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 ...

Sir James Murray Pulteney, 7th Baronet PC (c. 1755 – 26 April 1811) was a Scottish soldier and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

politician.

Background and education

Born James Murray, he was the eldest son of Colonel Sir Robert Murray, 6th Baronet and his first wife Janet Murray, a younger sister of

Patrick Murray, 5th Lord Elibank Patrick Murray, 5th Lord Elibank (1703–1778) was a Scottish soldier, lawyer, author and economist. Life He was the son of Alexander Murray, 4th Lord Elibank (1677-1736), and his wife Elizabeth (née Stirling; died 1756), daughter of George St ...

. Murray succeeded his father as baronet in 1771, while still a minor. He was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and joined then the British Army.

Military career

Murray had had his first commission purchased in his mid-teens, as lieutenant in the 19th Regiment of Foot in 1770. Already a year later, he became captain in the

57th Regiment of Foot The 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of line infantry in the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot to form the Middlesex Regiment in 1881. His ...

. He left for Europe in 1772 and having spent the time travelling, he returned to his regiment in Ireland in November 1775. At the beginning of the next year, Murray embarked for The Colonies to serve in the American War of Independence. He was wounded at the ankle during the Battle of Brandywine in September 1777, and shared his convalescence with his cousin

Patrick Ferguson Patrick Ferguson (1744 – 7 October 1780) was a Scottish officer in the British Army, an early advocate of light infantry and the designer of the Ferguson rifle. He is best known for his service in the 1780 military campaign of Charles C ...

. Soon after recovering, he was shot through the thigh at the

Battle of White Marsh The Battle of White Marsh or Battle of Edge Hill was a battle of the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War fought December 5–8, 1777, in the area surrounding Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania. The battle, which took the form ...

in November. Murray purchased a majority in 1778, serving with the 4th Regiment of Foot in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

and was involved in the Battle of St Lucia. He became lieutenant-colonel of the

94th Regiment of Foot The 94th Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised as the Scotch Brigade in October 1794. It was renumbered as the 94th Regiment of Foot in December 1802 and disbanded in December 1818. The regiment was reformed in Decemb ...

in 1780 and on the regiment's disbandment after three years was set on halfpay. In 1789, he was transferred to active duty and was appointed an aide-de-camp to

King George III of the United Kingdom King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

, ranked as a colonel. Murray was sent to

Koblenz Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman mili ...

, the headquarters of the allied forces against the

French Revolutionary Armies The French Revolutionary Army (french: Armée révolutionnaire française) was the French land force that fought the French Revolutionary Wars from 1792 to 1804. These armies were characterised by their revolutionary fervour, their poor equipment ...

. He was attached as adjudant to the Frederick, Duke of York in April 1793, fighting in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

, and was promoted to major-general in December. In 1794, he received command of the 18th Regiment of Foot and led his regiment to suppress the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a republican revolutionary group influence ...

. A year thereafter, in June 1799 Pulteney (he had taken the name of Pulteney in 1794) was made a lieutenant-general and in November was wounded in the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland, having been second in command. He commanded the

Ferrol Expedition The Ferrol Expedition (or Battle of Brión) took place on 25 and 26 August 1800, and was an unsuccessful British attempt to capture Ferrol from Spain. Ferrol was a major Spanish naval base with a shipyard for shipbuilding and dry dock for re ...

in August 1800 and sailed then to

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 ...

, before returning to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. He became General Officer Commanding Eastern District in 1805. In 1808 he became a full general.

Political career

In 1790, he entered the British House of Commons, sitting as a

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 ...

(MP) for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis until his death in 1811. Murray-Pulteney was sworn of the Privy Council in 1807, when he became

Secretary at War The Secretary at War was a political position in the English and later British government, with some responsibility over the administration and organization of the Army, but not over military policy. The Secretary at War ran the War Office. Afte ...

, a post he held for two years.

Family and death

On 24 July 1794, he married Henriette Laura Pulteney, 1st Baroness Bath, daughter of his cousin

Sir William Pulteney, 5th Baronet Sir William Pulteney, 5th Baronet (October 1729 – 30 May 1805), known as William Johnstone until 1767, was a Scottish advocate, landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1768 and 1805. He was reputedly the wealthiest ...

in Bath House, London. Two days before he had by Royal Licence assumed the surname Pulteney only to inherit his wife's relative

Harry Pulteney General Harry Pulteney (14 February 1686 – 26 October 1767) was an English soldier and Member of Parliament. He was the younger son of Colonel William Pulteney, of Misterton in Leicestershire, and Mary Floyd. His elder brother, William was on ...

. Henrietta was raised to a countess in her own right in 1803 and inherited also the estates of her father in 1805, worth about £50,000 per year. She predeceased her husband in 1808 and Murray survived her for three years, dying in Buckenham in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, from complications after losing an eye when a

powder flask A powder flask is a small container for gunpowder, which was an essential part of shooting equipment with muzzle-loading guns, before pre-made paper cartridges became standard in the 19th century. They range from very elaborately decorated works o ...

accidentally exploded in his face. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his halfbrother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

Background and education

Military career

Political career

Family and death

References

Further reading