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 colonel. ...

Thomas Brereton (1782–1832) was an officer of the British Army.

Career

He was descended from Sir William Brereton, Chief Justice and Lord High Marshal of Ireland, from the ancient and noble family of Brereton,

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, England. Born in King's County (now

County Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

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 ...

, in 1782. 1798 he received his commission as an ensign in the 8th

West India Regiment The West India Regiments (WIR) were infantry units of the British Army recruited from and normally stationed in the British colonies of the Caribbean between 1795 and 1927. In 1888 the two West India Regiments then in existence were reduced t ...

. 1809 he was promoted to Major and served at the capture of Martinique from the French and Guadelope the following year. He was appointed

Brigade Major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

in 1813 for his relative Major General Robert Brereton,

Lieutenant-Governor of St. Lucia This is a list of viceroys in Saint Lucia from the first French settlement in 1650, until the island gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1979. Saint Lucia was colonized by the British and French in the 17th century and was the subjec ...

. 1814 he was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Senegal and Gorée and was present during the tragedy. 1815 he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal African Corps. 1819 he was appointed to the command of the

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

garrison until 1823 when he retired to England to become Inspecting Field Officer for the

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

recruiting district. At the time of the

1831 Reform riots The 1831 reform riots occurred after the Reform Act 1832#Second Reform Bill, Second Reform Bill was defeated in Parliament in October 1831. There were civil disturbances in London, Leicester, Yeovil, Sherborne, Exeter, Bath, Somerset, Bath and W ...

in Bristol he was in charge of the troops. The riots started on the Saturday and lasted for three days and though Colonel Brereton only lost control on the Sunday due to lack of troops he still managed to put down the rioting early on Monday morning before the arrival of the reinforcements he had requested. Despite this, he was controversially court-martialled in January 1832, during which he committed suicide. Twice a widower he died leaving four children.

Depictions in film

The 1978 children's paranormal TV drama ''

The Clifton House Mystery ''The Clifton House Mystery'' is a British children's cult television supernatural drama series written by Daniel Farson and Harry Moore, produced by Patrick Dromgoole and directed by Hugh David, and shown in 1978 by HTV for ITV. The plot re ...

'' was a ghost story based on the circumstances of Brereton's death. The plot revolved around a family moving into an old house in Bristol that finds a long-dead skeleton in a hidden room. After some unexplained incidents, they become convinced that a ghost connected in some way with the

Bristol Riots The Bristol riots refer to a number of significant riots in the city of Bristol in England. Bristol Bridge riot, 1793 In 1794 the populace of Bristol were said to be "apt to collect in mobs on the slightest occasions; but have been seldom so spi ...

of 1831 is haunting the house. After checking local records, they realize that it is the ghost of a dragoon commander who was court-martialled for his handling of the riots, and who later disappeared without a trace. The ghost is named "George Bretherton" in the TV series. One of his descendants, named "Mrs Betterton", had sold the house to the family, but was allegedly unaware of the hidden room and its contents, referring only to a vague family scandal that happened generations ago.

Depictions in fiction

The 1906 historical novel
Chippinge
' (sometimes ''Chippinge Borough'') by is based on the background to the 1831 Bristol Riots and culminates in a detailed description of those riots and Colonel Brereton's part in them. The main fiction in that description is that the important role played by is ascribed to the hero, Arthur Vaughan. Colonel Brereton forms part of the early narrative of The Passage to India, Allan Mallinson's novel, Transworld Publishers, 2019. ISBN 9780857503794

References

*''The Readeption of Colonel Brereton'', John Brereton

External links

* * (Catalogue ref: PRO HO 40/28) {{DEFAULTSORT:Brereton, Thomas 1782 births 1832 deaths 19th century in Bristol British military personnel who committed suicide Suicides by firearm in England West India Regiment officers British colonial army officers People from County Offaly 49th Regiment of Foot officers King's Shropshire Light Infantry officers

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 ...

Suicides in Bristol