Park at

Kintbury Kintbury is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England, between the towns of Newbury and Hungerford. The village has a convenient railway to and , proximity to other transport and local cultural destinations, including Roman and Norman si ...

and

Benham Park Benham Park is a mansion (on the site of Benham Valence Manor) in the English ceremonial county of Berkshire and district of West Berkshire. It is west of Newbury within 500m of a junction of the A34 trunk road Newbury by-pass outside the to ...

at Marsh Benham in Speen near Newbury in Berkshire, one of the richest commoners in England. The younger Bacon was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

Bacon's grandparents were Anthony Bacon (1718–1786), the industrialist, and his mistress Mary Bushby, of Gloucestershire. This Bacon was a notable ironmaster and colliery owner in Wales who made

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydf ...

the iron-smelting centre of Great Britain, was one of the richest men of his time. However, the sons showed little or no interest in their father's businesses and rapidly sold or leased them to men such as

Richard Crawshay Richard Crawshay (1739 – 27 June 1810) was a London iron merchant and then South Wales ironmaster; he was one of ten known British millionaires in 1799. Early life and marriage Richard Crawshay was born in Normanton in the West Riding of ...

, who was one of the witnesses to the father's will. This included the mineral rights at Cyfarthfa. General Bacon's sister Emily married 1835 a wealthy landowner Lt. Col.

Thomas Peers Williams Lt.-Col. Thomas Peers Williams (27 March 1795 – 8 September 1875) was MP for Great Marlow from 1820 to 1868. He was Father of the House of Commons from December 1867 to 1868. Early life Williams was the son of Owen Williams (1764–1832), MP ...

(1795–1875), MP for

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 ...

1820–1868 and

Father of the House of Commons Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously- ...

December 1867 – 1868; several of their daughters, and therefore Bacon's nieces, married into the Peerage.

Reputation

Despite his father's great fortune, Bacon had the habit of high living. This was attributed by Dodge (reviewing a book) to the father's habit of refusing to give the son a regular allowance and paying his debts. Unfortunately, in 1823, he married an expensive wife in

Lady Charlotte Harley Lady Charlotte Mary Bacon, née Harley (12 December 1801 – 9 May 1880), was the second daughter of Edward Harley, 5th Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.Debrett, John; Collen, George William (1840). Debrett's Peerage of England, Scotland, and Ir ...

. Either this couple or the father dissipated the elder Anthony Bacon's fortune; in 1827, when the father died, his estate was discovered to be heavily encumbered. Bacon was ruined, and in November 1829 actually imprisoned for debt.

Early military career

Anthony Bacon formerly of the

10th Hussars The 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the First World War and Second World War but then amalgamated with the 11th Hussars (Prince ...

was a Waterloo hero who won the

Waterloo Medal The Waterloo Medal is a military decoration that was conferred upon every officer, non-commissioned officer and soldier of the British Army (including members of the King's German Legion) who took part in one or more of the following battles: Li ...

. In 1826, after

Lord Lucan Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan (born 18 December 1934 – disappeared 8 November 1974, declared death in absentia, declared dead 3 February 2016), commonly known as Lord Lucan, was a British Peerages in the United Kingdom, peer who di ...

's purchase of the colonelcy of the

17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regiment was amalgamated with the 21st Lanc ...

, he sold out in despair. Initially, he sent in his papers to the Duke of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, but these were returned. He then sold his commission.

Colonial promoter

After Bacon was imprisoned for debt November 1829 – 1831, the family emigrated to Australia, where they did not prosper, thanks to Bacon's habit of borrowing heavily to spend on large projects without paying the workmen. Bacon had hoped to found a new colony in South Australia, but his plans were rejected by the authorities. In 1831 a "Proposal to His Majesty's Government for founding a colony on the Southern Coast of Australia" was prepared under the auspices of

Robert Gouger Robert Gouger (; 26 June 1802 – 4 August 1846) was one of the founders of South Australia and the first Colonial Secretary of South Australia. Early life Gouger was the fifth son of nine children of George Gouger (1763–1802), who was a pr ...

Jeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...

Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (13 March 1764 – 17 July 1845), known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was a British Whig politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830 to 1834. He was a member of the nob ...

and Bacon, but its ideas were considered too radical, and it was unable to attract the required investment.

Later military career

Bacon returned to Europe, and espoused the cause of

Pedro I of Brazil Don (honorific), Dom Pedro I (English: Peter I; 12 October 1798 – 24 September 1834), nicknamed "the Liberator", was the founder and List of monarchs of Brazil, first ruler of the Empire of Brazil. As King Dom Pedro IV, he List of ...

during the

Liberal Wars The Liberal Wars (), also known as the Portuguese Civil War (), the War of the Two Brothers () or Miguelite War (), was a war between liberal constitutionalists and conservative absolutists in Portugal over royal succession that lasted from 18 ...

but lost his command for looting and selling horses after the emperor's death. He spent the rest of his life trying to obtain arrears in pay and reimbursement of his own money spent in Portugal. He also carried on a running battle with

over the

Battle of Balaclava The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55), an Allied attempt to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russian Empire, Russia's principal naval base on the Bl ...

Wife and children

General Bacon died at his home in

Crondall Crondall () is a village and large civil parish in the north east of Hampshire in England, in the Crondall Hundred (division), Hundred surveyed in the Domesday Book of 1086. The village is on the gentle slopes of the low western end of the North ...

in Hampshire in 1864, and his three surviving children settled in Australia, where they were soon joined by widow,

. Bacon had married Lady Charlotte in 1823. She was legally the second or third daughter of Edward Harley, Earl of Oxford, by his wife, Jane Elizabeth, daughter of Rev. James Scott, M.A., Vicar of

Itchen Stoke Itchen Stoke and Ovington () is an English civil parish consisting of two adjoining villages in Hampshire, England, west of Alresford town centre in the valley of the River Itchen, north-east of Winchester, and south-east of Itchen Abbas. It ...

in Hampshire. However, Jane was a notable mistress of

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

, and Charlotte was almost certainly fathered by one of her mother's many lovers.

dedicated ''

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage ''Childe Harold's Pilgrimage'' is a long narrative poem in four parts written by Lord Byron. The poem was published between 1812 and 1818. Dedicated to " Ianthe", it describes the travels and reflections of a world-weary young man, who is dis ...

'' to her under the name ''Ianthe''. Her brother

Alfred Harley, 6th Earl of Oxford and Mortimer Alfred Harley, 6th Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer (10 January 1809 – 19 January 1853), styled Lord Harley between 1828 and 1849, was a British peer and the last holder of the title of Earl of Oxford and Mortimer. Harley was the second but el ...

died 19 January 1853 without issue, but with four sisters as co-heiresses, including Lady Jane Harley, wife of Henry Bickersteth, Lord Langdale. By 1877, after long litigation over her brother's estate, Lady Charlotte returned to England as his heiress and died in 1880. The couple's children included the early Australian settlers, Harley Ereville Bacon and Nora Creina, the wife of

Charles Burney Young Charles Burney Young (7 July 1824 – 29 September 1904), generally referred to as C. B. Young, was a landholder, winemaker and politician in the early days of the colony of South Australia. History Young was born in England of Scottish ancestry ...

and mother of the Australian MP,

Harry Dove Young Harry Dove Young (5 January 1867 – 20 June 1944), generally referred to as Harry D. Young, was a vigneron and politician in South Australia. History Harry was a son of Charles Burney Young and Nora Creina Young, née Bacon, who were married at ...

of Kanmantoo. Their youngest son, Anthony Harley Bacon, was the father of Gladys Luz Bacon (died 28 January 1932), whose own son became the 14th Earl of Kinnoul, and Harley Bacon, who, in 1900, became engaged to Countess Melanie von Seckendorff, one of Germany's richest heiresses.Anon. "What's Doing in Society" ''The New York Times'', 20 October 1900 p.
(Abstract)(Full article text)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacon, Anthony, Major-General 1796 births 1864 deaths British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars People educated at Eton College British Army major generals People imprisoned for debt Recipients of the Waterloo Medal 10th Royal Hussars officers 17th Lancers officers People from Hart District People from Speen, Berkshire People from Kintbury People from Llandaff Welsh military personnel