Colonel Charles Hawtrey Bruce Norcott, CMG (1849-1931) of the

Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

was a third generation officer of the

who served between 1867 and 1901. During the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

he took part in the

relief of Ladysmith When the Second Boer War broke out on 11 October 1899, the Boers had a numeric superiority within Southern Africa. They quickly invaded the British territory and laid siege to Ladysmith, Kimberley and Mafeking. Britain meanwhile transported th ...

, later being given command of the 4th Infantry Brigade of the

Natal Field Force The Natal Field Force (NFF) was a multi-battalion field force originally formed by Major-General Sir George Pomeroy Colley in Natal for the First Boer War. It was later re-established for the Second Boer War (1899–1902) and commanded by Major-G ...

Early life

Norcott was born in

Canada East Canada East (french: links=no, Canada-Est) was the northeastern portion of the United Province of Canada. Lord Durham's Report investigating the causes of the Upper and Lower Canada Rebellions recommended merging those two colonies. The new ...

on 25 April 1849, the second son of Lieutenant General

William Sherbrooke Ramsay Norcott William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

and grandson of Major General Amos Godsell Robert Norcott.

Military career

Charles Norcott purchased his commission as an Ensign to the

on 14 August 1867 and was promoted to lieutenant on 1 November 1871, acting as an

Adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

between 14 June 1873 to 11 September 1875. He was promoted to captain on 1 April 1879 and major on 1 January 1884. From 29 November 1884 he served as an Aide-de-camp to Major General Dillon, a divisional commander of the

Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Govern ...

. He was made lieutenant colonel on 16 December 1895. and Brevetted Colonel on 16 December 1899 During the

he sailed with his regiment in command of the 1st Battalion,

during the

Relief of Ladysmith When the Second Boer War broke out on 11 October 1899, the Boers had a numeric superiority within Southern Africa. They quickly invaded the British territory and laid siege to Ladysmith, Kimberley and Mafeking. Britain meanwhile transported th ...

, and in February 1900 temporarily took over command of the 4th Brigade,

, while General

Neville Lyttelton General The Honourable Sir Neville Gerald Lyttelton, (28 October 1845 – 6 July 1931) was a British Army officer from the Lyttelton family who served against the Fenian Raids, and in the Anglo-Egyptian War, the Mahdist War and the Second Boer W ...

was promoted to divisional command. He was put on half pay on 7 March 1900, and retired from the army 2 November 1901. Norcott was Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Rutland from 6 September 1916 to 10 August 1921. He died on 20 January 1931.

Family

Norcott married Mary Emily Kinahan on the 14 July 1892 and they had six children. Charles' father

William Norcott Lieutenant General Sir William Sherbrooke Ramsey Norcott (12 December 1804 – 23 January 1886) of the Rifle Brigade was a British Army officer who fought during the Crimean War, was an Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria and became Lieutenant ...

was also a general in the Rifles who served during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

. His grandfather

Amos Norcott Major-General Sir Amos Godsell Robert Norcott CB KCH (3 August 1777 – 8 January 1838) was an English soldier of the 95th Rifles fought throughout the Peninsular War and at the Battle of Waterloo where he commanded a battalion. He later served ...

commanded the 2nd Battalion, Rifle Brigade at Waterloo.Schneider 2012 He also had an uncle named Charles Rossmore Robert Norcott who gained renown for his service as a superintendent of the

Western Australia Police The Western Australia Police Force, colloquially WAPOL, provides police services throughout the state of Western Australia, an area of 2.5 million square kilometres, the world's largest non-federated area of jurisdiction, with a population ...

Notes

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norcott, Charles 1849 births 1931 deaths Rifle Brigade officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War Deputy Lieutenants of Rutland Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George