John Michel
Encyclopedia
Field Marshal
Sir John Michel GCB
, PC
(1 September 1804 – 23 May 1886) was a British Army
officer.
, Michel was commissioned into the 64th Regiment of Foot
in 1823. In 1835 he was appointed Aide-de-Camp
to General Sir Henry Fane
in India
. He was appointed Commanding Officer
of the 6th Regiment of Foot and was sent to South Africa
where he commanded his Regiment in the Kaffir Wars
. In 1858 he arrived in India
where he commanded the forces pursuing Tantya Tope and in 1860 he became Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong
in which role he burnt the Old Summer Palace
at Peking as a reprisal for the torture and murder of British prisoners.
In 1865 he was placed in the command of the forces in British North America
, succeeding Lieutenant-General Sir William Williams. In this capacity, Michel played a key role in the organization of the militia volunteers in resistance to the Fenian raids
invasions in 1866. From 1875 to 1880, he was the Commander-in-Chief, Ireland
. In 1885, he was made a Field Marshal.
Field Marshal (UK)
Field Marshal is the highest military rank of the British Army. It ranks immediately above the rank of General and is the Army equivalent of an Admiral of the Fleet and a Marshal of the Royal Air Force....
Sir John Michel 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...
, PC
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
(1 September 1804 – 23 May 1886) was a 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...
officer.
Military career
Educated at Eton CollegeEton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, Michel was commissioned into the 64th Regiment of Foot
64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot
The 64th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was created as the 2nd Battalion, 11th Regiment of Foot in 1756, redesignated as the 64th Regiment of Foot in 1758, and took a county title as the 64th Regiment of Foot in 1782...
in 1823. In 1835 he was appointed Aide-de-Camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to General Sir Henry Fane
Henry Fane (general)
General Sir Henry Fane GCB commanded brigades under Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington during several battles during the Peninsular War, and served both as a member of Parliament and Commander-in-Chief of India....
in 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...
. He was appointed Commanding Officer
Commanding officer
The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
of the 6th Regiment of Foot and was sent to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
where he commanded his Regiment in the Kaffir Wars
Xhosa wars
The Xhosa Wars, also known as the Cape Frontier Wars, were a series of nine wars between the Xhosa people and European settlers, from 1779 to 1879 in what is now the Eastern Cape in South Africa....
. In 1858 he arrived in 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 he commanded the forces pursuing Tantya Tope and in 1860 he became Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong
Commander British Forces in Hong Kong
The Commander British Forces in Hong Kong was a senior British Army officer who acted as Military Advisor to the Governor of Hong Kong.-Structure:...
in which role he burnt the Old Summer Palace
Old Summer Palace
The Old Summer Palace, known in China as Yuan Ming Yuan , and originally called the Imperial Gardens, was a complex of palaces and gardens in Beijing...
at Peking as a reprisal for the torture and murder of British prisoners.
In 1865 he was placed in the command of the forces in British North America
British North America
British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...
, succeeding Lieutenant-General Sir William Williams. In this capacity, Michel played a key role in the organization of the militia volunteers in resistance to the Fenian raids
Fenian raids
Between 1866 and 1871, the Fenian raids of the Fenian Brotherhood who were based in the United States; on British army forts, customs posts and other targets in Canada, were fought to bring pressure on Britain to withdraw from Ireland. They divided many Catholic Irish-Canadians, many of whom were...
invasions in 1866. From 1875 to 1880, he was the Commander-in-Chief, Ireland
Commander-in-Chief, Ireland
Commander-in-Chief, Ireland was title of the commander of British forces in Ireland before 1922.The role nominally is held by the President of Ireland today as the supreme commander of the Defence Forces.-Commanders-in-Chief, Ireland, 1700-1922:...
. In 1885, he was made a Field Marshal.