General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir George Digby Barker (Chinese Translated Name: 白加; 9 October 1833 – 15 April 1914) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

soldier and colonial administrator.

Military career

Barker was commissioned into the

78th Regiment of Foot The 78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a Highland Infantry Regiment of the Line, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with 72nd Regiment, Duke of Albany's Own Highlanders to form the Seaforth Highlanders in 1881. ...

in 1853. He served in

Anglo-Persian War The Anglo-Persian War or the Anglo-Iranian War () lasted between 1 November 1856 and 4 April 1857, and was fought between the United Kingdom and Iran, which was ruled by the Qajar dynasty. The war had the British oppose an attempt by Iran to ...

of 1856 and in the Indian Mutiny of 1857 and was present at Siege of Lucknow.Armorial families : a directory of gentlemen of coat-armour
/ref> He went on to become adjutant of his regiment in 1859. He was then made assistant adjutant and quartermaster-general in 1884. Then in 1874 he was made a Professor at the

Staff College Staff colleges (also command and staff colleges and War colleges) train military officers in the administrative, military staff and policy aspects of their profession. It is usual for such training to occur at several levels in a career. For e ...

and in 1877 Assistant Director of Military Education at Headquarters. He became Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong in 1890. Under his command, the size of the garrison increased by 50 per cent in response to Governor Des Voeux's concerns about the defence of the colony. Barker was briefly the acting administrator of Hong Kong between May and December 1891. Upon Sir William Robinson's arrival to serve as Governor in December 1891, Barker recommended an extension of Hong Kong's northern frontier. The proposed new frontier would extend from Deep Bay to Mirs Bay, and encompass offshore islands within three miles of Hong Kong. This new frontier would eventually be realised in the 1898

Second Convention of Peking The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds each ...

in which Britain leased the New Territories. Barker was then appointed

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 ...

and General Officer Commanding of the

Imperial fortress Imperial fortress was the designation given in the British Empire to four colonies that were located in strategic positions from each of which Royal Navy squadrons could control the surrounding regions and, between them, much of the planet. His ...

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

, with its large garrison, in 1896 and retired in 1902. He was

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

of the

North Staffordshire Regiment The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was created on 21 April 1758 from the 2nd Battalio ...

from 1905 to 1911 and of the Seaforth Highlanders from 1911 to 1914. In retirement he lived at

Clare Priory Clare Priory is a religious house in England, originally established in 1248 as the first house of the Augustinian Friars in England. It is situated on the banks of the River Stour, a short distance away from the medieval village of Clare, Suffo ...

in Suffolk.

Memory

Barker Road Barker Road () is a road located on Victoria Peak, Hong Kong at an altitude of approximately 350 metres (1150 ft) above sea level with a length of about 1,7 km (1,1 mi). It starts from the Old Peak Road (below the Peak Tram Upper Terminus) and en ...

, where the Residence of the Chief Secretary is located (Victoria House – 15 Barker Road), on The Peak was named after him.

Family

Barker married twice. In 1862 he married Frances Isabella Murray, daughter of George Murray, of Rosemount,

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; gd, Siorrachd Rois) is a historic county in the Scottish Highlands. The county borders Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire – a county consisting o ...

. She died in 1900. They had a son and two daughters. One of their daughters, Helena Barker, married in 1891

Francis Henry May Sir Francis Henry May (; 14 March 1860 – 6 February 1922) was a British colonial administrator who served as Governor of Fiji from 1911 to 1912 and Governor of Hong Kong from 1912 to 1918. Early life and education May was born in Dublin, Ire ...

, who would become

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...

from 1912 to 1919. The Helena May Institute was named after her. General Barker remarried on 30 September 1902 Katherine Weston Elwes, daughter of Edward Golding Elwes, of London.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, George Digby 1833 births 1914 deaths Academics of the Staff College, Camberley Governors of Hong Kong Governors of Bermuda Commanders of Hong Kong British Army generals Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath 78th Highlanders officers British military personnel of the Anglo-Persian War British military personnel of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 Military personnel from Suffolk People from Clare, Suffolk