Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener
Encyclopedia
Colonel
Henry Elliott Chevallier Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (5 October 1846 - 27 March 1937), was a British
soldier and peer
.
.
He spent his early life in Tralee in Ireland where he and his siblings received their education from governess
es and tutor
s. Kitchener joined the British Army
in 1866 and was commissioned into the 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot
before joining the newly created Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
when it was founded in 1881. He also served alongside his brother in France
during the Franco-Prussian War
of 1870-71. From July 1876 until July 1878 he served as garrison instructor at the Curragh Camp
in Ireland and in 1879 he was appointed the Instructor in military topography
at the Royal Military College a post he held until August 1886.
He saw his first action in Burma with the British Army where he was Chief transport officer of the Field Force's during the Manipur
Expedition in 1891. His was posted to Jamaica
in December 1898 where he was appointed Deputy Assistant Adjutant General for the British colony before receiving his final posting in the Army when he was appointed commander of the Depot
for the West Indies Regiment. He retired from the Army in 1903 with the rank Colonel
.
in the Legislative Council elections but was not elected.
With the outbreak of the First World War he was recalled to the Army and was posted to take up a command post in South West Africa
and he was also put in command of a British Expeditionary Force sent to fight the Germans in East Africa
. On 5 June 1916 he succeeded his younger brother as second Earl Kitchener
according to a special remainder in the letters patent
. In 1918 he left Jamaica
to return to Britain. After the war he moved to Kenya
where he was active in encouraging the settlement of War veterans in the British colony and he also developed a number of Flax
-producing estates in the colony.
Lord Kitchener was married in 1877 to Eleanor Fanny Lushington (died 1897) with whom he had a son and a daughter:
His son and heir Henry Franklin Kitchener, Viscount Broome (1878–1928) predeceased him so his titles passed to his grandson Henry Herbert Kitchener
on his death in 1937 in Nairobi
, Kenya
.
His great granddaughter Emma Joy Kitchener (born 1962) is a lady in waiting to Princess Michael of Kent
and the wife of actor Julian Fellowes
.
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Henry Elliott Chevallier Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (5 October 1846 - 27 March 1937), was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
soldier and peer
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
.
Early life and career
He was the oldest of five children born to Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Horatio Kitchener (1805–1894) and his wife Frances Anne Chevallier (1826–1864). Among his siblings was the famous military commander Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl KitchenerHerbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
.
He spent his early life in Tralee in Ireland where he and his siblings received their education from governess
Governess
A governess is a girl or woman employed to teach and train children in a private household. In contrast to a nanny or a babysitter, she concentrates on teaching children, not on meeting their physical needs...
es and tutor
Tutor
A tutor is a person employed in the education of others, either individually or in groups. To tutor is to perform the functions of a tutor.-Teaching assistance:...
s. Kitchener joined the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in 1866 and was commissioned into the 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot
46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot
The 46th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, created in 1741 and amalgamated into the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry in 1881.-History:...
before joining the newly created Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1959. Its lineage is continued today by The Rifles....
when it was founded in 1881. He also served alongside his brother in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
during the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
of 1870-71. From July 1876 until July 1878 he served as garrison instructor at the Curragh Camp
Curragh Camp
The Curragh Camp is an army base and military college located in The Curragh, County Kildare, Ireland. It is the main training centre for the Irish Army.- Brief history of the Curragh's military heritage :...
in Ireland and in 1879 he was appointed the Instructor in military topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
at the Royal Military College a post he held until August 1886.
He saw his first action in Burma with the British Army where he was Chief transport officer of the Field Force's during the Manipur
Manipur
Manipur is a state in northeastern India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. Manipur is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west; it also borders Burma to the east. It covers an area of...
Expedition in 1891. His was posted to Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
in December 1898 where he was appointed Deputy Assistant Adjutant General for the British colony before receiving his final posting in the Army when he was appointed commander of the Depot
Main Operating Base
Main Operating Base is a term used by the United States military defined as "an overseas, permanently manned, well protected base, used to support permanently deployed forces, and with robust sea and/or air access." This term was used to differentiate major strategic overseas military facilities...
for the West Indies Regiment. He retired from the Army in 1903 with the rank Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
.
Post retirement
After retiring he remained in Jamaica where he was a property owner and he got involved in local politics and contested the St Andrew ParishSaint Andrew Parish, Jamaica
Saint Andrew is a parish, situated in the southeast of Jamaica in the county of Surrey. It lies north, west and east of Kingston, and stretches into the Blue Mountains and at the 2001 census had the highest population of all the parishes in Jamaica. The Right Excellent George William Gordon Saint...
in the Legislative Council elections but was not elected.
With the outbreak of the First World War he was recalled to the Army and was posted to take up a command post in South West Africa
South-West Africa Campaign
The South-West Africa Campaign was the conquest and occupation of German South West Africa, now called Namibia, by forces from the Union of South Africa acting on behalf of the British Imperial Government at the beginning of the First World War.-Background:...
and he was also put in command of a British Expeditionary Force sent to fight the Germans in East Africa
East African Campaign (World War I)
The East African Campaign was a series of battles and guerrilla actions which started in German East Africa and ultimately affected portions of Mozambique, Northern Rhodesia, British East Africa, Uganda, and the Belgian Congo. The campaign was effectively ended in November 1917...
. On 5 June 1916 he succeeded his younger brother as second Earl Kitchener
Earl Kitchener
Earl Kitchener, of Khartoum and of Broome in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The titles Viscount Broome, of Broome in the County of Kent, and Baron Denton, of Denton in the County of Kent, were granted along with the earldom...
according to a special remainder in the letters patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
. In 1918 he left Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
to return to Britain. After the war he moved to Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
where he was active in encouraging the settlement of War veterans in the British colony and he also developed a number of Flax
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
-producing estates in the colony.
Lord Kitchener was married in 1877 to Eleanor Fanny Lushington (died 1897) with whom he had a son and a daughter:
- Henry Franklin Chevallier Kitchener, Viscount Broome (17 Oct 1878 - 13 Jun 1928)
- Lady Nora Fanny Kitchener (1882 - 10 May 1919)
His son and heir Henry Franklin Kitchener, Viscount Broome (1878–1928) predeceased him so his titles passed to his grandson Henry Herbert Kitchener
Henry Kitchener, 3rd Earl Kitchener
Major Henry Herbert Kitchener, 3rd Earl Kitchener DL TD , styled Viscount Broome from 1928 to 1937, is a British peer. He is the son of Captain Henry Franklin Chevallier Kitchener, Viscount Broome, only son of Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener...
on his death in 1937 in Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
.
His great granddaughter Emma Joy Kitchener (born 1962) is a lady in waiting to Princess Michael of Kent
Princess Michael of Kent
Princess Michael of Kent is an Austrian-Hungarian member of the British Royal Family. She is married to Prince Michael of Kent, who is a grandson of King George V....
and the wife of actor Julian Fellowes
Julian Fellowes
Julian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford, DL , known as Julian Fellowes, is an English actor, novelist, film director and screenwriter, as well as a Conservative peer.-Early life:...
.