Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Henry George Hart (1808–1878) was an Irish officer in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, who was best known as the author, editor, and proprietor of '' Hart's Army List'', an unofficial publication recording army service.

Early life

Born on 7 September 1808 in

Glencree Glencree ( from the older Gleann Criothach, which translates as Valley of the Shaking Bog) is a valley in the Wicklow Mountains in eastern Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is the third-closest valley in the mountains to Dublin city, the first be ...

, Ireland, Henry was the third son of Lieutenant colonel William Hart who served in both the Royal Navy and British Army before emigrating to the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

in 1819 where he died in 1848. Henry accompanied his father to the Cape, and on 1 April 1829 he was appointed

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

in the 49th Foot, then stationed there. Henry's mother Jane Matson (1779-1861) was the second daughter of Charles Matson (1750-1828) of Wingham, Kent.

Military career

The 49th foot's regimental history suggests that Henry would soon have joined the rest of his regiment in India until 6 April 1840 when they embarked upon transport ships bound for China. During the remainder of 1840 to the end of 1842, the regiment took part in the

First Opium War The First Opium War ( zh, t=第一次鴉片戰爭, p=Dìyīcì yāpiàn zhànzhēng), also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1 ...

where they were engaged in the battles of Canton,

Amoy Xiamen,), also known as Amoy ( ; from the Zhangzhou Hokkien pronunciation, zh, c=, s=, t=, p=, poj=Ē͘-mûi, historically romanized as Amoy, is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Stra ...

, Chusan, Chinhai, Chapu and the Heights of Chinkiang. After China the regiment returned to England but was later deployed to Ireland in 1845. As a regimental officer, Hart was a poor law inspector in Ireland during the famine of 1845–6. In 1856, when in temporary command of the depot battalion at

Templemore Templemore () is a town in County Tipperary, Ireland. It is a Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in the historical Barony (Ireland), barony of Eliogarty. It is part of the Ecclesiastical parish, parish of Templemore, Clonmore and Killea i ...

, he suppressed a mutiny of the North Tipperary militia, defending the town of

Nenagh Nenagh ( ; , or simply 'the Fair') is the county town of County Tipperary in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Nenagh used to be a market town, and the site of the East Munster Ormond Fair. Nenagh was the county town of the former county of Nort ...

. The dates of his commissions were: *

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

– 19 July 1832 *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

– 1 December 1842 *

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

– 15 December 1848 * Lieutenant-colonel – 30 May 1856 *

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

– 27 December 1860 * Major-general – 6 March 1868 *

Lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

– 4 December 1877.

Death

He died at

Biarritz Biarritz ( , , , ; also spelled ; ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. It is a luxu ...

, in France on 24 March 1878. Buried at Boulogne-sur-Mer, in France, in a grave contiguous to that of his wife and under the same granite obelisk.

Hart's Army List

When Hart joined the army, the main reference work was John Philippart's ''Royal Military Calendar'' of 1820. Hart supplemented information in the official army lists, using interleaved copies. In February 1839, supported by his wife and with the approval of the military authorities, Hart published the first edition of his ''Quarterly Army List'', which was well received. Hart was allowed access to the official records of officers' services, and in 1840 published his first ''Annual Army List'', containing supplementary information in addition to the contents of the ''Quarterly''. The role of editor was later taken over by his son Fitzroy. The ''List'' was published until 1915.

Family

At the Reformed Church, Cape of Good Hope, in South Africa, 7 January 1833, Hart married Frances Alicia Okes (1809-1874), 4th daughter of the Reverend Holt Okes, D.D. Chaplain of Wynberg 1832–1852. Their family of nine children included three surviving sons, who all served with distinction in the army: *Jane Margaret Hart (1834-1896) married 14 August 1862, at St. Mark's, Surbiton, in Surrey, James Curtis Leman (1834-1897) solicitor *Henry Travers Holt Hart (1836-1841) *Holt William Hart (1838-1850) *Frances Alicia Hart (1840-1923) married 23 April 1867, at Boulogne-sur-Mer, in France, Edward Coventry (1843-1914) corn factor *George Okes Hart (1842-1851) *Major General Arthur Fitzroy Hart Synnot (1844-1910), C.B., 1st battalion

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ( ...

, married 22 December 1868, at Boulogne-sur-Mer, in France, Mary Susannah (May) Synnot (1844-1913), eldest daughter of Mark Seton Synnot of Ballymoyer House, County Armagh *Isabel Clara Hart (1846-1929), married 22 July 1868, at Boulogne-sur-Mer, in France, Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Mackenzie Salmond (1841-1900) *General Sir Reginald Clare Hart (1848-1931), V.C., Royal Engineers. Married 6 August 1872, at Omeath Church, in County Louth, Charlotte Augusta Synnot (1854-1936) 5th daughter of Mark Seton Synnot of Ballymoyer House, County Armagh *Colonel Horatio Holt Hart (1850-1915),

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

Married firstly 8 August 1872, at Paris, in France, Emily Aline Clements (1855-1902). Married secondly 2 April 1903, at Mussoorie, in Bengal, India, Alice Maud Goudall (1863-1950)

Notes

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Henry George 1808 births 1878 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British book editors 49th Regiment of Foot officers Military personnel from County Wicklow Irish officers in the British Army British Army personnel of the Crimean War British military personnel of the First Opium War