Lieutenant General Thomas Bligh (1685–1775) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born

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, ...

soldier, best known for his service during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

when he led a series of amphibious raids, known as " descents" on the French coastline. Despite initial success in these operations, they came to an end following the disastrous

Battle of St Cast The Battle of Saint Cast was a military engagement during the Seven Years' War on the French coast between British naval and land expeditionary forces and French coastal defence forces. Fought on 11 September 1758, it was won by the French. Du ...

Career

Bligh was born in 1685, the son of Irish politician,

Thomas Bligh Lieutenant General Thomas Bligh (1685–1775) was an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish-born Kingdom of Great Britain, British soldier, best known for his service during the Seven Years' War when he led a series of amphibious raids, known as "Naval Descen ...

and his wife Elizabeth née Napier. During his long service in the British army, he rose to the rank of

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 ...

. In 1745, during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...

, as a Brigadier, he took over command of allied troops at the

battle of Melle The Battle of Melle was an encounter battle fought on 9 July 1745, during the War of the Austrian Succession, between forces of the Pragmatic Allies and the French. After their defeat at Fontenoy in May, the Duke of Cumberland, Allied commande ...

and led part of the defeated force to safety. He fought at Dettingen, Val, Fontneay, and Melle. He was also commander of the British troops at Cherbourg. In 1758 he was appointed to command the descents, at the age of seventy-three. He led an initial successful

Raid on Cherbourg The Raid on Cherbourg took place in August 1758 during the Seven Years' War when a British force was landed on the coast of France by the Royal Navy with the intention of attacking the town of Cherbourg as part of the British government's policy ...

in August September 1758, capturing and destroying the town's fortifications. He then re-embarked and moved along the coast to

St Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on the English Channel coast. The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Alli ...

. There, confronted with adverse weather conditions, they were able only to land some of their force, which was soon confronted by a larger French force with had hurriedly marched there from

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. In the scramble to get his men back onto the ships, Bligh fought a confused rearguard action, the

Battle of Saint Cast The Battle of Saint Cast was a military engagement during the Seven Years' War on the French coast between British naval and land expeditionary forces and French coastal defence forces. Fought on 11 September 1758, it was won by the French. Du ...

suffering between 750 and 1000 casualties before he was finally able to re-embark his men. They then sailed for England. Bligh was poorly treated when he returned home. King

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089) * ...

refused to receive him, considered an enormous slight, and he came under fierce criticism from all sides. One of the few to stand up for Bligh was the young

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

, later

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 ...

, who chastised both the Prime Minister

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle u ...

and his ally William Pitt for not defending Bligh.Anderson p.477 He was buried at

Rathmore Church Rathmore Church is a ruined medieval church and National Monument in County Meath, Ireland. It was constructed by the prominent Plunkett living nearby at Rathmore Castle. A modern church 0.5 km to the northeast serving the area was constr ...

, Ireland.

References

Peerage of England

Bibliography

* Anderson, Fred. ''Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766''. Faber and Faber, 2001

External links

Met picture
* Thomas Bligh (1685–1775) in the ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'': {{DEFAULTSORT:Bligh, Thomas British Army lieutenant generals 1685 births 1775 deaths

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

Military personnel from County Meath Irish officers in the British Army Lancashire Fusiliers officers 5th Dragoon Guards officers 12th Royal Lancers officers British Army personnel of the Seven Years' War

Career

See also

References

Bibliography

External links