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 normall ...

Francis Grose (1758 – 8 May 1814) was a British soldier who commanded the

New South Wales Corps The New South Wales Corps, later known as the 102d Regiment of Foot, and lastly as the 100th Regiment of Foot, was a formation of the British Army organised in 1789 in England to relieve the New South Wales Marine Corps, which had accompanied ...

. As Lieutenant Governor of New South Wales he governed the

colony A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their ''metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often orga ...

from 1792 until 1794, in which he established military rule, abolished civil courts, and made generous land-grants to his officers. He failed to stamp out the practice of paying wages in alcoholic spirits, with consequent public drunkenness and corruption. Although he helped to improve living conditions to some degree, he was not viewed as a successful administrator.

Early life

Francis Grose was born in 1758 in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He was the eldest son of

Francis Grose Francis Grose (before 11June 173112May 1791) was an England, English antiquary, drawing, draughtsman, and lexicographer. He produced ''A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue'' (1785) and ''A Provincial Glossary, with a Collection of Local ...

(the well-known English antiquary) and Catherine Jordan. Grose received a commission as an

ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

in 1775, in the 52nd Foot and was promoted to lieutenant later that year. Grose served during 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 ...

, where he was twice wounded (at the assaults on Fort Montgomery and Monmouth Court House). Returning to England in 1779 as captain of the

85th Regiment of Foot The 85th (Bucks Volunteers) Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot to form the King's Shropshire Light Infantry in 1881. ...

, he acted as recruiting officer. He attained the rank of major in 1783, in the 96th Foot and in November 1789 was placed in command of the

and appointed Lieutenant-Governor of New South Wales.

New South Wales

Grose did not leave England until late in 1791, arriving in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

on 14 February 1792 on board the

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convicts ...

transport ''Pitt''. The voyage was not an easy one as fever killed a large number of people on board, seaman, soldiers, convicts, wives, and children. Grose became colonial administrator when Governor Arthur Phillip, whose health had been poor for some time (probably due to poor diet), received permission to depart. The European population of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

when Grose took over was 4,221, of whom 3,099 were convicts. Grose immediately abandoned Phillip's plans for governing the colony. A staunch military man, he established military rule and set out to secure the authority of the Corps. He abolished the civilian courts and transferred the magistrates to the authority of Captain Joseph Foveaux. After the poor crops of 1793 he cut the rations of the convicts but not those of the Corps, overturning Phillip's policy of equal rations for all. In a connived attempt to improve agricultural production and make the colony more self-sufficient, Grose turned away from collective farming and made generous land grants to officers of the Corps. They were also provided with government-fed and clothed convicts as farm labour, whose products they would sell to the government store at a good profit. Phillip had realized that unless there was some control over the sale of alcoholic spirits, great evils would follow, but Grose made no efforts in this direction and great abuses such as the payment of wages in spirits became common. The custom of officers trading in spirits was almost universal and in the interregnum before the arrival of Captain Hunter, the colony was rife with drunkenness, gambling, licentiousness and crime. How far Grose was responsible for this state of affairs it is now impossible to say. There is, however, no reason to doubt the statements of the chaplain, the Rev. Richard Johnson, that he could get no support from the Lieutenant-Governor and no assistance in building a church. On the other hand, the charges against Grose of making indiscriminate grants of land to his friends and fellow officers appear to be without foundation, as the grants made were in accordance with his instructions and to those officers who requested them. In spite of the low state of morality and the drinking habits of the people, the position of the colony had improved very much when Grose left for England on 17 December 1794. However, most of the credit for this cannot be given to Grose. His substitution of military for civil power was not for the good of the state and he showed no foresight or real strength in his government. The improvement probably came from better farming methods, for which credit can largely be given to the two chaplains, Johnson and

Samuel Marsden Samuel Marsden (25 June 1765 – 12 May 1838) was an English-born priest of the Church of England in Australia and a prominent member of the Church Missionary Society. He played a leading role in bringing Christianity to New Zealand. Marsden w ...

. Grose did, however, increase the rations and improve the housing conditions of his troops. During his tenure, the Spanish expedition led by Alexando Malaspina visited the colony, 11 March to 11 April 1793.

Return to England

After leaving New South Wales, Grose filled various posts in the army. In 1798, he was on the staff in Ireland. In 1805, he was at

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

where he was promoted to major-general. He was again on the staff in Ireland in 1809. He was promoted to lieutenant-general.

Final years and death

Grose's first wife died 12 January 1813. On 28 March 1814, he married Elizabeth, widow of William Paterson. A month later, on 8 May 1814, he died in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, England. His burial record shows that he was 56 years old at time of burial. Elizabeth died in Liverpool, England on 14 May 1839. The Grose Valley, one of the most spectacular regions in the Blue Mountains on the edge of Sydney, is named after Francis Grose.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grose, Francis 1750s births 1814 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War History of New South Wales 52nd Regiment of Foot officers Lieutenant-governors of New South Wales Military personnel from the London Borough of Ealing People from Greenford