Thomas Tollemache, also spelt Talmash or Tolmach, (c. 16511694) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

soldier and

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 o ...

. Beginning his military career in 1673, in 1686 he resigned his commission in protest at the introduction of Catholic officers into the English army by James II. A supporter of military intervention by the Protestant William of Orange, in early 1688 he joined a regiment of the Anglo-Scots Brigade, a long established mercenary unit in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

army. In November 1688, he accompanied William to England in the Glorious Revolution and shortly afterwards became

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 ...

of 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 ...

, and MP for

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...

. He fought 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

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

during the Nine Years' War, as well as being appointed Governor of Portsmouth in 1690 and elected for Chippenham in 1692. In 1694, he was badly wounded at the

Battle of Camaret The Battle of Camaret, also referred to as the Brest expedition, was a notable engagement of the Nine Years' War. Expecting Brest to be unguarded as the French fleet stationed there sailed south to face the Spanish, an amphibious operation at ...

; he died of his injuries on 12 June and was buried in St Mary's Church,

Helmingham Helmingham is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England, 12 miles (20 km) east of Stowmarket, and 12 miles north (20 km) of Ipswich. It has a population of 170, increasing to 186 at the 2011 C ...

Personal details

Thomas Tollemache was born in 1651, second son of Sir Lionel Tollemache (1624-1669) of

Helmingham Hall Helmingham Hall is a moated manor house in Helmingham, Suffolk, England. It was begun by John Tollemache in 1480 and has been owned by the Tollemache family ever since. The house is built around a courtyard in typical late medieval/Tudor style. ...

, Suffolk and Elizabeth, 2nd Countess of Dysart, whose second husband was

John Maitland, Duke of Lauderdale John Maitland, 1st Duke and 2nd Earl of Lauderdale, 3rd Lord Maitland of Thirlestane KG PC (24 May 1616, Lethington, East Lothian – 24 August 1682), was a Scottish politician, and leader within the Cabal Ministry. Background Maitland ...

. Tollemache never married.

Career

According to his own account, Tollemache spent several years travelling in Europe before returning to England in 1668, when he attended Queens' College, Cambridge, followed by legal training at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...

. Details of his early military career are unclear; by 1673 he was based in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

during the Franco-Dutch War, where he served with

John Churchill General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S.) was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reign ...

. In 1678, he became a captain in the

, with which he served with the

Tangier Garrison The Tangier Garrison was the land force which oversaw the defence of English Tangier between 1661 and 1684 when it was evacuated. It was part of the English Army, the de facto standing army that Charles II established following the Restoration ...

, along with

Percy Kirke Lieutenant General Percy Kirke (c. 1646 – 31 October 1691), English soldier, was the son of George Kirke, a court official to Charles I and Charles II. Career In 1666 Kirke obtained his first Army commission in Lord Admiral's regiment, and ...

and

Charles Trelawny Major General Charles Trelawny, also spelt 'Trelawney', (1653 – 24 September 1731) was an English soldier from Cornwall who played a prominent part in the 1688 Glorious Revolution, and was a Member of Parliament for various seats between 1685 ...

. Although he lost his commission after fighting a duel, in 1685 he was appointed

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 ...

in the newly formed Royal Fusiliers. In 1686, he resigned in protest at the admission of Catholic officers by James II, and became a leading member of the "Treason Club", which supported armed intervention by the Protestant William of Orange on behalf of James' daughter Mary II of England. He was also associated with the Association of Protestant Officers, whose members included Trelawny, Churchill and Kirke, all of whom opposed James. In early 1688, he joined one of the regiments in the Anglo-Scots Brigade, a long established mercenary unit in the

army and accompanied William of Orange during the November 1688 Glorious Revolution. He was made governor of Portsmouth and colonel of the Coldstream Guards, as well as being elected MP for

in 1689. His regiment was posted to

during the Nine Years' War, seeing action at the

Battle of Walcourt The Battle of Walcourt was fought on 25 August 1689 during the Nine Years' War. The action took place near the ancient walled town of Walcourt near Charleroi in the Spanish Netherlands, and brought to a close a summer of uneventful marching, m ...

in August 1689. During 1691, he served in

as a

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 ...

, fighting at the

Battle of Aughrim The Battle of Aughrim ( ga, Cath Eachroma) was the decisive battle of the Williamite War in Ireland. It was fought between the largely Irish Jacobite army loyal to James II and the forces of William III on 12 July 1691 (old style, equivale ...

and the sieges of Athlone and

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

. Following the

Treaty of Limerick }), signed on 3 October 1691, ended the 1689 to 1691 Williamite War in Ireland, a conflict related to the 1688 to 1697 Nine Years' War. It consisted of two separate agreements, one with military terms of surrender, signed by commanders of a French ...

which ended the war, he returned to Flanders where he took part in the battles of Steenkirk and

Landen Landen () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the city of Landen proper and the villages of Attenhoven, Eliksem, Ezemaal, Laar, Neerlanden, Neerwinden, Overwinden, Rumsdorp, Wa ...

. In 1694 Tollemache led an assault on the port of

Brest Brest may refer to: Places *Brest, Belarus **Brest Region **Brest Airport **Brest Fortress * Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria * Břest, Czech Republic *Brest, France ** Arrondissement of Brest **Brest Bretagne Airport ** Château de Brest *Br ...

; warned of the proposed attack, the French under Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban reinforced the garrison and strengthened the defences. The ensuing

was disastrous for the English who were repulsed with heavy losses; Tollemache was wounded and later died of his injuries in Plymouth on 12 June 1694. He was buried in the church of St Mary's at Helmingham.

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tollemache, Thomas 1651 births 1694 deaths People from Mid Suffolk District Coldstream Guards officers Royal Fusiliers officers English generals Younger sons of earls Younger sons of baronets Williamite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland British military personnel of the Nine Years' War 17th-century English soldiers

Thomas Tollemache Thomas Tollemache, also spelt Talmash or Tolmach, (c. 16511694) was an Kingdom of England, English soldier and Member of Parliament. Beginning his military career in 1673, in 1686 he resigned his commission in protest at the introduction of C ...

English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 Soldiers of the Tangier Garrison Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge Military personnel from Suffolk British military personnel killed in action in the Nine Years' War