Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby
| Sir Frederick Ponsonby | |
|---|---|
| Born | 6 July 1783 |
| Died | 11 January 1837 |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch |
 British Army |
| Rank | Major-General |
| Battles/wars |
Peninsular War Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards |
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath |
Major-General The Honourable Sir Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby, GCMG, KCB, KCH (6 July 1783 – 11 January 1837), styled The Honourable from 1806 to 1837, was a British military officer, the second son of the 3rd Earl of Bessborough and Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough.
Early career
Educated at Harrow, he joined the army as a cornet (military rank) in January 1800, serving in the 10th Light Dragoons. He was promoted lieutenant in June 1800 and Captain on 20 August 1803. He exchanged to the 60th Regiment of Foot in April 1806 and served on the staff of the Duke of Bedford, then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Promoted major on 25 June 1807, he went into the 23rd Light Dragoons on 6 August 1809 and went with them to serve in the Peninsular War.[1]
He fought well at Talavera. He was promoted lieutenant colonel on 15 March 1810, and served as assistant adjutant-general at Buçaco and Barrosa, directing a successful charge by a squadron of the 2nd Regiment of Hussars (KGL) against the French dragoons. He was given command of the 12th Light Dragoons on 11 June 1811.[2]
After the fall of Badajoz, he distinguished himself in the battle of Villagarcia (or Llerena) on 11 April 1812, temporarily commanding Anson's brigade. Ordered by Sir Stapleton Cotton to detain a superior force of French cavalry under Charles Lallemand, he successfully delayed them until reinforcements could arrive to flank the French and pursue them into Llerena.[2]
He led the 12th Light Dragoons to disperse some of the broken French infantry after the Battle of Salamanca, and was wounded while covering the withdrawal from Burgos. At Vitoria, his regiment was part of the force, under Sir Thomas Graham, that blocked the French retreat towards Bayonne. He took part in the Battle of the Pyrenees and the fighting that followed in the south of France, bringing to Wellington the news that Napoleon had abdicated.[3]
Waterloo Campaign
During the Waterloo Campaign, the 12th Light Dragoons were attached to Vandeleur's light cavalry brigade. At the Battle of Waterloo, the 12th and 16th Light Dragoons were told to charge down the slope, but no further, to support the withdrawal of the Union Brigade of heavy cavalry. But, like the Union Brigade (led by his second cousin, William Ponsonby), the light horse charged (as he later admitted) too far.[4]
Ponsonby was wounded in both arms, knocked off his horse by another sabre cut, and finally stabbed in the back by a French lancer and lay wounded in the field. A French skirmisher robbed him as he lay helpless on the ground. Luckily for Ponsonby, a Major de Laussat of the Imperial Guard Dragoons found him and treated him kindly, giving him some brandy and promising to send help. Later, another French skirmisher used Ponsonby as a shield as he fired over him. Toward the end of the battle, he was ridden over by Prussian cavalry and roughed up by a Prussian looking for plunder. At last, Ponsonby was discovered by a soldier of the 40th Foot who stood guard over him during the night. He was carried away in a cart, to a surgeon who tended to his seven major wounds and managed to stop the bleeding.[5] He convalesced under the supervision of his sister Lady Caroline Lamb who nursed him back to health.[4][5]
Later career
Pobsonby went on half-pay on 26 August 1820, and was appointed "inspecting field officer" in the Ionian Islands on 20 January 1824. On 27 May 1825, he was promoted major-general, commanding the troops in the Ionian Islands. The next year, on 22 December 1826, he was appointed Governor of Malta, and remained there for eight and a half years.[6] He met Baron de Laussat, his saviour at Waterloo, in 1827. During his Maltese tenure, he was made GCMG in 1828, and KCB and KCH in 1831. He left the governorship in May 1835 (but remained the de jure Governor until 30 September 1836), and was appointed colonel of the 86th Regiment of Foot on 4 December 1835. He was transferred to the colonelcy of the Royal Dragoons on 31 March 1836. During this period, he maintained a high degree of interest in the handling of cavalry, and corresponded with Wellington.[6] He died suddenly at an inn near Basingstoke on 11 January 1837.
Family
On 16 March 1825,Pobsonby married Lady Emily Charlotte (died 1877), daughter of Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst. They had three sons and three daughters:[7]
- Henry Frederick (1825–1895) later Sir
- Arthur Edward Valette(3 December 1827 – 16 June 1868),later a Lieutenant Colonel married Catina Dahl
- Georgina Melita Maria (16 February 1829 – 18 February 1895), unmarried
- Harriet Julia Frances(27 October 1830 – 30 June 1906), unmarried
- Selina Barbara Wilhelmina (20 January 1835 – 22 July 1919), married William Windham Baring on 22 January 1862, without issue
- Frederick John Ponsonby (21 March 1837 – 3 February 1894), became a reverend died unmarried
Notes
- ↑ Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 1.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 2.
- ↑ Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 3.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 4.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Creasy 1877, Chapter XV. Battle of Waterloo, A.D. 1815.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 6.
- ↑ Lloyd & Falkner 2004, ¶ 5.
References
- Creasy, Sir Edward (1877), The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World: from Marathon to Waterloo, Richard Bentley & Son, ISBN 0-306-80559-6
- Lloyd, James (reviewer); Falkner (2004). "Ponsonby, Sir Frederic Cavendish (1783–1837)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/22493. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
The first edition of this text is available as an article on Wikisource:Lloyd, Ernest Marsh (1896). "Ponsonby, Frederic Cavendish". In Lee, Sidney. Dictionary of National Biography 46. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 80–81. . ONDB Endnotes:
- A. Ponsonby, Henry Ponsonby, Queen Victoria's private secretary: his life from his letters (1942)
- J. Ponsonby, The Ponsonby family (1929)
- Earl of Bessborough and A. Aspinall, eds., Lady Bessborough and her family circle (1940)
- Army List
- H. T. Siborne, ed., Waterloo letters (1891)
- GM, 2nd ser., 7 (1837)
- The dispatches of … the duke of Wellington … from 1799 to 1818, ed. J. Gurwood, 13 vols. in 12 (1834–9)
- Hart's Army List · W. F. P. Napier, History of the war in the Peninsula and in the south of France, 3rd edn, 6 vols. (1834–40)
- D. Howarth, A near run thing (1967)
- R. H. Gronow, The reminiscences of Captain Gronow, 4 vols. (1861–6)
- E. A. Gray, Trumpet of glory (1985)
- GEC, Peerage
- Burke, Peerage
Further reading
- Haythornthwaite, Philip J. Uniforms of Waterloo. Hippocrene, 1974.
External links
- Wood, James, ed. (1907). "Ponsonby, Sir Frederick Cavendish". The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne.
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Hon. James Butler Hon. George Ponsonby |
Member of Parliament for County Kilkenny 1806–1826 With: Hon. James Butler 1801–1820 Charles Clarke 1820–1830 |
Succeeded by Viscount Duncannon Charles Clarke |
| Preceded by Viscount Normanby |
Member of Parliament for Higham Ferrers 1826–1830 |
Succeeded by Viscount Howick |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by The Marquess of Hastings |
Governor of Malta 1827–1836 |
Succeeded by Sir Henry Bouverie |
| Preceded by The Lord Harris |
Colonel of the 86th (Royal County Down) Regiment of Foot 1835–1836 |
Succeeded by Sir James Watson |
| Preceded by Lord Edward Somerset |
Colonel of 1st (Royal) Regiment of Dragoons 1836–1837 |
Succeeded by Sir Hussey Vivian, Bt |
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