John Granville Harkness, J.P. (29 January 1831 – 22 June 1900) was a major-general in the British Army during the Victorian era.

Early life

Harkness was born 29 January 1831 at

Limehouse, London Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through ...

, to John Samuel Harkness, MD (1797–1842) and his wife Anne Harriette, née Eliot (1807–1884). As such, he descended from Northern Irish doctors on his paternal side and from a significant British military family on his maternal side. This side included his grandfather, Lieutenant-Colonel William Granville Eliot RHA, his great-grandfather Colonel Francis Perceval Eliot, his gg-grandfather, General

Granville Elliott Major-General Granville Elliott, 1st Count Elliott (7 October 1713 – 10 October 1759), was a British military officer who served with distinction in several other European armies and subsequently in the British Army. He fought at the Batt ...

and his ggg-grandfather Major-General

Roger Elliott Major General Roger Elliott ( 1665 – 16 May 1714 ) was one of the earliest British Governors of Gibraltar. A member of the Eliot family, his son Granville Elliott became the first Count Elliott and his nephew George Augustus Eliott als ...

. He was also a great-nephew of Captain

Edward John Eliot Captain Edward John Eliot (20 September 1782 Shenstone, Staffordshire – 6 November 1863 Peckham, Surrey ) was an English soldier. Eliot was the son of Francis Perceval Eliot and his wife Anne née Breynton (daughter of Dr John Breynt ...

. During the 1830s, his family moved to Ivy Lodge, London Road,

Ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 Apr ...

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

, where he attended the Misses Borrow's Preparatory School, Hastings, and later Temple School, Brighton.

Military career

Harkness entered the army on 13 May 1853 as Ensign in the 55th Regiment, without purchase - on the recommendation of the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

for his grandfather's service. In 1854, he was promoted to lieutenant and served throughout the Crimean Campaign 1854–55. He carried the Queen's colour at the Alma. For heroic conduct, both he and his friend, William Hamilton Richards, were nominated for the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

by Major-General Sir Charles Warren. He fought at

Inkerman Inkerman ( uk, Інкерман, russian: Инкерман, crh, İnkerman) is a city in the Crimean peninsula. It is ''de facto'' within the federal city of Sevastopol within the Russian Federation, but ''de jure'' within Ukraine. It lies 5 ...

, the assault on the Quarries, the sortie of 26 October 1854, the siege and the fall of Sevastopol and the

Battle of the Great Redan The Battle of the Great Redan (russian: Оборона Третьего бастиона) was a major battle during the Crimean War, fought between British forces against Russia on 18 June and 8 September 1855 as a part of the Siege of Sevas ...

. Two pencil drawings of the Crimea War by Harkness survive at the National Army Museum In 1862, he was appointed to the

5th Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution and ...

and ADC to Sir William Stevenson, the Governor of British Mauritius. He served in South Africa 1864–67. He was promoted brevet major in March 1872, and major in October 1877, before taking part in the

Second Anglo-Afghan War The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ps, د افغان-انګرېز دويمه جګړه) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the l ...

1878–1880. He commanded the column that cleared the entrance to the Khaibar or Khyber Pass. Having returned to Berwick, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel in 1881 and colonel in July 1882. During the disturbances in Ireland in 1882, he was appointed JP for the city and county of Dublin. He retired as a major-general in January 1886, and settled back at his childhood family house - Ivy House, Ore. He held the Crimean medal with three clasps, fifth class of the Medjidie, and the Turkish and Afghan medals. He was mentioned in dispatches, twice wounded and in receipt of the reward for distinguished service pension.

Family

On 2 June 1864 at St Helen's Church, Ore, Hastings, Sussex, Harkness married his first cousin Annabella Harriette James (1839 – 1928), with two daughters, both born in South Africa: * Annabella Katherine or Violet Harkness (1 April 1865 – 10 May 1865) * Edith Geraldine Harkness (19 June 1866 – 19 August 1946 Hastings) He died on Friday 22 June 1900 at his home at Ivy House, Ore, and was buried on Tuesday 26 June 1900 at

Hastings Cemetery Hastings Cemetery is a cemetery in Hastings, East Sussex, England. The cemetery was opened on 28 November 1856. The Church of England section was consecrated by Ashurst Gilbert, Bishop of Chichester, followed by a service in All Saints Church. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harkness, John Granville 1831 births 1900 deaths 55th Regiment of Foot officers Royal Northumberland Fusiliers officers British Army personnel of the Crimean War British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Afghan War British Army major generals People from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Burials at Hastings Cemetery

John Granville Harkness John Granville Harkness, J.P. (29 January 1831 – 22 June 1900) was a major-general in the British Army during the Victorian era. Early life Harkness was born 29 January 1831 at Limehouse, London, to John Samuel Harkness, MD (1797–1 ...