John Lysaght Pennefather
Encyclopedia
General
Sir John Lysaght Pennefather GCB
(9 September 1798 – 9 May 1872) was a British soldier who won two very remarkable victories. Firstly, at Meanee
, India
, where it was said that 500 Irishmen defeated 35,000 Indians. Secondly, at the Battle of Inkerman
, 5 November 1854 during the Crimean War
, where he commanded a division of 3,000 Irishmen fighting in the fog were said to have defeated 35,000 Russians.
and nephew of Richard Pennefather, Baron of the Exchequer of Ireland.
, became a Lieutenant on 20 February 1823, and a Captain on half-pay on 5 November 1825. On 8 April 1826 he was appointed to the 22nd Regiment of Foot (the Cheshire regiment), in which he became Major on 22 March 1831, and Lieutenant-Colonel on 18 October 1839. He rose by the regular grades of promotion without having purchased any of his grades.
Up to this time he had seen no active service, but in 1843 his was the one European regiment in the small force with which Sir Charles Napier
won the battle of Miani
(Meanee) (17 February), and it bore the brunt of that action, in which two thousand men defeated thirty-five thousand. The battalion was about five hundred strong, nearly all Irishmen, like their Colonel and their General. 'The noble soldier, Pennefather' (as Napier described him), fell wounded mortally, it was thought, on the top of the bank which bordered the river-bed and formed the crest of the Baluchis' position. He was made a C.B.
, and received the thanks of Parliament.
In 1848 he gave up the command of the 22nd regiment, and was placed on half-pay, and in the following year he was appointed assistant quartermaster-general in the Cork district. In 1854 he was given command of the first brigade of the second (Sir De Lacy Evans's) division in the army sent to the East, and on 20 June he was made Major-General.
His brigade consisted of the 30th, 55th, and 95th regiments. He commanded it with credit at the battle of the Alma, and in the affair of 26 October, when a sortie in force was made from Sebastopol against the heights held by the second division on the extreme right of the allies. But he had more opportunity of distinguishing himself ten days later, when the attack, for which this sortie was only preparatory, was made by the Russians, and the battle of Inkerman
was fought (5 November).
Owing to the illness of Evans, Pennefather was in command of the division on that day. He had less than three thousand men under him, while thirty-five thousand Russian infantry were converging upon him. On 26 October Evans had drawn up his force on the ridge immediately in front of the camp of the division, and allowed his pickets to be driven in rather than leave his chosen ground. Pennefather adopted an opposite course. He disputed every inch of ground, kept only a few men in hand on the ridge, but pushed forward all the men he could to support his pickets in resisting the several masses of the enemy. The thickness of the weather favoured these tactics, and the result justified them. As reinforcements, English and French, came up, they were similarly thrown forward by fractions. Lord Raglan
was soon on the ground, and Sir De Lacy Evans came up from Balaclava during the course of the morning; but Pennefather was left to direct the fight, so far as any one person could direct it. 'Always undaunted, always kindling with warlike animation, he was a very power in himself.' Even when his radiant countenance could not be seen, there was comfort in the sound of his voice, 'and the "grand old boy's" favourite oaths roaring cheerily down through the smoke'.
The battle lasted about six hours from daybreak to 1 p.m. then the Russians began their retreat, having lost nearly twelve thousand men. Pennefather's 'admirable behaviour' was mentioned in Lord Raglan's despatch. A fortnight afterwards he was given the colonelcy of the 46th regiment, and he succeeded to the command of the second division when Evans returned to England in the latter part of November. He was invalided from the Crimea in July 1855, and on 25 September he was appointed to command the troops in Malta
, with the local rank of Lieutenant-General. He remained there nearly five years, and after a short term of service in the Northern District
, he commanded Aldershot Division
from 1860 to 1865.
He exchanged the colonelcy of the 46th for that of his old regiment, the 22nd, on 13 February 1860. On 12 November of that year he became Lieutenant-General on the establishment, and on 9 May 1868 he became General
. He had been made a K.C.B.
on 5 July 1855, and received the G.C.B.
on 13 May 1867. He was also a commander of the Sardinian Order of St. Maurice and St. Lazarus, a Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour, and in the Second Class of the Order of the Medjidie. He was Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
from 1870 until his death in 1872.
He died on 9 May 1872, and was buried in Brompton Cemetery
. In 1834 he had married Katherine, eldest daughter of John Carr, Esq., of Mountrath, Queen's County.
General (United Kingdom)
General is currently the highest peace-time rank in the British Army and Royal Marines. It is subordinate to the Army rank of Field Marshal, has a NATO-code of OF-9, and is a four-star rank....
Sir John Lysaght Pennefather GCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(9 September 1798 – 9 May 1872) was a British soldier who won two very remarkable victories. Firstly, at Meanee
Battle of Miani
The Battle of Miani was a battle between British forces under Sir Charles Napier and the Talpur Amirs of Sindh, Pakistan.-Background:...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, where it was said that 500 Irishmen defeated 35,000 Indians. Secondly, at the Battle of Inkerman
Battle of Inkerman
The Battle of Inkerman was fought during the Crimean War on November 5, 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 was followed by the Siege of Sevastopol...
, 5 November 1854 during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, where he commanded a division of 3,000 Irishmen fighting in the fog were said to have defeated 35,000 Russians.
Early life
He was born on 9 September 1798, the third son of Rev. John Pennefather of County TipperaryCounty Tipperary
County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...
and nephew of Richard Pennefather, Baron of the Exchequer of Ireland.
Career
He entered the army on 14 January 1818 as a Cornet in the 7th Dragoon Guards7th Dragoon Guards
The 7th Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated into the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards in 1922....
, became a Lieutenant on 20 February 1823, and a Captain on half-pay on 5 November 1825. On 8 April 1826 he was appointed to the 22nd Regiment of Foot (the Cheshire regiment), in which he became Major on 22 March 1831, and Lieutenant-Colonel on 18 October 1839. He rose by the regular grades of promotion without having purchased any of his grades.
Up to this time he had seen no active service, but in 1843 his was the one European regiment in the small force with which Sir Charles Napier
Charles James Napier
General Sir Charles James Napier, GCB , was a general of the British Empire and the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in India, notable for conquering the Sindh Province in what is now Pakistan.- His genealogy :...
won the battle of Miani
Battle of Miani
The Battle of Miani was a battle between British forces under Sir Charles Napier and the Talpur Amirs of Sindh, Pakistan.-Background:...
(Meanee) (17 February), and it bore the brunt of that action, in which two thousand men defeated thirty-five thousand. The battalion was about five hundred strong, nearly all Irishmen, like their Colonel and their General. 'The noble soldier, Pennefather' (as Napier described him), fell wounded mortally, it was thought, on the top of the bank which bordered the river-bed and formed the crest of the Baluchis' position. He was made a C.B.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, and received the thanks of Parliament.
In 1848 he gave up the command of the 22nd regiment, and was placed on half-pay, and in the following year he was appointed assistant quartermaster-general in the Cork district. In 1854 he was given command of the first brigade of the second (Sir De Lacy Evans's) division in the army sent to the East, and on 20 June he was made Major-General.
His brigade consisted of the 30th, 55th, and 95th regiments. He commanded it with credit at the battle of the Alma, and in the affair of 26 October, when a sortie in force was made from Sebastopol against the heights held by the second division on the extreme right of the allies. But he had more opportunity of distinguishing himself ten days later, when the attack, for which this sortie was only preparatory, was made by the Russians, and the battle of Inkerman
Battle of Inkerman
The Battle of Inkerman was fought during the Crimean War on November 5, 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 was followed by the Siege of Sevastopol...
was fought (5 November).
Owing to the illness of Evans, Pennefather was in command of the division on that day. He had less than three thousand men under him, while thirty-five thousand Russian infantry were converging upon him. On 26 October Evans had drawn up his force on the ridge immediately in front of the camp of the division, and allowed his pickets to be driven in rather than leave his chosen ground. Pennefather adopted an opposite course. He disputed every inch of ground, kept only a few men in hand on the ridge, but pushed forward all the men he could to support his pickets in resisting the several masses of the enemy. The thickness of the weather favoured these tactics, and the result justified them. As reinforcements, English and French, came up, they were similarly thrown forward by fractions. Lord Raglan
FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan
Field Marshal FitzRoy James Henry Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan, GCB, PC , known before 1852 as Lord FitzRoy Somerset, was a British soldier.-Early life:...
was soon on the ground, and Sir De Lacy Evans came up from Balaclava during the course of the morning; but Pennefather was left to direct the fight, so far as any one person could direct it. 'Always undaunted, always kindling with warlike animation, he was a very power in himself.' Even when his radiant countenance could not be seen, there was comfort in the sound of his voice, 'and the "grand old boy's" favourite oaths roaring cheerily down through the smoke'.
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, with the local rank of Lieutenant-General. He remained there nearly five years, and after a short term of service in the Northern District
Northern Command (United Kingdom)
-Nineteenth century:The District Commands of the British Army in Great Britain and Ireland first appear in print in 1840, at which time Northern Command was held by Maj-Gen Charles James Napier, appointed in 1838. During his time the troops stationed within Northern Command were frequently deployed...
, he commanded Aldershot Division
Aldershot Command
-History:After the success of the Chobham Manoeuvres of 1853, a permanent training camp was established at Aldershot in 1854 on the recommendation of the Commander-in-Chief, Viscount Hardinge...
from 1860 to 1865.
He exchanged the colonelcy of the 46th for that of his old regiment, the 22nd, on 13 February 1860. On 12 November of that year he became Lieutenant-General on the establishment, and on 9 May 1868 he became General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
. He had been made a K.C.B.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
on 5 July 1855, and received the G.C.B.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
on 13 May 1867. He was also a commander of the Sardinian Order of St. Maurice and St. Lazarus, a Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour, and in the Second Class of the Order of the Medjidie. He was Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
Royal Hospital Chelsea
The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for British soldiers who are unfit for further duty due to injury or old age, located in the Chelsea region of central London, now the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is a true hospital in the original sense of the word,...
from 1870 until his death in 1872.
He died on 9 May 1872, and was buried in Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery is located near Earl's Court in South West London, England . It is managed by The Royal Parks and is one of the Magnificent Seven...
. In 1834 he had married Katherine, eldest daughter of John Carr, Esq., of Mountrath, Queen's County.