Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank 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 battlefield, who was norma ...

Forbes Champagné (2 July 1754 – 23 October 1816) was a British Army officer who fought in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

and officiated as Commander-in-Chief of the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

from 1807 to 1811.

Background

Champagné was born into a family of

French Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

exiles in Ireland, the son of the Very Rev. Arthur de Robillard Champagné,

Dean of Clonmacnoise The Dean of Clonmacnoise is based at Trim Cathedral, The Cathedral Church of St Patrick, Trim in the united Diocese of Meath and Kildare within the Church of Ireland. The incumbent is Paul Bogle. List of deans of Clonmacnoise *1561 William Flyn ...

, and Marianne Hamon, daughter of Colonel Isaac Hamon. His paternal great-grandfather was Chevalier Josias de Robillard, Seigneur de Champagné de Torxé,

Saintonge Saintonge may refer to: *County of Saintonge, a historical province of France on the Atlantic coast * Saintonge (region), a region of France corresponding to the historical province * Saintonge ware, a medieval pottery type produced in Saintes reg ...

, who fled to Holland after the

Edict of Fontainebleau The Edict of Fontainebleau (18 October 1685, published 22 October 1685) was an edict issued by French King Louis XIV and is also known as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The Edict of Nantes (1598) had granted Huguenots the right to prac ...

in 1685, joining William of Orange's army. He married Marie de la Rochefoucauld of the noble house of the same name. Their daughter Susanne married Henri de la Motte-Fouqué, baron de Saint-Seurin et de Tonnay-Boutonne, and was mother of

Heinrich August de la Motte Fouqué Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...

. Their eldest son, Josias de Robillard (Forbes' grandfather), distinguished himself at a young age in service of Major-General Isaac de Monceau de la Melonière, who commanded a regiment of exiles in William's army during the Irish campaigns. He married Lady Jane Forbes, daughter of Arthur Forbes, 2nd Earl of Granard. Forbes had three brothers: General Sir Josiah Champagné; Rev. Arthur Champagné, vicar of Castlelyons; and Rev. George Champagné, Canon of Windsor and Rector of Twickenham. He had six sisters, including Jane, who married the

Earl of Uxbridge Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

; Henrietta, wife of Sir Erasmus Dixon Borrowes, 6th Baronet; and Marianne, wife of Sir Charles des Voeux, 1st Baronet.

Military career

Champagné was commissioned into the 4th Regiment of Foot in 1773. He served in the

Southern Colonies The Southern Colonies within British America consisted of the Province of Maryland, the Colony of Virginia, the Province of Carolina (in 1712 split into North and South Carolina), and the Province of Georgia. In 1763, the newly created colonies ...

during the

and took part in the Battle of Wetzell's Mill in 1781. By 1796 he had been appointed

Commanding Officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

of the 20th Regiment of Foot. He was promoted to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

on 26 January 1797 and to major general on 25 September 1803. He started officiating as

Commander-in-Chief, India During the period of the Company and Crown rule in India, the Commander-in-Chief, India (often "Commander-in-Chief ''in'' or ''of'' India") was the supreme commander of the Indian Army from 1833 to 1947. The Commander-in-Chief and most of his ...

in 1807 and was also appointed colonel of the 1st Battalion of the 95th Regiment of Foot in 1809. Promoted to lieutenant general on 25 July 1810, he ceased officiating as Commander-in-Chief, India, following the appointment of

Sir George Nugent, 1st Baronet Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Sir George Nugent, 1st Baronet, (10 June 1757 – 11 March 1849) was a British Army officer. After serving as a junior officer in the American Revolutionary War, he fought with the Coldstream Guard ...

in 1811. He lived in Merton and died on 23 October 1816.The Paget Brothers 1790-1840
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References

External links

*Urwin, Gregory J. W. (18 October 2016). ''Journal of the American Revolution''
"With Cornwallis to the Dan: Deconstructing the 'Forbes Champagné Letter'
{{DEFAULTSORT:Champagne, Forbes 1754 births 1816 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British Commanders-in-Chief of India British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War King's Own Royal Regiment officers Lancashire Fusiliers officers Military personnel from County Offaly