Major-General Henry Smyth CB (5 April 1816 – 1891) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer who became General Officer Commanding Western District.

Early life

Smyth was the second son of

John Henry Smyth John Henry Smyth (20 March 1780 – 20 October 1822) was a Whig member of Parliament for Cambridge University from 9 June 1812 until his death. Early life Smyth was born on 20 March 1780. He was one of four sons and two daughters born to Lady ...

, of Heath Hall, Wakefield, Yorkshire, a Whig MP for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

(1812–1822) and Lady Elizabeth Anne FitzRoy. His elder brother, John George Smyth, was an MP for the

City of York The City of York, officially simply "York", is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. ...

. His maternal grandfather was

George FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton George Henry FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton (14 January 1760 – 28 September 1844), styled Earl of Euston until 1811, was a British Peerage, peer and British Whig Party, Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1782 to 1811 when h ...

and the former Charlotte Maria Waldegrave. His paternal grandparents were Lady Georgiana FitzRoy (daughter of

Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton Augustus Henry FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton (28 September 173514 March 1811), styled Earl of Euston between 1747 and 1757, was a British Whig statesman of the Georgian era. He is one of a handful of dukes who have served as Prime Minister of t ...

) and John Smyth, who served as MP of

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district in West Yorkshire, England. It lies to the east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the ...

, and was a

Lord of the Admiralty This is a list of lords commissioners of the Admiralty (incomplete before the Restoration, 1660). The lords commissioners of the Admiralty were the members of the Board of Admiralty, which exercised the office of Lord High Admiral when it was ...

Lord of the Treasury In the United Kingdom there are at least six Lords (or Ladies) Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury, serving as a commission for the ancient office of Treasurer of the Exchequer. The board consists of the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second L ...

Master of the Mint Master of the Mint is a title within the Royal Mint given to the most senior person responsible for its operation. It was an office in the governments of Scotland and England, and later Great Britain and then the United Kingdom, between the 16th ...

, and a Commissioner of the

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

Military career

Smyth was commissioned 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 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 68t ...

on 28 June 1833. He became commanding officer of the 68th Foot and commanded it at the

Battle of Alma The Battle of the Alma (short for Battle of the Alma River) took place during the Crimean War between an allied expeditionary force (made up of French, British, and Ottoman forces) and Russian forces defending the Crimean Peninsula on 20Septe ...

in September 1854 and the

Battle of Inkerman The Battle of Inkerman was fought during the Crimean War on 5 November 1854 between the allied armies of Britain and France against the Imperial Russian Army. The battle broke the will of the Russian Army to defeat the allies in the field, and w ...

in November 1854 as well as the Siege of Sevastopol during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

. He went on to be General Officer Commanding Western District in February 1874. He became Colonel of the

2nd (The Queen's Royal) Regiment of Foot The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

on 10 April 1877 and was made full General on 29 September 1878.

Family

In 1865, he married Rebecca Mary Pierce, the daughter of Thomas Peirce. Together, they were the parents of: * William John Smyth (1869–1893), a member of the

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British Raj, British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 3 ...

who married Lilian May Clifford, daughter of Capt. Henry Clifford, in 1893. * George Abraham Smyth (-1939), a Colonel who married Isabel Adrienne Colinette MacKenzie, a daughter of Colin MacKenzie. Smyth died in 1891.

Descendants

Through his son William he was a grandfather of

Sir John Smyth, 1st Baronet Brigadier Sir John George Smyth, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1893 – 26 April 1983), often known as Jackie Smyth, was a British Indian Army officer and a Conservative Member of Parliament. During WWII, he led a unit in France and during the eva ...

, a recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Smyth, Henry 1816 births 1891 deaths Military personnel from West Yorkshire British Army major generals Companions of the Order of the Bath Queen's Royal Regiment officers Knights of the Legion of Honour British Army personnel of the Crimean War