General Gervais Parker (also spelt Gervase; 1695 – 19 June 1750) was a British Army officer. For the final decade of his life, he served as Commander-in-Chief of the

Royal Irish Army Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

during the reign of

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089) * ...

. He was the elder surviving son of the Jacobite Colonel John Parker by his first wife Johanna Rouse. His younger brother, Rear-Admiral Christopher Parker, was the father of Admiral of the Fleet

Sir Peter Parker, 1st Baronet Admiral of the Fleet Sir Peter Parker, 1st Baronet (1721 – 21 December 1811) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer, he was deployed with a squadron under Admiral Edward Vernon to the West Indies at the start of the War of Jenkins' E ...

. The family went into exile in France following Colonel Parker's service at the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and ...

, but Gervais escaped from his father and joined the English army.Paul Hopkins
Parker, John (b. c.1651, d. in or after 1719)
in ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' (2004). Parker was commissioned an ensign in the

1st Regiment of Foot Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

on 27 December 1690,Charles Dalton, ''English Army Lists and Commission Registers 1661–1714''
volume III
(1896) p. 137-138, note 16. and his early career was assisted by his

Williamite A Williamite was a follower of King William III of England (r. 1689–1702) who deposed King James II and VII in the Glorious Revolution. William, the Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, replaced James with the support of English Whigs. One ...

relatives. He was made lieutenant in Brigadier-General William Steuart's Regiment of Foot on 1 December 1695, then lieutenant in the

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...

on 17 May 1697, being appointed adjutant and quartermaster of the regiment on 17 November 1700. He was made lieutenant of a company again on 21 April 1701, and his commission was renewed by Queen Anne on 24 August 1702. He was promoted to captain-lieutenant on 23 December 1702, and captain of a company on 15 March 1703. During the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

he served in Flanders and Spain. On 24 December 1707 he was granted brevet rank as a colonel of Foot, and promoted to brigadier-general on 14 March 1727, major-general on 6 October 1735, lieutenant-general on 2 July 1739 and general of Foot on 25 March 1747.Robert Beatson, ''A Political Index to the Histories of Great Britain and Ireland''
volume II
(1806) p. 117. Parker, who had strong Irish connections (the Parkers had been major Irish landowners in the sixteenth century), was awarded the freedom of the city of Cork on 23 January 1726 and the same year made

Governor of Kinsale The governor of Kinsale was a military officer who commanded the garrison at Kinsale and Charles Fort in County Cork. The office became a sinecure and in 1833 was to be abolished from the next vacancy. List of governors of Kinsale and Charles Fo ...

, and on 22 October 1731 he was returned as Member for

Kinsale Kinsale ( ; ) is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork, Ireland. Located approximately south of Cork City on the southeast coast near the Old Head of Kinsale, it sits at the mouth of the River Bandon, and has a population of 5,281 (a ...

in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...

, but he was declared not duly elected on 25 November. On 2 June 1740 he was admitted to the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

, He also served as

Governor of Cork The Governor of Cork was a military officer who commanded the garrison at Cork in Ireland. The office became a sinecure and in 1833 was abolished from the next vacancy. List of governors of Cork Governors *1644: Major Muschamp *1651: Colonel R ...

and commander-in-chief of the forces in Ireland until his death in 1750. Gervais Parker had a son, also named Gervais, who served under him as fort-major at Kinsale but predeceased him on 4 August 1739.Sylvanus Urban, ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', volume IX (1739
p. 439

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Gervais 1695 births 1750 deaths British Army generals Commanders-in-Chief, Ireland Grenadier Guards officers Royal Fusiliers officers Royal Norfolk Regiment officers British military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession Members of the Privy Council of Ireland