Thomas Davies (British Army officer)

Thomas Davies
Born	c. 1737 Shooter's Hill (London), England
Died	16 March 1812(1812-03-16) Blackheath (London), England
Allegiance	Kingdom of Great Britain
Service/branch	Royal Artillery
Rank	Lieutenant-general
Battles/wars	French and Indian War Siege of Louisbourg Expulsion of the Acadians Siege of Montreal American Revolutionary War Battle of Long Island Battle of White Plains Battle of Fort Washington Battle of Fort Lee

Thomas Davies, F.R.S., F.L.S., was a British Army officer, artist, and naturalist. He was born c. 1737 in Shooter's Hill (London), England and died 16 March 1812 in Blackheath (London). He rose to the rank of Lieutenant-general in the Royal Artillery. He studied drawing and recorded military operations in water-colours during several military campaigns in North America. He later became a noted artist and naturalist. He was the first to illustrate and describe the Superb Lyrebird.

Early life

Very little is known of his early life. In his will, he lists his father as David Davies from Shooter's Hill.^[1]

Military service

Davies began military service at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, in 1755. There he received training in topographic drawing to provide detailed and accurate drawings for military use. By 1757, he became second lieutenant in the Royal Artillery and began service abroad in Canada.^[2]

French and Indian War

His earliest work is a drawing of Halifax during the failed Louisbourg expedition in 1757. The next year, he recorded the military operations during the Siege of Louisbourg, including the Expulsion of the Acadians.^[2]

Starting in 1759, he was with General Jeffery Amherst's forces, first at the Fort Ticonderoga and then at Fort Crown Point. In 1760, he fought in the attack against Montreal and commanded a boat in a naval battle, which he also illustrated.^[2]

After the war, he surveyed the regions surrounding Lake Ontario for several years, producing both military maps and artistic landscapes.^[3] He painted a series of waterfalls, including views of Great Seneca Falls and Niagara Falls.^[4]

American Revolutionary War

British landing at the Palisades on the morning of 20 November 1776, near Fort Lee, New Jersey.

In 1776, Davies returned to North America with General William Howe during the American War for Independence.^[5] After the Battle of Long Island in August, he illustrated the British fleet in the harbour.^[6] Later that year, he continued with General Howe at the Battle of White Plains and the subsequent Battle of Fort Washington, where he illustrated the battle scene.^[7]

Under the command of General Charles Cornwallis at the Battle of Fort Lee, Davies captured the landing at and ascent of the Palisades by the British forces. This work has sometimes been attributed to Lord Francis Rawdon since he later bought it from Davies.^[8]

In 1777, he was sent to command Fort Knyphausen, previously known as Fort Washington. In 1780, he returned to England.^[9]

Royal Artillery command

After the war, he received several promotions and was assigned to command posts in Gibraltar, the West Indies, and Canada. In 1799, he was appointed Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery. His last promotion was to the rank of Lieutenant-general in 1803.^[9]

Artist and naturalist

Menura superba – Superb Lyrebird by Thomas Davies

In 1781, he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society.^[10] He was also a fellow of the Linnean Society of London^[11] and contributed several articles, especially regarding ornithology in Australia.^[2] In 1800, he was the first to illustrate and describe the Superb Lyrebird in the Transactions of the Linnean Society of London.^[12][13][14] He also read reports to the Society on the Southern Emu-wren of Australia and the Meadow jumping mouse of Canada.^[15]

Style

Davies' style combines the precision of military artists with the skills of naturalists. His works have been compared with Henri Rousseau, George Edwards, and Paul Sandby.^[16]

Publications

• Davies, Thomas (6 June 1797). "An Account of the Jumping Mouse of Canada. Dipus Canadensis". Transactions of the Linnean Society 4. London (published 1798). pp. 155–7. 
• Davies, Thomas (6 February 1798). "Account of a New Species of Muscicapa, from New South Wales". Transactions of the Linnean Society 4. London (published 1798). pp. 240–2. 
• Davies, Thomas (4 November 1800). "Description of Menura superba, a Bird of New South Wales". Transactions of the Linnean Society 6. London (published 1802). pp. 207–10. 

Gallery

• 

  A View of Halifax in Nova Scotia, earliest dated painting (1757)

• 

  A View of the Plundering and Burning of the City of Grymross, forcing the expulsion of the Acadians (1758)

• 

  St. John River Campaign: The Construction of Fort Frederick (1758)

• 

  A View of Fort La Galette, Indian Castle, and Taking a French Ship of War on the River St. Lawrence, by Four Boats of One Gun Each of the Royal Artillery Commanded by Captain Streachy, one boat commanded by Thomas Davies (1760)

• 

  A View of the Casconchiagon or Great Seneca Falls, Lake Ontario, taken 1766

• 

  Montreal, last work, panorama of Montreal (1812)

References

Bibliography

•  Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lyre-Bird". Encyclopædia Britannica 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 179. 
• Dickenson, Victoria (1998). Drawn from Life: Science and Art in the Portrayal of the New World. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-08020-8073-8. 
• Hubbard, R. H. (1972). Thomas Davies, c. 1737–1812. Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada. 
• Lefkowitz, Arthur S. (1998). The Long Retreat: The Calamitous American Defense of New Jersey, 1776. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-08135-2759-8. 
• Murdoch, R. H. (1894). "The Brome-Walton Family". Minutes of Proceedings. Woolwich, London: Royal Artillery Institution. 
• Olsen, Penny (2001). Feathers and brush: three centuries of Australian bird art. ISBN 0-643-06547-4. 
• Olsen, Penny (2010). Upside down world: early European impressions of Australia's curious animals. National Library of Australia. ISBN 978-06422-7706-0. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Thomas Davies.

Wikisource has original works written by or about: Thomas Davies

• "Thomas Davies". National Gallery of Canada. 
• "Thomas Davies". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. 
• "Thomas Davies". The Canadian Encyclopedia.