Thomas Graham, 1st Baron Lynedoch

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Portrait of Thomas Graham from the cover of his biography, published in 1880 by Alexander M. Delavoye.

Thomas Graham, 1st Baron Lynedoch (born October 19, 1748 , †  December 18, 1843 in London ) was a Scottish aristocrat , politician and general.

After training at Oxford University , he inherited large estates on which he settled and married Marry, second daughter of the 9th  Lord Cathcart . But after the death of his wife, he embarked on a military (and later political) career.

Youth and education

Graham was the third and only surviving son of Thomas Græme of Balgowan in Perthshire and Lady Christian Hope, a daughter of the 1st Earl of Hopetoun . Born in 1748, he received private lessons from Rev. Mr. Fraser, Minister of Moneydie , and then from James Macpherson , the collector and translator of Ossian's poems. In 1766 he attended Christ Church College, Oxford , and his father died a year later.

Death of his wife

Marry Graham's health deteriorated in 1792. On the advice of her doctor, she visited the south of France with her husband and sister. Despite this measure, she died on June 26, 1792 on board a ship on the coast near the French port city of Hyères . Her husband placed her remains in a mausoleum he built in Methven Cemetery , Scotland.

The loss of his wife weighed heavily on Thomas Graham. After a twelve-month trip to foreign countries, still in mourning, he decided on a military career.

Military career

Graham joined the British Army as a volunteer and fought in the siege of Toulon in France in 1793 .

After he returned from there, Graham trained - thanks to his deployment in Toulon meanwhile promoted - the first battalion of the 90th regiment, which should prove to be one of the best in the army. In 1796 and 1797 he took part in campaigns by the Austrian army in Italy under General Wurmser and then commanded the blockade of Malta , which surrendered in September 1800 after a two-year siege. Graham served under John Moore in Spain in 1808 and was promoted to lieutenant general in 1810 .

He and his division protected the Spanish junta on Isla de Leon in Cádiz in the spring of 1811 from French attacks and defeated Marshal Victor on March 5, 1811 in the Battle of Barrosa , for which he received thanks from Parliament . In the decisive battle of Vitoria on June 21, 1813, he commanded the left wing under the Duke of Wellington . In January 1814 he landed with 10,000 men in Holland , successfully led the battle at Merxheim together with the Prussian General Thümen and launched an assault on Bergen op Zoom on March 8 , which was however repulsed.

On May 3, 1814, Thomas Graham was promoted to Peer Baron Lynedoch , of Balgowan in the County of Perth , and promoted to General-en-Chef in 1821.

Retirement

Thomas Graham was known for his vitality in old age. He still traveled frequently, visiting Italy, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden and Russia, among others. In 1841, at the age of 93, he traveled through France to Genoa and Rome. His riding horses were sent to Rome, and he rode there regularly too.

He died in his London home in 1843 at the age of 95. His title expired because he left no male descendant.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ No. 16895, p. 956. The London Gazette , May 7, 1814.
  2. ^ Diary of Henry Cockburn, i. 149.
personal data
SURNAME Graham, Thomas, 1st Baron Lynedoch
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Graham, Thomas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish aristocrat, politician and general
DATE OF BIRTH October 19, 1748
DATE OF DEATH December 18, 1843
Place of death London