Major General Philip Ravenhill (9 February 1828 – 24 February 1891) was a

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

who rose to be their commander in Gibraltar.

Life

Ravenhill was born at the Manor House in

Warminster Warminster () is an ancient market town with a nearby garrison, and civil parish in south west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of about 17,000 in 2011. The 11th-century Minster Church of S ...

in 1828, the second son of John Ravenhill and Sophia Harriet (born Ripley).The Royal Engineers Journal – April 1, 1891, Obituary, Major-General P Ravenhill, CB John Ravenhill was the Chairman of the North Wiltshire Banking Company; he later moved to

Ashton Gifford House Ashton Gifford House is a Grade II listed country house in the hamlet of Ashton Gifford, part of the civil parish of Codford in the English county of Wiltshire. The house was built during the early 19th century, following the precepts of Georgian ...

and was High Sheriff of Wiltshire for 1870. After receiving his commission in 1846, Ravenhill was sent to

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

and then to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

where he married Jane Carter – who came from a notable Royal Navy family – on 31 March 1853 at St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral, Valletta. In 1854 he was at the Crimea taking part in the Battle of Alma, the Battle of Inkerman and the Siege of Sebastapol. He had to return to the UK in 1855 with a throat infection. After a brief desk job, he supervised the building of the Royal Victoria Hospital, Southampton. His tasks included arranging for

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

to lay the foundation stone on 19 May 1856.Netley Hospital and its Railways. J.R. Fairman. 1984. . p12 He became a colonel on the staff of the Chief Royal Engineer in

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 ...

in November 1882, commanding the Royal Engineers. He took over from Colonel Ewart. Ravenhill became an honorary major-general when he was retired at the age of 58. Feeling refreshed from 17 years of mild climate, he returned to England, where he took a leading role in charity work, chairing the

Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army The Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army was a girls' boarding school situated in Bath, Somerset, Bath, England. In 1998 it was incorporated into the Royal High School, Bath, Royal High School. Early history The Royal School for D ...

as well as a leading role with the Royal Soldiers' Daughters' School. Ravenhill died in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

in 1891 after suffering from bronchitis.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravenhill, Philip 1828 births 1891 deaths Military personnel from Wiltshire Deaths from bronchitis Royal Engineers officers British Army major generals Companions of the Order of the Bath People from Warminster