John Hope, 4th Earl of Hopetoun
John Hope, 4th Earl of Hopetoun, (born August 17, 1765 in South Queensferry , Scotland , † August 27, 1823 in Paris ) was a British general of the Napoleonic period from Scotland.
Hope's apprenticeship
Hope was the son of John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun , and his second wife Jean Oliphant. He joined the British Army on May 28, 1784 and served up to lieutenant colonel until 1793. In the beginning war with France he organized a regiment from Plymouth until 1795 , which served as reinforcement of the troops deployed by Admiral Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood . In the summer of 1793 he gained his first experience at the front in Flanders when he observed the unsuccessful fight between Friedrich August, Duke of York and Albany , who was under the overall command of the Imperial Field Marshal Prince Friedrich Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld .
Battle for the West Indies
Its first real deployment took place on a side war theater. His regiment, consisting of 600 inexperienced men, was sent to Grenada for reinforcement . A rebellion organized by the French spread there. An attack on St. Catherine failed due to uncoordinated action, which gave further impetus to the rebellion. Hope became infected with yellow fever and had to return to Great Britain in April 1795. In October 1795 a large expedition of 18,000 men was equipped for the battle for the West Indies under Sir Ralph Abercromby , who also belonged to Hope, who was now adjutant-general. But this left too late. Adverse winds held up a large part of the fleet, and only a few ships made it to Barbados in the winter . Hope was on one of them. He reorganized the various units, which gradually grew to 6,000 men. Proper activities could only begin in April 1796, with the arrival of the main fleet and the commanding officer Abercromby. Hope only commanded a regiment on landing on St. Lucia . Otherwise he was entrusted with logistical tasks. In addition to St. Luica, St. Vincent and Grenada were recaptured. Most of the troops were subsequently carried away by yellow fever. Hope stayed in Barbados until January 1797, participated in an unsuccessful campaign to conquer Puerto Rico , and then returned to Great Britain with Abercromby in August.
Use in Ireland
Abercromby was tasked with pacifying Ireland. Hope, as adjutant-general, the inspection of the British outposts there was assigned. In the summer of 1798 Hope married Elizabeth Hope-Vere († March 20, 1801) in Scotland, but soon had to return to Ireland.
Unsuccessful operation in Holland
Meanwhile the First Coalition's war came to an unfavorable end. Great Britain feared an invasion by the French. But Bonaparte turned to Egypt, whereupon the second coalition was formed, which wanted to take advantage of his absence. In the autumn of 1799, Britain, with the help of the Russians, carried out a hasty invasion of Holland, under Abercromby and then the Duke of York. This failed after initial success and claimed around 10,000 victims among the British. In addition to the poorly organized supplies, a lack of solidarity between the Dutch and the invading force was identified as the cause. Hope attended and was wounded in one leg.
Formation of the Mediterranean Army
In the spring of 1800, the Austrians and Russians pushed the French out of Italy. Great Britain decided to support this approach through a Mediterranean army. Abercromby, and with him in turn as adjutant-general Hope, were to work with the Austrians. In addition to Italy, attention should also be paid to the Malta base and the French army in Egypt. Malta was liberated, but the battle of Marengo lost by the Austrians and the subsequent armistice made the operation in Italy pointless. Hope was commissioned to convince the Austrians to lift the armistice, which he did not succeed. Meanwhile, Abercromby, who now had 21,000 men at their disposal, was planning to attack Cadiz . Hope was supposed to unite with him, but was held up due to adverse winds. Abercromby broke off the ill-prepared landing when he realized that the Navy was not cooperating enough.
The campaign in Egypt
It wasn't until October 1800 that Hope and Abercromby met in Gibraltar . The French should now be pushed out of the Middle East with the support of the Turks. The British wanted to land at Alexandria . This time the operation was carefully planned, coordinated with the Navy, and trained through maneuvers. In addition, the troops were given enough regeneration time after the crossings and sufficient supplies were organized. Hope was responsible for coordinating the reconnaissance, the replenishment and partly also for the training measures. From Malta on December 20, 1800, 14,500 men first went to Marmaris Bay (north of Rhodes in Turkey near Marmaris ). In order not to lose the support of the Turks, as it was Ramadan , the landing did not take place until March 7, 1801 in the Abukir Bay (for the prehistory see Battle of Abukir and Battle of Abukir (1799) ), but it hit the French not unprepared. Fighting broke out, but despite high French casualties, the Nicopolis Heights near Alexandria could not be overcome. Abercromby was fatally wounded in those skirmishes. Hope also received a severe wound on one hand. General John Hely-Hutchinson, 2nd Earl of Donoughmore , became the new commander in chief. When Ali Pasha arrived on March 25th with 4,000 Turks, Hutchinson decided first to take the positions in the delta and to guard the Nicopolis Heights with only one siege force. The positions in the delta were captured with almost no fighting as the French withdrew. Since the Turks from Syria marched on Cairo , Hutchinson felt compelled to support them, as it was assumed that the Turks would not stand a chance on their own. The troops united at Cairo on June 16, 1801 and began the siege. Hope had joined them again in the meantime. Cairo surrendered on the condition that the approximately 14,000 men of the crew would be brought to France along with their equipment at the expense of the British. Hope conducted these surrender negotiations. Jacques-François Menou , the commander in Alexandria, was very angry about this, but when the British at the end of July, after both General Baird had arrived with a force from India and additional reinforcements from Great Britain, could only capitulate with his 11,000 men. especially since the British Navy successfully stopped French ships and a large part of the supplies were in Cairo. Hope conducted these negotiations as well and the same conditions were agreed as in Cairo. The repatriation of the French and most of the British dragged on until the end of 1801. Hope remained in Alexandria until the peace with France on March 25, 1802.
The expedition to Sweden
In May 1803 the war with France broke out again. Hope was stationed at Camp Weeley near Colchester until 1808 , where he trained troops. In February 1803 he married Louisa Dorothia Wedderburn, with whom he had 12 children. The peace of Tilsit in July 1807 left Great Britain with only two allies, namely Sweden and Portugal. The Russians attacked the Swedes in February 1808 and Denmark, under pressure from the French, declared war on the Swedes. The British sent 10,000 men under the command of General John Moore to assist. Hope, now Lieutenant General, went with him. However, no agreement could be reached with the Swedes, as they only wanted to take over the supply of the troops if Denmark were to be attacked, which the British refused. As a result, Gustav IV even refused to land in Gothenburg . While Moore was negotiating in Stockholm , Hope was in charge of the army. The unsuccessful negotiations dragged on until the beginning of July 1808 and the fleet finally returned to Portsmouth.
The use in Portugal
The expedition to Portugal, under the command of Sir Hew Dalrymple, began at the end of July 1808. General Artur Wellesley (Wellington) had already landed and Hope and Moore were to support him near Lisbon. Wellington has already defeated the French and it was again stipulated in the Cintra Convention that the French would be brought to France with their equipment. The French were to be gradually replaced by the British. Only after the French had withdrawn completely should the positions be handed over to the Portuguese in order to avoid encroachments. Hope was entrusted with the organization. He was also supposed to set up a new Portuguese government that was well-disposed towards the British. When the French surrendered control to the British on September 15, 1808, and the Portuguese government was not yet complete, Hope practically became King of Portugal. The trial was completed on September 21, 1808 and Hope returned to his troops to evacuate a French force stationed in Elvas , southeast of the Spanish border . Moore was sent with the rest of the troops to the northeast to Almeida .
The disaster in Spain
Even during the British successes in Portugal, the Spaniards rose up against the French and the British support them. Napoleon intervened here himself. General Moore, now the commander in chief on the Iberian Peninsula, was supposed to march into Spain. Part of the force, with most of the artillery and cavalry, was stationed under Hope at Elvas. Since Moore did not expect an attack by the French until the spring and was counting on the support of the Spanish army, he let the troops march off separately as they were. They should first unite at Salamanca . Shortly thereafter, Moore received the news that the Spaniards were defeated on the Ebro on November 9, 1808 and could no longer cover the advance. Hope should therefore force his march. Hope managed to bypass the French north of Madrid because Napoleon assumed the British were withdrawing and therefore did not see them as a threat. Moore originally planned this too, after the rapid successes of the French, but was convinced that it would be better to support Madrid. The decision came too late; all the passes to Madrid were meanwhile occupied by the French. He wanted to relieve a contingent of troops under Soult , who was ordered to occupy León attack. Contrary to the Spanish promises, Madrid fell on December 4, 1808. Smaller skirmishes showed the French that the British army was not withdrawing and Napoleon marched against them. When the British heard of Napoleon's coming on December 22nd, 1808, the attack on Soult near Carriòn was stopped and the retreat to the coast of A Coruña was initiated. At least the goal of stopping Napoleon's advance south was achieved. Rain, mud, cold, lack of supplies, attacks by the French (Napoleon had to return to Paris and Soult was in charge of the operation) and a lack of support from the Spaniards, who were upset because of the British withdrawal, made the march difficult. Most of the horses, many men and the women and children accompanying them in the train died on the march. On January 11, 1809, La Coruña, where supplies were also stored, was reached and an effective defense could be organized. The fleet arrived on January 14th. Since there was not enough space, some of the cannons were destroyed and the horses and mules on the cliffs, so that they fell directly into the ocean, were shot. Hope meanwhile was responsible for the left defensive flank at Elvina . When Soult began the Battle of La Coruña on January 16, as he advanced, General Baird was wounded and General Moore was killed. Hope became commander in chief. The attack could be repulsed. Hope decided to load the troops onto the ships that night. The loading continued until 3 p.m. The French managed to sink three transporters with cannons and a storm sank two more ships on the way home. For Hope's accomplishments, as disastrous as the campaign ended, he was awarded membership in the Order of the Bath .
The unsuccessful attack on Antwerp
Great Britain still remained the dominant force at sea and a base of operations in Portugal. Now a large French ship production near Antwerp was to be destroyed. For this, however, a regeneration of the troops was necessary first. On the other hand, it was necessary to support the fifth coalition , which was formed on April 9, 1809. Wellington was sent to Portugal to tie up French troops in Spain (for example the Battle of Talavera ). The Austrians unexpectedly struck the French near Vienna and Napoleon summoned troops from Holland. Here the British saw an opportunity to take action against Antwerp, although the troops were still not sufficiently prepared. John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham , commanded the expedition, which was supposed to end before reinforcements arrived. First of all , the forts on some islands on the Scheldt , such as Walcheren , Zuid-Beveland and Cadzand , had to be captured so that the navy could operate unhindered. In order to use the surprise effect and thus avoid a prolonged siege, all three islands should be attacked simultaneously. King Louis was in charge of the defense of Holland and expected such an attack. He was able to have the defense partially expanded, but by far did not have enough troops. Napoleon did not want to endanger his struggle on the continent, but promised to react immediately if the British took action.
Although Napoleon now defeated the Austrians at Wagram , the British began the operation on July 28, 1809. The French ships withdrew downriver into the protection of forts located there. The landing at Cadzand had to be postponed due to adverse winds and by the time it could begin on August 3, too many reinforcements had arrived. This part of the operation was therefore canceled. The landing on Walcheren was successful, but the main fort Vlissingen withstood a long siege, also due to the failure on Cadzand. Hope was responsible for landing on Zuid-Beveland, but encountered no resistance. Contrary to the orders, even Fort Batz was evacuated by the French commander, although it would have held up the British for a long time. In the following years he therefore had little to do from a military point of view. The British lost too much time with the siege of Vlissingen. It capitulated on August 18, but an attack on Antwerp was too risky by now. On the one hand, the French were clearly in the majority with around 100,000 men, even if they were barely trained, and on the other hand, malaria spread, which later affected around 40% of the troops and killed 4,000 men. The operation was canceled, only Vlissingen was to remain an object of negotiation. Since Hope knew his way around Zuid-Beveland best, he was hired to cover the retreat. Hope returned to the UK on September 10th. After the Fifth Coalition ended on October 14, 1809 with the Peace of Schönbrunn , the British also left the Vlissingen post, which had become pointless.
Commander in Chief in Ireland
Wellington has since achieved some minor successes in Spain. Hope's higher rank over Wellington prevented an immediate deployment in Spain, as Wellington wanted to be retained as commander-in-chief. It was not until 1812 that Hope was reinstated as commander-in-chief of 18,000 men in Ireland. This force was far too small to fight the uprisings. So he worked closely with Sir Robert Peel , the Chief Secretary of Ireland, to raise a local army and police force.
Battle on French soil
Meanwhile Napoleon was defeated in Russia and the sixth coalition was formed. While the main battle came to a head at the Battle of Leipzig , a second front was established in Spain, which was to invade southern France. Under the command of Wellington, which also included Spaniards, Portuguese and the King's German Legion , the French were pushed back further and further (see the Battle of Salamanca and the Battle of Vitoria ). Fort San Sebastián in northeastern Spain surrendered on August 31, 1813, and the road to France was open. Wellington was now promoted to Field Marshal, no lower in rank than Hope. Wellington requested him to replace Sir Thomas Graham , in command of the left wing. In addition, Hope was appointed deputy commanding officer in Spain. He arrived in San Sebastián on October 5, 1813. Wellington decided to proceed on the coast because it had the navy to support and also did not have to cross the Pyrenees. This was also clear to the French responsible there, Marshal Soult, who with his few troops (53,000 men) set up his first solid line of defense on the Bidasoa . The second line of defense was built on the Nivelle and the last and strongest on the Nive - Adour . Fort Bayonne was the center of defense. Soult had to leave the rest of the territories almost undefended so that if the Allies overcame this hurdle, they would face little resistance in southern France.
Overcoming the first line of defense was scheduled for October 7, 1813. Since Hope had just arrived, Graham still led the left wing and Hope only took over his post afterwards. The French were caught by surprise and had to retreat to the second line of defense. Wellington only wanted to advance after Fort Pamplona had fallen, since a third of his troops were tied there. Hope, now in charge, built a line of defense in case of a counterattack. Spanish troops began to pillage the captured French cities, and Wellington had to move some of these troops back to Spanish territory. Hope was responsible for the implementation.
After the Battle of the Nations near Leipzig from October 16-19, 1813, many German states passed from France to the Allies. So did German troops who were under Soult's command in southern France. Pamplona surrendered on October 30th. Soult had 66,000 men on the second line of defense and Wellington, including 22,000 Spaniards, 82,000 men. Hope was to carry out a mock attack on Saint-Jean-de-Luz on November 8, 1813 with 19,000 men , occupy the heights near Ciboure and prevent supplies for the center. For this purpose he got additional artillery and cavalry available. The main attack was to take place at Saint-Pée-sur-Nivelle .
Due to the weather, the attack had to be postponed to November 10, 1813. Hope's attack on Urogne and then towards Ciboure was a success. The French gathered troops and cannons in front of Saint-Jean-de-Luz to stop the attack. Hope prepared for the counterattack, but there were only minor skirmishes. The navy also took part in the mock attack with some ships. This tie-up gave Wellington a threefold superiority in his attack. The attack on Amotz went smoothly and the objective there, securing the bridge, was achieved at 11 a.m. The French had to withdraw in order not to be trapped in their defensive positions. In the evening the French only held the position at Saint-Jean-de-Luz, which they vacated during the night. Hope occupied the city the next morning, had the destroyed bridge there repaired and, in bad weather, advanced towards Bayonne. The Allies' right flank also marched on Bayonne. Hope's front reached as far as Arcangues . He himself then returned to Saint-Jean-de-Luz to organize the supplies.
The loss of the Allies was limited, but the French still had a large army at their disposal and thus the potential to launch a counterattack. Therefore, the local population should be treated as gently as possible in order not to let resistance struggles arise in the first place. The looting of the Spanish and Portuguese troops, caused by hatred or lack of food, had to be stopped. As a result, Wellington executed several soldiers and withdrew the Spanish troops again. Continuous rain made the streets impassable. The Allies now settled in winter quarters while maintaining defensive positions.
Wellington was not happy with Hill's position on the right wing at Nive. She was vulnerable. If he could conquer Saint-Pierre , the French would have to retreat further in the east, since the main supply route would then be threatened. Since the weather improved at the beginning of December, he planned an attack for December 9, 1813. Again Hope, with 24,000 men, near Bayonne, was to carry out a massive mock attack in order to tie up as many troops as possible. Hill and Beresford were to cross the river near Cambo and Ustaritz and then march to the Adour. If Hope encountered massive resistance or the mission in the east was completed, he should withdraw. Hope let the troops advance slowly to allow the French to retreat to Bayonne. The right wing encountered little resistance, and after its mission was reached, Hope was able to withdraw, albeit in bad weather. Soult knew now, however, that the Nive had split the Allies in two, and decided to attack Hope's wing with his entire force the next day. Bad weather and unclear terrain hindered the French advance more than the surprised defenders commanded by Hope. In the next few days there was heavy fighting in the confusing terrain, with a French success just being averted. Hope was wounded in the process and later had to be treated several times. Other German units also defected to the Allies. Both sides lost about 5,000 men. The way to the French plain was now clear for the Allies. In order to be able to better counter further counter-attacks, a flag system was developed, which should be passed on from elevated positions to other troop units. One problem for Wellington was that Hope personally kept coming within range of the French. Hope was later often reprimanded for the lack of preparation for the counterattack, but also for the coordination he carried out on it and for having fulfilled all of his assigned tasks.
Hope's men returned to their positions before the battle for the rest of the year. For Soult, the situation worsened when Napoleon withdrew 10,000 men to keep the French border in the east. An attempt by Napoleon, through the agreement of Valençay , to induce Spain to desert, failed. In addition to supplies, Wellington also received gold to pay for his troops, which enabled him to use the Spaniards again after supplying them with money and making them less prone to plunder.
Wellington decided to have Bayonne besieged with 28,000 men by Hope and invaded France with the rest of the army from February 15, 1814. Soult followed this, leaving only one crew in Bayonne. Hope was still barely able to stand up from his leg treatment.
Since the Adour was too wide, to the west of Bayonne, a boat bridge was to be built with the help of the navy instead of the usual pontoons in order to secure supplies, not only for the siege, but also for Wellington's army, until the fortress was fallen . As the level of the river fluctuated greatly during the day, this was a complicated task. Vice Admiral Vinicome Penrose was hired to help Hope build the bridge. The preparatory work was carried out in Fort Socoa near Saint-Jean-de-Luz, and the fleet started on February 22, 1814 for its destination on the Adour. Meanwhile Hope secured the building site, which was threatened by French gunships. In addition, he had a smaller contingent of troops translated, with diversionary attacks being carried out all over the front. The construction of the bridge and the barrier further upstream to protect against French ships, which were also covered by gunboats, were completed by February 26, 1814. The French could not stop the advance, but used the time to strengthen their external defenses.
Meanwhile, Wellington prepared a battle against Soult at Orthez 130 km away and withdrew troops from Hope's command. Hope launched an attack on Bayonne on February 27, 1814, narrowing the siege ring. In the process he lost 500 men. Wellington won the Battle of Orthez and continued to invade France. The bridge became an important route for supplies.
Hope now started the excavation work around the citadel. The French disrupted this, but waited for the right moment, namely as late as possible, in order to destroy the efforts with a major failure. He also organized supplies, not only for the siege, but also for Wellington's troops. He only had part of the navy to help, as the Adour was only safely passable at certain times. Hope was ordered to send a cavalry unit to Bordeaux, which was believed to be the center of the royalists, to see if they would encounter any resistance. Since this was not the case, Wellington ordered Marshal Beresford and his troops to Bordeaux. The city capitulated without a fight on March 12, 1814. On April 6, 1814 Napoleon abdicated. The hostilities around Bayonne continued, however, because the commander there did not believe the news from the British and would only capitulate on instructions from Soult. Wellington expelled Soult from Toulouse on April 10, 1814 , when the news of the abdication arrived there. As a result, he negotiated a peace treaty with Soult. Meanwhile the French commander of Bayonne was preparing a sortie with 5,400 men and 20 gunboats for April 14, 1814. Although a deserter had informed the Allies of this shortly beforehand, countermeasures began, because some of them were not believed, only some of them or the news was not passed on to Hope quickly enough. Its countermeasures were only just beginning when the French, who had noticed the missing man and had therefore brought the attack forward to 3 a.m., attacked. Hope was captured and wounded by the French in the battle. An hour after the surprise attack, the Allies recovered and began to push back on the French. At eight o'clock the French had retired to the citadel. About 150 allies were killed, 450 wounded and 200 captured. The French lost a similar amount. The destruction caused by the French could be repaired within 24 hours. This battle went down in history as the last clash of the war on the Iberian Peninsula. Not until April 22, 1814, a message from Soult reached the garrison in Bayonne, whereupon this surrendered on April 28, 1814.
Hope's further work and death
This also ended Hope's active military career. He returned to Great Britain on June 6, 1814. For his achievements he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Bath and he was appointed Baron Niddry , of Niddry Castle in the County of Linlithgow . He never fully recovered from his wounds. He was politically active in Scotland and became director of the Royal Bank of Scotland . When his half-brother died in 1817, he inherited the title of Earl of Hopetoun . It was a great honor for Hope when George IV , during his visit to Scotland in 1822, the first visit by a British king since 1652, also came to Hopetoun's house for breakfast. In 1823 he went on a trip to France with two of his sons. While Wellington was in Paris, he was publicly insulted by the son of a French marshal. Since Wellington could not duel himself due to his position in the British government, King George had brought the matter to Hope during his stay in Hopetoun. Hope now dueled in Paris and was wounded in the process. As a result, a fever that had broken out on the crossing worsened and he died on August 27, 1823 in Paris. He was buried on October 1, 1823 on his estate.
In 1821 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh .
literature
- Paul P. Reese: The life and career of general Sir John Hope. Dissertation. Florida State University, 2007. (PDF file; 15.5 MB)
- On Wellington's overcoming the defense of the Pyrenees : John Murray: Campaign of the Left Wing of the Allied Army, in The Western Pyrenees and South of France, in the Years 1813-14. London 1823.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Fellows Directory. Biographical Index: Former RSE Fellows 1783–2002. (PDF file) Royal Society of Edinburgh, accessed December 21, 2019 .
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| New title created |
Baron Niddry 1814-1823 |
John Hope |
| James Hope-Johnstone |
Earl of Hopetoun 1817-1823 |
John Hope |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Hope, John, 4th Earl of Hopetoun |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British general |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 17th August 1765 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | South Queensferry Scotland |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 27, 1823 |
| Place of death | Paris |