Lieutenant-General Sir John Wellesley Thomas, (22 May 1822 – 6 February 1908) was a distinguished British military officer who served in Afghanistan, Australia, and China. He was the commander of the British military and police forces that quelled the rebellion at the

Eureka Stockade The Eureka Rebellion was a series of events involving gold miners who revolted against the British administration of the colony of Victoria, Australia during the Victorian gold rush. It culminated in the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which ...

in Ballarat, Victoria, in 1854. Thomas, who was an elder son of the Admiral Jennings Thomas, was born in 1822. He received his first commission in 1839 and served with the 40th Regiment of Foot in Afghanistan in 1841–42, during the

First Anglo-Afghan War The First Anglo-Afghan War ( fa, جنگ اول افغان و انگلیس) was fought between the British Empire and the Emirate of Kabul from 1838 to 1842. The British initially successfully invaded the country taking sides in a succession d ...

. He was present at the action of Maharajpur when he was severely wounded. His decorations for those engagements included the clasps "Kandahar, Kabul, Ghuznee" and the bronze star for Maharajpur. In 1854, he commanded detachments in the operations in Australia against rebellious minors on the Ballarat goldfields. In North China, he served with the 67th Regiment of Foot and was wounded when in command of a half-battalion attacking the North Taku Fort in 1860. For this campaign, he was mentioned in despatches and appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath. Two years later, when being promoted to colonel, he commanded the 67th Regiment and a brigade at the second capture of Khading in the

Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a massive rebellion and civil war that was waged in China between the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Han, Hakka-led Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It laste ...

. This was his last active service. He was promoted to major general in 1877, and retired in 1881 with the honorary rank of lieutenant general. In 1882, he was appointed to the colonelcy of the

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The regim ...

, and in 1904 was made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

. Thomas died 8 February 1908, and was buried at Kensal Green, London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, John Wellesley, Sir 1822 births 1908 deaths Military personnel from Somerset Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath 67th Regiment of Foot officers 40th Regiment of Foot officers British Army generals British Army personnel of the Second Opium War British military personnel of the Taiping Rebellion British military personnel of the First Anglo-Afghan War Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery Governors of Natal