Lord Roberts and his commanders Vanity Fair 29 November 1900

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) 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 ...

Sir Reginald Pole-Carew, (1 May 1849 – 19 September 1924) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer who became General Officer Commanding

8th Division 8th Division, 8th Infantry Division or 8th Armored Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 8th Division (Australia) * 8th Canadian Infantry Division * 8th Air Division (People's Republic of China) * 8th Division (1st Formation) (People's Repu ...

Background and family

Pole-Carew was the son of

William Pole-Carew William Henry Pole-Carew (30 July 1811 – 20 January 1888) was a Cornish politician. Biography Pole-Carew was born in Eaton Place, Marylebone in 1811, the son of Reginald Pole-Carew and Hon. Caroline Anne Lyttelton, daughter of William Lyttel ...

(1811–1888) by his wife Frances Anne Buller (d.1902), daughter of John Buller. His father was a descendant of the

Pole baronets There have been three baronetcies created for persons with the surname Pole, one in the Baronetage of England, one in the Baronetage of Great Britain and one in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Two of the creations are extant as of 2008. ...

, of Shute, and served as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for East Cornwall.

Military career

Pole-Carew was commissioned into the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

in 1869. He served as a staff officer with Lord Roberts in the

Second Anglo-Afghan War The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ps, د افغان-انګرېز دويمه جګړه) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the l ...

in 1878 and again served with him during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

of 1899–1902. He was promoted to the substantive rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge of ...

on 27 November 1899, and at the same time appointed in command of the 9th Brigade with the local rank of

major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

. As such he was in command of the brigade during the

Battle of Modder River The Battle of Modder River ( af, Slag van die Twee Riviere, lit=Battle of the two rivers) was an engagement in the Boer War, fought at Modder River, on 28 November 1899. A British column under Lord Methuen, that was attempting to relieve the ...

on 28 November 1899. In February 1900 he was appointed in command of the Guards Brigade, shortly before the

Relief of Kimberley The siege of Kimberley took place during the Second Boer War at Kimberley, Northern Cape, Kimberley, Cape Colony (present-day South Africa), when Boer forces from the Orange Free State and the South African Republic, Transvaal besieged the diam ...

. He later commanded the 11th Division of the South Africa Field Force, before becoming General Officer Commanding

in Southern Ireland in 1903.

Political career

Pole-Carew was

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

Member of Parliament for

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordere ...

from 1910 to

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that had been stored and cooled. * ...

. In 1911, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. He lived at

Antony House Antony House is the name of an early 18th-century house, which today is in the ownership of the National Trust. It is located between the town of Torpoint and the village of Antony in the county of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is a Gra ...

Family

On 19 February 1901 Pole-Carew married Lady Beatrice Frances Elizabeth Butler, daughter of

James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde James Edward William Theobald Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde, (5 October 1844 – 26 October 1919), styled Earl of Ossory until 1854, was an Irish nobleman and member of the Butler dynasty. Family He was the son of John Butler, 2nd Marquess of ...

, in the

Guards Chapel The Royal Military Chapel, commonly known as the Guards' Chapel, is a British Army place of worship that serves as the religious home of the Household Division at the Wellington Barracks in Westminster, Greater London. Completed in 1838 in the st ...

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...

. They had two sons, the elder of whom was

Sir John Carew Pole, 12th Baronet Sir John Gawen Carew Pole, 12th Baronet (4 March 1902 – 26 January 1993) was a Cornish landowner, soldier and politician. He was Chairman of Cornwall County Council from 1952 to 1963 and Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall from 1962 to 1977, briefly ...

, and two daughters.

Decorations

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 of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

– 29 November 1900, in recognition of services in connection with the Campaign in South Africa 1899–1900 * Companion of the Order of the Bath – 25 November 1887 *

Commander of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Monarchy of Canada, Canadian monarch, Mon ...

– 8 March 1901

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pole-Carew, Reginald 1849 births 1924 deaths British Army generals British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Afghan War Coldstream Guards officers Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Deputy Lieutenants of Cornwall Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Liberal Unionist Party MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Bodmin UK MPs 1910–1918