General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

James Abercrombie or Abercromby (1706 – 23 April 1781) of Glassaugh,

Banffshire Banffshire (; ; ) is a historic county in Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. The historic county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since 1996 the area has been spli ...

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 ...

general and Whig politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

from 1734 to 1754. He was commander-in-chief of forces in North America during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

, best known for the disastrous British losses in the 1758 Battle of Carillon.

Biography

Abercrombie was born in Glassaugh,

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, the eldest son of Alexander Abercromby, also MP for

, and his wife Helen Meldrum. He was appointed an ensign in the 25th Regiment of Foot at age eleven. He married Mary Duff (sister of

William Duff, 1st Earl Fife William Duff, 1st Earl Fife (1697 – 30 September 1763), of Braco, Perth and Kinross, Braco, Banff, was a Scottish landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons from 1727 to 1734. Early life Du ...

) and they had one daughter. At the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of Great Britain, House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scot ...

, he was returned by his brother-in-law, William Duff, later Lord Braco, as Member of Parliament for

. He voted regularly with the Government. Abercrombie was promoted to captain in 1736, and by 1739 was lieutenant-governor of

Stirling castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland. The castle sits atop an Intrusive rock, intrusive Crag and tail, crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill ge ...

. He was re-elected MP for Banff at the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

. In 1742, he purchased a major's commission. He was promoted to colonel in 1746 and served in the Flemish Campaign of the

War of Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King George's War in Nort ...

. He was quartermaster general under General

James St Clair General The Hon. James St Clair (1688 – 30 November 1762) was a Scottish soldier and Whig politician. Background St Clair was the second son of Henry St Clair, 10th Lord Sinclair and his wife Grizel Cockburn, daughter of Sir James Cockbur ...

at the Raid on Lorient in 1746 and was wounded at

Hulst Hulst () is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and city in southwestern Netherlands in the east of Zeelandic Flanders. History Hulst received City rights in the Netherlands, city rights in the 12th century. Hulst Siege of Hulst ...

in 1747. At the

1747 British general election The 1747 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw Hen ...

, he was returned unopposed as MP for Banff as an Old Whig, but stood down in 1754 in favour of Lord Braco's son, now of age. With the outbreak of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

in 1756, Abercrombie was promoted major general and ordered to America as second in command to Lord Loudoun for the upcoming campaigns against the French. Abercrombie commanded a brigade at

Louisbourg Louisbourg is an unincorporated community and former town in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. History The harbour had been used by European mariners since at least the 1590s, when it was known as English Port and Havre à l'An ...

in 1757 and became Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in North America after Loudoun's departure in December. In the summer of 1757, Abercrombie was ordered to lead an expedition against Fort Carillon (later known as Fort Ticonderoga), to prepare to take

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. Abercrombie was a genius at organization but vacillated in his leadership to the point where, after his defeat, he was called ''Mrs. Nanny Cromby''. He managed the remarkable feat of assembling fifteen thousand troops at Fort Edward and moving them and their supplies through the wilderness. Then, after losing

George Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe George Augustus Howe, 3rd Viscount Howe (c. 1725 – 6 July 1758) was a career officer and a brigadier general in the British Army. He was described by James Wolfe as "the best officer in the British Army". He was killed in the French and In ...

, his second-in-command, in a skirmish on 7 July while reconnoitring, he directed his troops on 8 July into a frontal assault on a fortified French position, without the benefit of artillery support. More than two thousand men were killed or wounded. Eventually his force panicked and fled, and he retreated to his fortified camp south of Lake George.Parkman, Francis: "Montcalm and Wolfe" This disaster caused in September 1758 Abercrombie's recall to Great Britain and his replacement by General

Jeffery Amherst Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, (29 January 1717 – 3 August 1797) was a British Army officer and Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the ...

. Despite his failure, he was promoted to lieutenant general in 1759, and general in 1772.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abercrombie, James Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies British Army generals British Army personnel of the War of the Austrian Succession British Army personnel of the French and Indian War 1706 births 1781 deaths People from Banffshire Military personnel from Moray Royal Scots officers Scottish generals 44th Regiment of Foot officers

Biography

See also

References

External links