General Sir William Lumley GCB


The Hon William Lumley was born on 28 Aug 1769. He was the 7th son of Richard Lumley-Saunderson the 4th Earl of Scarborough and his wife Barbara Savile. He was educated at Eton and commissioned as a cornet into the 10th Light Dragoons in 1787. In 1791 he was a lieutenant, and a captain in 1795. In that year he transferred to the 22nd Light Dragoons which had been raised in 1793. He went with them to Ireland where they were needed to quell the rebellion on 1798. He became CO of the 22nd and commanded the cavalry at Antrim in June 1798. Lumley was severely wounded in the action but his leadership of a charge against rebels earned him distinction.

He next served in Egypt in Abercrombie’s successful invasion in 1801. The 22nd LD were disbanded in 1802 but Lumley was in command of Reserves until 1804 and was then promoted to major-general in 1805. The following year he volunteered to take part in the expedition to South Africa, and on 8 Jan 1806 fought at the decisive battle of Blaauwberg near Cape Town which established British Rule there. In 1807 he was in South America with General Whitelocke’s invasion of the River Plate. In 1808 he commanded the cavalry in Sicily and was part of the invasion of Italy under Sir John Stuart.

Lumley did not stop to rest in his military career. In 1810 he was in Spain fighting the French in a campaign that led up to the siege of Badajoz in 1811. In May 1811, at Albuhera, he was given command of the cavalry after Robert Ballard Long was sacked by Sir William Beresford. His support of the flanks in the main assault on the French helped to win the day. Shortly after, he successfully led the cavalry at the Battle of Usagre. By this stage he was unwell and had to be invalided home.

Lumley’s fighting days were over and he was rewarded with various appointments:

1812 Groom of the Bedchamber
1812 Colonel of the Royal West India Rangers
1814 Promoted to Lieutenant-General
1814 Appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB)
1819 Governor of Bermuda (until 1825)
1827 Colonel of the 6th Inniskilling Dragoons. 3 Nov
1831 Elevated to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB)
1837 Promoted to General
1840 Colonel of the 1st Dragoon Guards. 30 April
1842 Retired from military duties

His Governorship of Bermuda ended under a cloud in 1825. He was accused of interfering in the ecclesiastical matters of the island and fined one thousand pounds. He was married twice but had no children. His first wife married him in 1804, Mary Sutherland of Ulverstone, but she died 3 years later. His second wife was Mrs Louisa Margaret Cotton widow of Colonel Lynch Cotton. They married in 1817. General the Hon Sir William Lumley died at his London house in Grosvenor Square on 15 Dec 1850.


Regimental Details | Soldiers


Armed Forces | Art and Culture | Articles | Biographies | Colonies | Discussion | Glossary | Home | Library | Links | Map Room | Sources and Media | Science and Technology | Search | Student Zone | Timelines | TV & Film | Wargames


by Stephen Luscombe