Thomas Skinner (1800? – 1843), was a British soldier and author. He commanded the

31st Foot The 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1702. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 70th (Surrey) Regiment of Foot to form the East Surrey Regiment in 1881. History Origins ...

in the

First Anglo-Afghan War The First Anglo-Afghan War ( fa, جنگ اول افغان و انگلیس) was fought between the British Empire and the Emirate of Kabul from 1838 to 1842. The British initially successfully invaded the country taking sides in a succession d ...

in 1842 and 1843. While there he was made a C.B. and brevet lieutenant-colonel. In 1832 he had published ''Excursions in India'' and four years later ''Adventures during a Journey Overland to India''.

Life

Born about 1800, he was son of Lieutenant-general John Skinner. He entered the army on 25 January 1816 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

16th Foot The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment was the final title of a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was originally formed in 1688. After centuries of service in many conflicts and wars, including both the First and Second World ...

; he became lieutenant on 6 August 1819, captain on 9 October 1823, and exchanged into the 31st Foot on 25 March 1824. Skinner went with his regiment to India shortly before 1826, and was stationed at Hardwar, in the North-West provinces, near the foot of the Himalayas. He made expeditions into little-known mountainous districts, and wrote up his explorations in ''Excursions in India'' (London, 1832). After returning home on leave, he went back to India in 1833 by the overland route through Egypt, Syria, and Palestine. He travelled down the

Euphrates The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...

, and embarked on the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...

. He published an account of this journey in ''Adventures during a Journey Overland to India'' (London, 1836). On 24 November 1835 Skinner attained the rank of major, and in 1842 he joined the force assembled at

Jalalabad Jalalabad (; Dari/ ps, جلال‌آباد, ) is the fifth-largest city of Afghanistan. It has a population of about 356,274, and serves as the capital of Nangarhar Province in the eastern part of the country, about from the capital Kabul. Jala ...

under Sir George Pollock for the relief of

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

. He commanded the 31st Foot in the campaign, and on 26 July 1842 was present at the conflict of Mazeena, near Jalalabad. He accompanied Pollock's advance, and was given the task of clearing the hills on the left of the valley of Tezin in the engagement there on 13 September. Skinner received for his services the Cross of the Order of the Bath and the Cabul medal, and was gazetted on 23 December to the brevet rank of lieutenant-colonel. He died at Landaur on 5 May 1843, in bad health from the campaign.

Notes

;Attribution *

External links

* ''Adventures during a journey overland to India, by way of Egypt, Syria and the Holy Land'' (1837
Volume 1Volume 2
1800s births 1843 deaths Year of birth uncertain East Surrey Regiment officers British military personnel of the First Anglo-Afghan War {{UK-army-bio-stub