Lieutenant-General John Keane, 1st Baron Keane (6 February 1781 – 24 August 1844) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

in 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 ...

Early life

John Keane was born in

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, Ireland, on 6 February 1781; he was the second son of John Keane and Sarah Keiley. Keane's father would be created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

in 1801. He was the younger brother of the future

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 ...

Sir Richard Keane, 2nd Baronet and the elder of

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 ...

Edward Keane.

Military service

French Revolutionary Wars

While there is some confusion as to when this occurred, Keane most likely joined the

on 11 October 1794, becoming 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 122nd Regiment of Foot. He was quickly promoted, becoming a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

on 30 October. With the speed of Keane's promotions, it is likely that he never actually reported for duty with the 122nd. His father then purchased his promotion to captain in the 124th Regiment of Foot on 12 November. The 124th was disbanded in May 1795 but some time before this Keane transferred to the

half pay Half-pay (h.p.) was a term used in the British Army and Royal Navy of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries to refer to the pay or allowance an officer received when in retirement or not in actual service. Past usage United Kingdom In the Eng ...

of the 73rd Regiment of Foot, a regiment that itself had been disbanded in 1763. Keane stayed on the half pay of the 73rd until 7 November 1799 when he exchanged into the

44th Regiment of Foot The 44th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment in the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 56th (West Essex) Regiment of Foot to form the Essex Regiment in 1881. History Early history The regim ...

, which was stationed at

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

. The regiment sailed to join the Egypt campaign in October, and while Keane went with them he did so as aide de camp to

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 ...

Lord Cavan. In this position Keane fought at the

Battle of Mandora The Battle of Mandora was a minor battle fought on 13 March 1801 between French forces under François Lanusse and the British expeditionary corps under Ralph Abercromby, during the French campaign in Egypt and Syria. Background The British ar ...

on 13 March 1801 and then at the Battle of Alexandria on 21 March. The French in Egypt capitulated in September, after which Keane went to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

as a

staff officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military ...

. Keane purchased promotion to major in the

60th Regiment of Foot 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

on 27 May 1802 but did not join the regiment, instead continuing on the staff at Malta until March 1803 when he returned to England. There in August he purchased the lieutenant-colonelcy of the

13th Regiment of Foot In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave p ...

, and towards the end of the following year he joined his new regiment at Gibraltar.

Napoleonic Wars

The 13th returned from Gibraltar in January 1806 and Keane spent the following two years in England building up the numbers of the regiment. Having completed this, in January 1808 he was ordered to join the West Indies campaign with the 13th. They were initially stationed as garrison at

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

, but fought at the Invasion of Martinique in early 1809. Keane stayed on at Martinique after this, during which time he was promoted to brevet colonel on 1 January 1812. He exchanged back into the 60th on 25 June the same year. The 5th

Battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...

of the 60th was fighting 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 ...

and Keane went out to join it in October. Upon arriving he was however instead given temporary command of a

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. B ...

within 3rd Division. The army was in winter quarters and his role was mostly administrative. Keane continued with his brigade until replaced by Major-General

Thomas Brisbane Major General Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane, 1st Baronet, (23 July 1773 – 27 January 1860), was a British Army officer, administrator, and astronomer. Upon the recommendation of the Duke of Wellington, with whom he had served, he was appoint ...

on 23 March 1813, at which point he finally took up the 5th Battalion of the 60th. The battalion

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

were mostly split out among the divisions of the army, but Keane had his headquarters and three companies within 3rd Division. Keane subsequently fought at the

Battle of Vitoria At the Battle of Vitoria (21 June 1813) a British, Portuguese and Spanish army under the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, eventually leadin ...

on 21 June and the

Battle of Sorauren The Battle of Sorauren was part of a series of engagements in late July 1813 called the Battle of the Pyrenees in which a combined British and Portuguese force under Sir Arthur Wellesley held off Marshal Soult's French forces attempting ...

on 28 and 30 July. He was then on 1 August given command of a brigade within the division, being the most senior battalion commander. Keane led his brigade at the

Battle of Nivelle The Battle of Nivelle (10 November 1813) took place in front of the river Nivelle near the end of the Peninsular War (1808–1814). After the Allied siege of San Sebastian, Wellington's 80,000 British, Portuguese and Spanish troops (20, ...

on 9 November, and then in the following year at the Battle of Orthes on 27 February, Battle of Tarbes on 20 March, and finally the Battle of Toulouse on 10 April after which the war in Europe ended. The

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

in North America was still however ongoing, and in April Keane was initially planned to be part of the reinforcements sent over to fight in it. The size of this force was then reduced and Keane was not sent. Keane was promoted to major-general on 4 June the same year. While he did not go with the main British force to North America, he was instead sent in early autumn with reinforcements to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. While travelling there he learned at Madeira that after defeat at the

Battle of Baltimore The Battle of Baltimore (September 12–15, 1814) was a sea/land battle fought between British invaders and American defenders in the War of 1812. American forces repulsed sea and land invasions off the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland ...

and the death there of Major-General Robert Ross, the remnants of the main British force had retreated to Jamaica. Keane took command of these troops upon his arrival on 25 November and took his enlarged force to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

where they landed on 8 December. He was then superseded in command of the army by Major-General

Sir Edward Pakenham Major General Sir Edward Michael Pakenham, (19 March 1778 – 8 January 1815), was a British Army officer and politician. He was the son of the Baron Longford and the brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington, with whom he served in the Peni ...

, but continued on with it. At the

Battle of New Orleans The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815 between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles (8 km) southeast of the Frenc ...

on 8 January 1815 Keane commanded the left assaulting column and was severely wounded in the

groin In human anatomy, the groin (the adjective is ''inguinal'', as in inguinal canal) is the junctional area (also known as the inguinal region) between the abdomen and the thigh on either side of the pubic bone. This is also known as the medial comp ...

. An especially think pair of pantaloons saved him from a possibly mortal injury. Keane spent some time recovering from the wound but was able to return to service in February. He was thus present at the capture of Fort Bowyer on 13 February, after which the

Treaty of Ghent The Treaty of Ghent () was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 between the United States and the United Kingdom. It took effect in February 1815. Both sides signed it on December 24, 1814, in the city of Ghent, United Netherlands (now in ...

came into effect and hostilities ended. Keane was created a

Knight Commander of the Order 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 o ...

on 2 January. Returning to Europe, Keane missed the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

but was afterwards selected as a casualty replacement in the army. On 2 July he was appointed to command the 8th Brigade, replacing Major-General Sir James Kempt who was in turn filling the gap left at

5th Division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 5th Division (Australia) *5th Division (People's Republic of China) * 5th Division (Colombia) *Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) * 5th Light Cavalry Division (France) *5th Mo ...

by the death of Lieutenant-General

Sir Thomas Picton Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Picton (24 August 175818 June 1815) was a British Army officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. According to the historian Alessandro Barbero, Picton was "respected for his courage and feared for his irascible ...

. When the army was reformed into the Army of Occupation in November Keane continued on with it, being given command of the 9th Brigade. The army was subsequently reduced as time went on, and on 25 April 1817 Keane's command was dissolved and he was not given another. The

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

wrote to Keane saying that:

Bombay Army

Keane's next official duties came in 1818 when on 19 January he was appointed Governor of Saint Lucia. He continued on St Lucia until 1823 when he was given command over the British forces at Jamaica. From 1827 to 1829 he also served as Lieutenant-Governor of Jamaica. On 22 July 1830 Keane was promoted to lieutenant-general and he returned to England, having also been appointed

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

94th Regiment of Foot The 94th Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised as the Scotch Brigade in October 1794. It was renumbered as the 94th Regiment of Foot in December 1802 and disbanded in December 1818. The regiment was reformed in Decemb ...

the prior year. Back in England his regimental colonelcy was transferred to the

68th Regiment of Foot The 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1758. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 106th Bombay Light Infantry to form the Durham Light Infantry in 1881, the 68 ...

on 13 April 1831, and in the same year he was created a

Knight Grand Cross 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 ...

. Then on 14 October 1833 Keane was appointed Commander-in-Chief,

Bombay Army The Bombay Army was the army of the Bombay Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India. It was established in 1662 and governed by the East India Company until the Government of India Act 1858 transferred all presidencies to the d ...

. He assumed command on 2 July the following year. On 6 April 1838 Keane was made colonel of the

46th Regiment of Foot The 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 32nd (Cornwall) Regiment of Foot to form the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry in 1881, ...

. When the

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

began later in the year, in December Keane brought a portion of his force to join the Army of the Indus that had been created for the conflict.

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir Henry Fane resigned command of the army soon afterwards and Keane took over. As such he commanded it in its invasion of Afghanistan, capturing

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

in February and fighting the

Battle of Ghazni The Battle of Ghazni (or Ghuznee) took place in the city of Ghazni in central Afghanistan on Tuesday, July 23, 1839, during the First Anglo-Afghan War. Prelude In the 1830s, the British were firmly entrenched in India but by 1837, feared a Rus ...

on 23 July 1839. Keane captured

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 ...

on 6 August and after leaving a garrison force in the country he returned with the Bombay Army to India. On 1 August his colonelcy was transferred to the 43rd Regiment of Foot, and on 12 August he was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. Keane fulfilled his term of office at Bombay, ending on 18 October, after which he returned to Britain. News travelling slowly, it was only after his return in 1840 that he learned he had been created

Baron Keane Baron Keane, of Ghuznee in Afghanistan and of Cappoquin in the County of Waterford, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 23 December 1839 for the military commander John Keane. He was the second son of Sir John K ...

on 12 August the previous year. He was also rewarded with a pension of £2,000 a year. Keane saw no further service with the army after this. He died at Burton Lodge,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

, on 26 August 1844, most likely from edema caused by

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

Personal life

Keane married Grace Smith, the second daughter of General Sir John Smith, on 10 August 1806. The couple went on to have eight children, of which three sons join the British Army and one the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

. Grace died on 14 January 1838 and Keane married Charlotte Maria Boland, the youngest daughter of Colonel John Boland, on 20 August 1840. They had no children.

Citations

References

* * * , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Keane, John Keane, 1st Baron 1781 births 1844 deaths People from County Offaly People from County Waterford 18th-century Anglo-Irish people 19th-century Anglo-Irish people King's Royal Rifle Corps officers 68th Regiment of Foot officers British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars British Army personnel of the War of 1812 British military personnel of the First Anglo-Afghan War Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath British Army lieutenant generals Commanders-in-chief of Bombay Younger sons of baronets Recipients of the Army Gold Cross Governors of Jamaica Governors of British Saint Lucia Peers of the United Kingdom created by Queen Victoria