General Sir Henry Dermot Daly (25 October 1823 – 21 July 1895) was a senior

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

officer, colonial administrator, Liberal Unionist politician and founder of

Daly College The Daly College is a co-educational residential and day boarding school located in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. It was founded by Sir Henry Daly of the British Indian Army during India's colonial British Raj, following an English public scho ...

Biography

Daly was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Dermot Daly, an officer in the 4th Light Dragoons, and his wife, Mary McIntosh. He joined the Bombay Infantry as an officer cadet in 1840. Along with several similarly aged young officers, such as Herbert Edwardes and Patrick Alexander Vans Agnew, Daly was sent to "advise" the Sikhs as part of Henry Lawrence's "Young Men". He served in the Second Anglo-Sikh War and was present at the Siege of Multan. On 18 May 1849, he raised the 1st Punjab Irregular Cavalry, which subsequently became the 21st Prince Albert Victor's Own Cavalry (Frontier Force) (Daly's Horse). Daly was promoted to the rank of captain in 1854 and led his regiment during the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

. The regiment operated in North India and took part in the Siege of Delhi and the Relief of Lucknow. He went on the command the Brigade of Hodson's Horse during the war. Daly was twice recommended for the Victoria Cross as a result of his conduct. He subsequently served in the

Bombay Staff Corps The Indian Staff Corps was a branch of the Indian Army during the British Raj. Separate Staff Corps were formed in 1861 for the Bengal, Madras and Bombay Armies, which were later combined into the Indian Army. They were meant to provide officers f ...

. Daly held the position of Governor General of India's Agent, in

Central India Central India is a loosely defined geographical region of India. There is no clear official definition and various ones may be used. One common definition consists of the states of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, which are included in alm ...

between 1870 and 1881, and was promoted to lieutenant-general in 1877. He became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 29 May 1875, and a Knight Grand Cross in the same order on 25 May 1889. Before leaving India, Daly had taken a great interest in education and had begun a College in Indore which was later named after him. In the General Election of 1886, Daly stood as the Liberal Unionist candidate in

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

. He was beaten by the Liberal Party candidate. He also unsuccessfully contested the seat for the Liberal Unionists in the

1888 Dundee by-election The 1888 Dundee by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 16 February 1888 to elect one of the two Members of Parliament (MPs) for the British House of Commons constituency of Dundee. Background The election was held following the resig ...

. Daly married, firstly, Susan, the daughter of Edward Kirkpatrick, on 21 October 1852. Together they had eight children; two of their sons were Sir Hugh Daly and Arthur Daly. He married, secondly, Charlotte, daughter of James Coape, in 1882, and they had one son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daly, Henry 1823 births 1895 deaths British Indian Army officers Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire Bombay Staff Corps officers British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Sikh War British military personnel of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 People from Ryde Founders of educational institutions Administrators in British India 19th-century British politicians British educational theorists British Indian Army generals Liberal Unionist Party parliamentary candidates