General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Sir William Gabriel Davy, (178025 January 1856) was a
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
officer who fought in the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
.
Life
![Young Davy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Young_Davy.jpg)
William Gabriel Davy was born in 1780 in Kingsholm,
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
. He was the eldest son of Major William Davy, Persian Secretary to
Warren Hastings
Warren Hastings (6 December 1732 – 22 August 1818) was a British colonial administrator, who served as the first Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal), the head of the Supreme Council of Bengal, and so the first Governor-Genera ...
, the first
Governor-General of Bengal
The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...
.
Educated at
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...
,
Davy became a lieutenant in the
61st Foot
The 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1756. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot to form the Gloucestershire Regiment ...
of the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
in 1797. He transferred to the 5th battalion
[ of the ]60th Foot
The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...
at the beginning of 1802, and was made a captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
. He was promoted to major and 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 colone ...
on 5 February 1807 and 28 December 1809, respectively.[ After becoming the battalion's commander in May 1808,][ he led the battalion][ early in the ]Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
.
The battalion departed from Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
on 12 July 1808.[ On 1 August, they arrived at Mondego Bay in Portugal, where the first British troops to participate in the Peninsular War landed; Davy's battalion was the first to land.] The Battle of Roleia was especially difficult, as Davy's battalion was in the middle of the fighting. At one point, the troops ascended a mountain "so covered with brushwood that heir
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...
legs were ready to sink under hem
A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the ga ...
"[ In December 1809, just after being promoted to lieutenant-colonel, he moved to the 7th Garrison Battalion.][Griffith, R., Riflemen, p.232] However, he never participated in physical combat again.[ He married Mary Ann Carruthers (née Arthington, daughter of Thomas Arthington and 2nd wife of William Aikman Carruthers) in Adel, Yorkshire on 20 June 1814.] In July 1830, Davy was made 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 a ...
.[ He remarried in 1840, to Sophia Fountayne Wilson, daughter of Richard Fountayne Wilson, Melton, Yorkshire. The sister of the new Lady Davy was married to Major-General Sir Richard England. Davy was promoted to ]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 November of the following year.[ In November 1842, Davy 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 of ...
of the 1st battalion of the 60th Foot. He was promoted to general in 1854.[ From his purchase of the property in 1820, Davy resided at ]Tracy Park
Tracy Park is an estate near Wick, Bristol, Wick, South Gloucestershire, close to the boundary with Bath and North East Somerset and approximately from the World Heritage City of Bath, Somerset, Bath. Set in approximately of parkland, the hou ...
, Gloucestershire. He died there on 25 January 1856, aged 77.[
]
Honours
Davy was awarded the Field Officer's Gold Medal, a clasp, and a gold ribbon buckle for his service in the battles of Roleia, Vimiera and Talavera during the Peninsular War. He was also praised by distinguished figures, such as Secretary of State Lord Castlereagh
Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Anglo-Irish politician ...
.[ Davy became a ]Companion of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as one ...
in June 1815. King William IV
William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...
knighted
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...
Davy and made him a Knight Commander of the Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order (german: Königliche Guelphen-Orden), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its name ...
in 1836.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davy, Will
Peninsular War
British Army generals
1780 births
1856 deaths
People educated at Eton College
King's Royal Rifle Corps officers