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 ...

Richard Hussey Vivian, 1st Baron Vivian (28 July 1775 – 20 August 1842), known as Sir Hussey Vivian from 1815 to 1828 and Sir Hussey Vivian, Bt, from 1828 to 1841, was a British cavalry leader from the Vivian family.

Early career

Vivian was the son of John Vivian (1750–1826), of

Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, and his wife Betsey, daughter of the Reverend Richard Cranch, and the brother of John Henry Vivian. He was educated at Truro Grammar School, then at Harrow and

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...

, Vivian entered the army in 1793, and less than a year later became a captain in the 28th Foot. Under

Lord Moira Francis Edward Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings (9 December 175428 November 1826), styled The Honourable Francis Rawdon from birth until 1762, Lord Rawdon between 1762 and 1783, The Lord Rawdon from 1783 to 1793 and The Earl of Moira bet ...

he served in the campaign of 1794 in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

and the Netherlands. At the end of the expedition, the 28th bore a distinguished part in Lord Cathcart's action of

Geldermalsen Geldermalsen () is a town and former Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. Town of Geldermalsen The town centre of Geldermalsen contains a two-aisled Got ...

. In 1798 Vivian was transferred to the 7th Light

Dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat wi ...

s (later

Hussars A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...

), and in Sir

Ralph Abercromby Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General Sir Ralph Abercromby, (7 October 173428 March 1801) was a British Army officer, politician and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Trinidad in 1797. Rising to the rank ...

's division was present in the Helder campaign in Holland at the battles of

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

and

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland. Alkmaar is well known fo ...

(19 September to 6 October 1799).

Peninsular War

In 1800, he received his majority, and in 1804 he became lieutenant colonel of the 7th. In command of this regiment he sailed to join Lieutenant-General Sir David Baird at Corunna in 1808, and took part in Lord Henry Paget's cavalry fights at Sahagún and Benavente. During the retreat of Lieut-General Sir John Moore's army the 7th were constantly employed with the rearguard. Vivian was present at the

Battle of Corunna The Battle of Corunna (or ''A Coruña'', ''La Corunna'', ''La Coruña'' or ''La Corogne''), in Spain known as Battle of Elviña, took place on 16 January 1809, when a French corps under Marshal of the Empire Jean de Dieu Soult attacked a Briti ...

, and returned with the remainder of the army to England. It was not until September 1813 that the 7th returned to the

Peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

. On 24 November, Vivian (now colonel and aide-de-camp to the Prince Regent) was appointed to command a light cavalry brigade ( 13th and 14th Light Dragoons) under

Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill General Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill, (11 August 1772 – 10 December 1842) was a British Army officer and politician who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Hill became Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in 1828. Well- ...

in Wellington's army. With this corps he served at the

Battle of the Nive The Battles of the Nive (9–13 December 1813) were fought towards the end of the Peninsular War. Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington's Anglo-Portuguese Army, Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish Army ...

(9–13 December). In January 1814, Vivian transferred to lead a light cavalry brigade in William Carr Beresford's corps. The 1,000-strong unit included the 18th Hussars and the 1st

King's German Legion The King's German Legion (KGL; ) was a formation of the British Army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Consisting primarily of expatriate Germans, it existed from 1803 to 1816 and achieved the distinction of being the on ...

Hussars. Vivian took a marked part in the action of Gave de Pau and the

Battle of Orthez The Battle of Orthez (27 February 1814) saw the Anglo-Spanish-Portuguese Army under Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington attack an Imperial French army led by Marshal Nicolas Soult in southern France. The outnumbered F ...

. On 8 April, Vivian fought a brilliant action at Croix d'Orade on the Ers River, where he was very severely wounded. In this clash, the 18th Hussars seized a key bridge intact, helping

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

to isolate the French defenders of Toulouse. At the beginning of 1815 he was appointed

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

(KCB); he had been a major general for several months.

Waterloo

In April 1815, Sir Hussey Vivian was appointed to command the 6th Brigade of 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, ...

's Cavalry Division. Vivian's brigade included the 10th and 18th Hussars as well as the 1st and 2nd Hussars

. At the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...

the 6th Brigade was posted on the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

's left flank. In the late afternoon, Vivian's regiments, with those of General Ormsby Vandeleur's 4th Brigade, were ordered to move to support the centre of the line, which was under pressure from

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the emperor and/or empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial force ...

. After the enemy were repulsed, Vivian's hussars made the final charge of the day between

Hougoumont Château d'Hougoumont (possibly originally Goumont or Gomont) is a walled manorial compound, situated at the bottom of an escarpment near the Nivelles road in the Braine-l'Alleud municipality, near Waterloo, Belgium. The site served as one o ...

and

La Haye Sainte La Haye Sainte (, , named either after Jesus' crown of thorns or a nearby bramble hedge) is a walled farmhouse compound at the foot of an escarpment near Waterloo, Belgium, on the N5 road connecting Brussels and Charleroi. It has changed very ...

, sweeping the Middle Guard and Line units before them before breaking upon the squares of the Old Guard, which they soon learned to avoid. This service was rewarded by the thanks of both houses of

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, an award of the KCH, and the Orders of

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

and St. Vladimir from the emperors of Austria and Russia. After hostilities had ceased, Vivian remained in France as part of the Army of Occupation in command of the 2nd Brigade of Cavalry. In 1816 he was censured by army commander Lieutenant General Lord Combermere, under orders from the Duke of Wellington, for failing to report a disturbance in a French theatre caused by officers of the 18th Hussars.

Later career

Vivian sat in the House of Commons as member for

and then Windsor from 1821 to 1831, after which he was made commander of the forces in Ireland and given the GCH. He was also appointed to the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

in 1831. From 1825 to 1830 he was Inspector-General of the Cavalry and in 1830 was appointed a

Groom of the Bedchamber Groom of the Chamber was a position in the Royal Household, Household of the monarch in early modern Kingdom of England, England. Other ''Ancien Régime'' royal establishments in Europe had comparable officers, often with similar titles. In King ...

, serving King William IV throughout his reign until 1837, after which he was promoted

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...

(GCB). In 1835 he became

Master-General of the Ordnance The Master-General of the Ordnance (MGO) was a very senior British military position from 1415 to 2013 (except 1855–1895 and 1939–1958) with some changes to the name, usually held by a serving general. The Master-General of the Ordnance was ...

(until 1841) and was sworn of the

Privy Council of the United Kingdom The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are curre ...

the same year. In 1837 he was elected MP for East Cornwall, sitting until 1841. He was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in the County of Cornwall in 1827. In 1841, he was elected to the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

as a Fellow in February and was raised to the peerage as Baron Vivian, of Glynn and of Truro in the County of Cornwall in the

Peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great B ...

in August. A year later he died at

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...

and was succeeded by his eldest son, to whom he also bequeathed his recently acquired estate at Glynn, near Bodmin.

Family

His first marriage in 1804 was to Eliza Champion, daughter of Philip Champion de Crespigny, with whom he had the following children: * Charles Crespigny Vivian, 2nd Baron Vivian (1808–1886) * Charlotte Eliza Vivian (1815–1877), who married General Charles George James Arbuthnot * John Cranch Walker Vivian (1818–1879), Liberal politician * Jane Frances Anne Vivian (1824–1860), who married Henry Hodgetts-Foley * Georgina Agnes Augusta Vivian (1828–1835) He married secondly Letitia Webster, daughter of Rev. James Agnew Webster, and had at least one child: * Lalage Letitia Caroline Vivian (1835–1875), who married Henry Hyde Nugent Bankes A natural son, Sir

Robert Vivian General Sir Robert John Hussey Vivian (1802 – 3 May 1887) was a British officer in the Madras infantry from the Vivian family. Life He was the natural son of Sir Hussey Vivian, 1st Baron Vivian. He was born in 1802 and was brought up as one ...

(1802–1887), was brought up as one of the family. He had a distinguished military career in India.

Notes

References

* * *Glover, Michael. ''The Peninsular War 1807–1814.'' Penguin, 1974. *Oman, Charles. ''Wellington's Army, 1809–1814.'' Greenhill, (1913) 1993. *Smith, Digby. ''The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.'' Greenhill, 1998. * *

External links