Sir Alured Clarke (24 November 1744 – 16 September 1832) 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. He took charge of all British troops in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in May 1780 and was then deployed to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

to supervise the evacuation of British prisoners of war at the closing stages of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. He went on to be Governor of Jamaica and then

lieutenant-governor of Lower Canada The lieutenant governor of Quebec (; French language, French (masculine): ''Lieutenant-gouverneur du Québec'', or (feminine): ''Lieutenante-gouverneure du Québec'') is the Viceroy, viceregal representative in Quebec of the , who Monarchy in Que ...

in which role he had responsibility for implementing the

Constitutional Act 1791 The Clergy Endowments (Canada) Act 1791, commonly known as the Constitutional Act 1791 (), was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which passed under George III. The current short title has been in use since 1896. History The act refor ...

. He was then sent to India where he became Commander-in-Chief of the Madras Army, then briefly

Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1 ...

and finally Commander-in-Chief of India during the

Fourth Anglo-Mysore War The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War was a conflict in South India between the Kingdom of Mysore against the British East India Company and the Hyderabad Deccan in 1798–99. This was the final conflict of the four Anglo-Mysore Wars. The British captured ...

Military career

Born the son of

Charles Clarke Charles Rodway Clarke (born 21 September 1950) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Norwich South from 1997 until 2010, and served as Home Secretary from December 2004 until May 2006. Early life T ...

(c.1702–1750) and Jane Clarke (née Mullins), Alured Clarke was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

and was commissioned as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the

50th Regiment of Foot The 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 97th (The Earl of Ulster's) Regiment of Foot to form the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regime ...

on 20 March 1759.Heathcote, p. 89 Later that year he served in Germany under the

Marquess of Granby A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

. Promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the 50th Regiment of Foot on 10 May 1760 and to captain in the 52nd Regiment of Foot on 30 December 1763, he transferred to the

5th Regiment of Foot Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash that ...

, stationed in Ireland, in January 1767 and was then promoted to major in the

54th Regiment of Foot The 54th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Dorsetshire Regiment in 1881. History Early history The ...

in 1771. Promoted to

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

and given the command of the

7th Regiment of Foot 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, ...

, serving in America, on 13 May 1777, Clarke took charge of all British troops in

in May 1780 and, having been promoted to

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 o ...

on 16 May 1782, he was then deployed to

to supervise the evacuation of British prisoners of war in May 1783. Clarke became Governor of Jamaica in summer 1784. Promoted to

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 ...

on 1 May 1790, he acquitted himself well enough as Governor of Jamaica that he was recommended to

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

as a suitable person to become

in October 1790. In the absence of the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, who had departed for England in August 1791, he took command of British forces and set about implementing the

which involved settling geographical boundaries (between

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

and the United States and between Lower Canada and the rest of Canada), offering land to settlers and convening the first legislature of the Province. Clarke served as lieutenant-governor of Lower Canada until Summer 1793, when the Governor returned to Canada and Clarke could return to England. Clarke was sent to India in 1795 with instructions to interrupt his voyage at the Cape of Good Hope where he and his force defeated a Dutch army at Wynberg on 16 September 1795 and then spent the next two months on arranging administrative matters before proceeding to India. On arrival in India in early 1796 he became Commander-in-Chief of the Madras Army. He was promoted to the local rank of lieutenant-general on 3 May 1796 and, having been appointed a

Knight Companion 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 on ...

on 14 January 1797, he was promoted to the substantive rank of lieutenant-general on 4 February 1797. He became acting

in March 1798 (in which capacity he also served as acting Commander-in-Chief of the Bengal Army) and then became Commander-in-Chief, India in May 1798. Although Clarke was not present at the Siege of Seringapatam in April 1799, his army was victorious thereby successfully concluding the

. He returned to England in March 1801 and was promoted to full

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

on 11 May 1802. Following a re-organisation of the order, he was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 4 January 1815. In 1803 he appeared, alongside Vice-Admiral Nelson and

Sir Evan Nepean Sir Evan Nepean, 1st Baronet, PC FRS (9 July 1752 – 2 October 1822)Sparrow (n.d.) was a British politician and colonial administrator. He was the first of the Nepean Baronets. Family Nepean was born at St. Stephens near Saltash, Cornwall, ...

, as a character witness in the treason trial of Colonel

Edward Despard Edward Marcus Despard (175121 February 1803), an Irish officer in the service of the British Crown, gained notoriety as a colonial administrator for refusing to recognise racial distinctions in law and, following his recall to London, as a republi ...

. Together they testified to Despard's service in the Caribbean. Clarke also served as honorary colonel of 1st Battalion

60th Royal American Regiment 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 St ...

, of the

68th Regiment of Foot The 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1758. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 106th Bombay Light Infantry to form the Durham Light Infantry in 1881, the 68 ...

, of the

and then of the

. In retirement, Clarke lived at Mansfield Street in London. He was promoted to field marshal on the occasion of the coronation of

King William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...

on 22 July 1830. He died at

Llangollen Llangollen () is a town and community, situated on the River Dee, in Denbighshire, Wales. Its riverside location forms the edge of the Berwyn range, and the Dee Valley section of the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Bea ...

in Wales on 16 September 1832 while visiting his niece.Heathcote, p. 90

Family

Clarke married Elizabeth Catherine Hunter in 1770, who eight years earlier had eloped with the married

Earl of Pembroke Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...

. Kitty had a son by Pembroke, and received a pension from him until 1790, but Clarke and she had no children.

Military career

Family

References

Sources

Further reading