Summary
General Sir John Bell GCB (1 January 1782 – 20 November 1876[1]) was a British soldier and magistrate. At the time of his death, he was the senior general of the British Army.
Sir John Bell | |
|---|---|
 Portrait commissioned by Island of Guernsey | |
| Born | 1 January 1782 St Andrews, Fife |
| Died | 20 November 1876 (aged 94) Belgravia, London |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service/ |  British Army |
| Rank | General |
| Battles/wars | Peninsular War Anglo-American War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Background edit
Born at Bonytoun in the county of Fife, he was the son of David Bell and Janet Duncan.[1] After attending Dundee Academy, he worked first as a merchant and in 1805 entered the British Army as an ensign of the 52nd (Oxfordshire) Regiment of Foot.[1] Bell was known as a witty raconteur, and gifted artist and draughtsman. [2]
Career edit
He went to Sicily a year later and subsequently took part in the Peninsular War until 1814.[3] During this time, he was decorated with the Army Silver Medal with six clasps and received the Army Gold Cross.[3] Bell was wounded in the Battle of Vimeiro in 1808 and was in the war's last years assistant quartermaster-general.[1] In December 1814, he was transferred with his regiment to the United States and was involved in the Anglo-American War until the beginning of the following year.[1][4] After his return to England, he was awarded a Companion of the Order of the Bath.[5]
Bell was sent to the Cape of Good Hope as deputy quartermaster-general in 1821[6] and served as chief secretary to the colony's government from 1828.[7] At that time his nephew Charles Davidson Bell held the post of Surveyor-General in the Cape Colony. He was appointed an aide-de-camp to King William IV of the United Kingdom in 1831 and was promoted to major-general in 1841.[3] He joined the board of general officers in 1847 and was nominated Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey in the following year, holding that office until 1854.[3]
Bell took command of the 95th (Derbyshire) Regiment of Foot in 1850[8] and became a lieutenant-general in 1851.[9] A year later, he was advanced to a Knight Commander of the Bath.[10] In 1853, he received colonelship of the 4th (The King's Own) Regiment of Foot,[11] a command he held until his death in 1876.[12] Bell was further honoured with the Order's Grand Cross in the 1860 Birthday Honours[13] and was promoted to general in June.[14]
Family edit
In 1821, he married Catherine, eldest daughter of James Harris, 1st Earl of Malmesbury.[7] His wife was born in St Petersburg and a godchild of Empress Catherine I of Russia.[1] She died at Upper Hyde Park Street in London in 1855.[15] Bell survived her until 1876, when he died, aged 92, at Cadogan Place.[1] He was interred on Kensal Green Cemetery.[1]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g h Boase, George Clement (1885). . In Stephen, Leslie (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 4. London: Smith, Elder & Co. p. 170.
- ^ "The Life and Work of Charles Bell" - Phillida Brooke Simons (Fernwood Press, 1998)
- ^ a b c d Dod, Robert P. (1865). The Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage of Great Britain and Ireland. London: Whitaker and Co. pp. 112–113.
- ^ *Hart, H. G. (1848). "War Services of the General Officers". The New Annual Army List for 1848. London: John Murray. p. 27. OCLC 1242929486.
- ^ "No. 17061". The London Gazette. 16 September 1815. p. 1880.
- ^ "No. 17703". The London Gazette. 5 May 1821. p. 977.
- ^ a b Walford, Edward (1860). The County Families of the United Kingdom. London: Robert Hardwicke. pp. 44.
- ^ "No. 21109". The London Gazette. 28 June 1850. p. 1812.
- ^ "No. 21262". The London Gazette. 11 November 1851. p. 2965.
- ^ "No. 21307". The London Gazette. 6 April 1852. p. 988.
- ^ "No. 21507". The London Gazette. 30 December 1853. p. 3817.
- ^ "No. 24389". The London Gazette. 1 December 1876. p. 6684.
- ^ "No. 22387". The London Gazette. 18 May 1860. p. 1915.
- ^ "No. 22400". The London Gazette. 3 July 1860. p. 2497.
- ^ The Annual Register 1856. London: F. & J. Rivington. 1856. pp. 333.