Talk:Henry John Elwes

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[edit] Rank

Was he ever Captain H J Elwes (in Sikkim), or was this correspondent of Allan Octavian Hume some other H J Elwes ? Shyamal 03:32, 28 January 2007 (UTC)

H J Elwes was definitely in Sikkim in 1914. He travelled with Aubyn Trevor-Battye who kept a detailed diary (unpublished). They left Darjeeling on March 8th, 1914, travelled into Sikkim, meeting with the young Maharajah-in-waiting, and returned to Darjeeling March 17 or 18. I do not believe that Henry J Elwes ever held the rank of Captain but it may have been a casual courtesy title from some official or civil servant, in the way that many academics are given a courtesy title of 'Professor' even when they are junior to that grade. martinev 14:36, 28 April 2007 (UTC)

I was mistaken: on checking his Memoirs I find that his father got him a commission (Lt.) in the Scots Guards in 1865, soon after he left school (Eton) and there is a photo of him in the uniform of a Captain, Scots Guards, 1869. Apart from a minor role in suppressing civil unrest, he never saw active service and I presume that he resigned or terminated his commission sometime afterwards. martinev 19:53, 17 May 2007 (UTC)