Oliver De Lancey (1803–1837) was a British Army officer who volunteered for the

British Auxiliary Legion The British Auxiliary Legion, also called the British Legion (''La Legión Británica'') or Westminster Legion, existed from 1835 to 1837. It was a British military force sent to Spain to support the Liberals and Queen Isabella II of Spain against ...

and died fighting in Spain during the

First Carlist War The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833 to 1840, the first of three Carlist Wars. It was fought between two factions over the succession to the throne and the nature of the Spanish monarchy: the conservative and devolutionist ...

, in the

battle of Oriamendi The Battle of Oriamendi (Basque: ''Oriamendiko Gudua'') was a battle fought on 16 March 1837 during the First Carlist War. The battle was an overwhelming victory for the Carlists. Prelude The battle was part of a campaign in spring 1837 when ...

Biography

Oliver De Lancey was the only son of General Oliver De Lancey (1749–1822), and was born in

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

in 1803. He was the grandson of American Loyalist Oliver De Lancey, a member of a prominent

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

family in the American Colonies and a descendant of the

Schuyler family The Schuyler family ( /ˈskaɪlər/; Dutch pronunciation: xœylər was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey in the 18th and 19th centuries, whose descendants played a critical role in the formation of the United States (especiall ...

and Van Cortlandt family, and Phila Franks, daughter of a prominent Jewish family in New York. De Lancey entered the army as a second lieutenant in the

60th Rifles The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United S ...

on 30 March 1818, and joined the 3rd battalion of the regiment in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in the same year. He was promoted first lieutenant on 17 June 1821, and after serving as aide-de-camp to Lieutenant-general Sir

Charles Colville General Sir Charles Colville (7 August 1770 – 27 March 1843) was a British Army officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars. He was an ensign in 1781. He served in the West Indies from 1791 to 1797 and while serving there was promoted to li ...

, G.C.B., commander-in-chief at Bombay, was promoted captain on 7 August 1829, and joined the 3rd battalion at

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, where he learnt Spanish and took a keen interest in Spanish politics and in the crisis which was rapidly approaching. His battalion returned to England in 1832, but De Lancey still kept up his interest in Spain, and was one of the first English officers who volunteered to join the Spanish legion which was being raised to serve under the command of Major-general Sir

De Lacy Evans General Sir George de Lacy Evans (7 October 1787 – 9 January 1870) was a British Army general who served in four wars in which the United Kingdom's troops took part in the 19th century. He was later a long-serving Member of Parliament. Life ...

, K.C.B., against the Carlists in the

. De Lancey sailed for Spain in 1835 with one of the first drafts from England, and on the way out showed his courage and presence of mind when his ship struck in a fog on the rocks off

Ushant Ushant (; br, Eusa, ; french: Ouessant, ) is a French island at the southwestern end of the English Channel which marks the westernmost point of metropolitan France. It belongs to Brittany and, in medieval terms, Léon. In lower tiers of govern ...

. On landing he was placed at the head of a regiment of the legion, and, after serving as acting adjutant-general at the action of Hernani, accompanied Lieutenant-colonel Greville in command of the expedition to relieve

Santander Santander may refer to: Places * Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain * Santander Department, a department of Colombia * Santander State, former state of Colombia * Santander de Quilichao, a m ...

, which was then hard pressed by the Carlists. The expedition was completely successful, and De Lancey received the

cross of San Fernando The Royal and Military Order of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Real y Militar Orden de San Fernando), is a Spanish military order whose decoration, known as Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Cruz Laureada de San Fernando), is Spain's highest mili ...

and was appointed deputy adjutant-general to the legion. De Lancey distinguished himself throughout the defence of San Sebastian, and especially in the action of 1 October, and was sent on a delicate mission to

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, which he carried out to the satisfaction of his general. Not long after his return to San Sebastian the Carlists made a determined attack upon the government defences around the town, on 15 March 1837, which resulted in the rebel victory of Oriamendi. De Lancey was killed at the head of his regiment, just as his more famous cousin, Sir William Howe De Lancey, Wellington's quartermaster-general, was fatally wounded at Waterloo. His tomb is on the fort at San Sebastian.

Notes

References

;Attribution * Sources for this DNB article: ** {{DEFAULTSORT:De Lancey, Oliver 1803 births 1837 deaths British Auxiliary Legion personnel British military personnel killed in action British people of Dutch descent British people of Jewish descent De Lancey family Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand People from the Channel Islands Schuyler family