Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

Sir John Lintorn Arabin Simmons (12 February 1821 – 14 February 1903) 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 Gurkha ...

officer. Early in his career he served as Inspector of Railways, Secretary of the Railways Commission and then Secretary of the Railway Department under the

Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for International Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...

. He went on to be British Commissioner with the Turkish Army providing advice to General Omar Pasha during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

. He assisted the Turks at the defence of Silistra and then led them at the Battle of Giurgevo before landing with them at the Battle of Eupatoria and remaining with them for the Siege of Sevastopol. After that he became British Consul in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

, Commander, Royal Engineers at

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

and then Director of the Royal Engineer Establishment in Chatham. He went on to be Lieutenant-Governor of the Royal Military Academy and subsequently Governor of the Academy. His last appointments were as Colonel Commandant of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

, as Inspector General of Fortifications and then as Governor of Malta.

Military career

Born the fifth son of Captain Thomas Frederick Simmons, RA and Mary Simmons (née Perry), Simmons was educated at Elizabeth College, Guernsey and the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of S ...

.Heathcote, p.257 He was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army unt ...

in the

on 4 December 1837 and promoted to

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 15 October 1839.Heathcote, p. 258 He was then deployed to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

where he carried out survey work on the disputed border with the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

. Returning to the United Kingdom in 1845, Simmons became an instructor at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich with promotion to second captain on 9 November 1846. He was appointed Inspector of Railways in 1847, Secretary of the Railways Commission in 1850 and Secretary of the Railway Department under the

in 1851. He investigated many railway accidents, perhaps the most famous of which was the Dee Bridge disaster in 1847. His report blamed the

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuri ...

girders for the accident, which killed five passengers and crew. The accident was highly significant at the time because it had been designed by

Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson FRS HFRSE FRSA DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of his father ...

In 1853, whilst on leave from his role with the Board of Trade, he was in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

when

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

declared war on

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

. The British Ambassador, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, took up Simmons' offer of his services, requesting that he report on Turkish defences and their ability to resist a Russian advance. Promoted to

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 ...

on 17 February 1854, he became British Commissioner with the Turkish Army providing advice to General Omar Pasha as the

started. He assisted the Turks at the defence of Silistra in June 1854 and then led them at the Battle of Giurgevo in July 1854; having been promoted to brevet

major Major ( commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicato ...

on 12 July 1854 and to brevet

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 colon ...

on 14 July 1854, he landed with the Turks at the Battle of Eupatoria in February 1855 and remained with them for the Siege of Sevastopol in the Summer of 1855. Promoted to brevet

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 ...

on 12 December 1857 Simmons became British Consul in

in February 1858, Commander, Royal Engineers at

in 1860 and Director of the Royal Engineer Establishment in Chatham in 1865. Promoted 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 ...

on 6 March 1868, he became Lieutenant-Governor of the Royal Military Academy in March 1869 and subsequently Governor of the Academy. He became Colonel Commandant of the

with promotion 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 th ...

on 27 August 1872. He was also appointed a Commissioner to enquire into the Causes of Accidents on Railways in June 1874. Simmons went on to be Inspector General of Fortifications in 1875, and having been promoted to full

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.". O ...

on 1 October 1877, he was invited to join a Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the condition and sufficiency of the means provided for the defence of the more important seaports within the Colonial Possessions. In June 1884 he became Governor of Malta, where he oversaw significant constitutional and social changes on the island. After he retired in September 1888, the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * Unit ...

continued to utilise his services and in 1889 he went to Rome as

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...

. He also became honorary colonel of the

1st Gloucestershire (The Western Counties) Engineer Volunteers, Royal Engineers First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

and subsequently of the 1st Devonshire and Somersetshire Royal Engineers and after that of the 1st Middlesex Royal Engineers as well as honorary colonel of the Engineer and Railway Volunteer Staff Corps. Promoted to

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

on 21 May 1890, Simmons retired to Hawley House at Hawley in

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 ...

where he died on 14 February 1903. He is buried at the

Church of St John the Baptist, Churchill The Church of St John the Baptist in Churchill, Somerset, England, was largely built around 1360 and is a Grade I listed building. There was a Norman chapel on this site in 1180, from which the nave has survived into the present church. The ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lor ...

.Heathcote, p. 259

Family

In 1846 Simmons married his cousin, Ellen Lintorn Simmons; they had one daughter, Eleanor. Following the death of his first wife, he married Blanche Weston in 1856. They had one daughter Blanche.

Honours

Simmons's honours included: *

Knight Grand Cross 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 one ...

(GCB) – 29 July 1878 (KCB – 2 June 1869) * Knight Grand Cross of St Michael and St George (GCMG) – 24 May 1887 *

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleo ...

, 4th Class (France) – 22 March 1858 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Medjidie (Ottoman Empire) – 13 March 1890

Memorial

There is a memorial to him in

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London ...

."Memorials of St Paul's Cathedral" Sinclair, W. p. 461: London; Chapman & Hall, Ltd; 1909

References

Sources