Lieutenant-General Sir Richard Downes Jackson KCB (1777 – 9 June 1845), born at

Petersfield Petersfield is a market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is north of Portsmouth. The town has its own railway station on the Portsmouth Direct line, the mainline rail link connecting Portsmouth a ...

in the English county of

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 ...

, was an officer in the British Army and subsequently colonial Administrator. Following service during the Napoleonic Wars, he was appointed the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in British North America. During that time, he also served for a few months as the

Administrator of the government An administrator (administrator of the government or officer administering the government) in the constitutional practice of some countries in the Commonwealth is a person who fulfils a role similar to that of a governor or a governor-general ...

of the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on th ...

. He died in Canada in 1845 and is buried there.

Military career

Jackson was commissioned as 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

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

on 9 July 1794. After seeing action during the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a republican revolutionary group influenced ...

he took part in the Battle of Copenhagen during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. He fought at the Siege of Cádiz and the

Battle of Barrosa The Battle of Barrosa (Chiclana, 5 March 1811, also known as the Battle of Chiclana or Battle of Cerro del Puerco) was part of an unsuccessful manoeuvre by an Anglo-Iberian force to break the French siege of Cádiz during the Peninsular Wa ...

during 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 was knighted on 12 April 1815. After the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars, Jackson was appointed deputy quartermaster general in 1820, General Officer Commanding Northern District in 1836 and

Commander-in-Chief, North America The office of Commander-in-Chief, North America was a military position of the British Army. Established in 1755 in the early years of the Seven Years' War, holders of the post were generally responsible for land-based military personnel and ac ...

in 1839, a post which he held until his death in 1845.

Administrator of Province of Canada

In September 1841, Lord Sydenham, the Governor General of the Province of Canada, died in office. Jackson was appointed the Administrator of the Province. He exercised the powers of the Governor General until the arrival of Sydenham's successor, Sir Charles Bagot in early 1842.J.O. Côté, ''Political Appointments and Elections in the Province of Canada, 1841 to 1860'' (Quebec: St. Michel and Darveau, 1860), p. 9.

Death

Jackson continued as Commander-in-Chief until 1845 when, missing his family in England, he asked to be recalled. Instead, he died suddenly in the summer of 1845, shortly before the arrival of his successor, Lord Cathcart. He was buried near his country home at William-Henry, Canada East (now Sorel, Quebec).

References

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Richard Downes 1777 births 1845 deaths Governors-General of the Province of Canada People from Petersfield British Army lieutenant generals People of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 British Army personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Coldstream Guards officers Military personnel from Hampshire