Howard Douglas
Sir Howard Douglas William IV | |
---|---|
Preceded by | George Stracey Smyth |
Succeeded by | Sir Archibald Campbell, 1st Baronet |
Member of Parliament for Liverpool | |
In office 1842–1847 | |
Preceded by | Cresswell Cresswell and Dudley Ryder |
Succeeded by | Thomas Bernard Birch and Dudley Ryder |
Personal details | |
Born | Gosport, England | 23 January 1776
Died | 9 November 1861 Tunbridge Wells, England | (aged 85)
Political party | Conservative |
Spouse |
Anne Dundas (m. 1799) |
Relations | Rear-Admiral Sir Charles Douglas (father), Vice-Admiral Sir William Henry Douglas (brother) |
Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Fellow of the Royal Society |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Great Britain |
Branch/service | Army |
Years of service | 1794-1861 |
Rank | General |
Battles/wars | Napoleonic Wars |
Early life
Following the death of his mother, Sarah Wood Douglas, in 1779, Howard was raised by his aunt, Helena Baillie, near
Early career
In 1795 he was shipwrecked while in charge of a draft for Canada, and lived with his men for a whole winter on the Labrador coast. Soon after his return to England in 1799 he was made a Captain-Lieutenant. In his regimental service during the next few years, he was attached to all branches of the artillery in succession, becoming Captain in 1804, after which he was placed on half-pay to serve at the Royal Military College (RMC), then located at High Wycombe.[3] He taught military strategy and was an authority on military and naval engineering. He served intermittently as commandant of the senior department and as inspector general of instructions at the RMC.[citation needed] In 1804, Douglas was appointed to a majority in the York Rangers, a corps immediately afterwards reduced. He remained on the roll of its officers until promoted Major-General. The senior department of the RMC at High Wycombe, of which he was in charge, was the forerunner of the Staff College. Douglas was promoted brevet Lieutenant-Colonel in 1806. He served in 1808–09 in the Peninsular War and was present at the Battle of Corunna, after which he took part in the Walcheren Campaign.[3]
On the death of his half-brother,
Early writings and promotion to Major-General
In 1816 appeared his Essay on the Principles and Construction of Military Bridges,[4] in 1819, Observations on the Motives, Errors and Tendency of M. Carnots System of Defence,[5] and in the following year his A Treatise on Naval Gunnery (of which numerous editions and translations appeared up to the general introduction of rifled ordnance).[6][7] In 1821 he was promoted Major-General. Douglas's criticisms of Carnot led to an important experiment being carried out at Woolwich in 1822, and his Naval Gunnery became a standard text-book, and indeed first drew attention to the subject of which it treated.[3]
Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick
Sir Howard Douglas became
Later career in Europe
On his return to Europe he was employed in various missions, and he published about this time Naval Evolutions, a controversial work dealing with the question of breaking the line.
From
His later works included Observations on the Modern System of Fortification.[16] and On Naval Warfare With Steam[17]
Personal life
In 1797, while in Quebec City, Douglas fathered a daughter, Margaret (or Marguerite), but did not marry the mother, Catherine Normandeau. In 1799, he returned to England, and in July of that year he married Anne Dundas, daughter of James Dundas. They had ten children, Major Charles Douglas, James Dundas Douglas, Howard Douglas, General Sir Robert Percy Douglas, 4th Baronet of Carr, Reverend William Frederick Douglas, Ann Douglas, Christina Douglas, Lucy Douglas, Sarah Mary Harcourt Douglas, and Mary Douglas.
Sir Howard Douglas died in Tunbridge Wells.
Honors
Douglas was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and one of the founders of the Royal Geographical Society. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Civil Law from the University of Oxford. Shortly before his death he declined the offer of a military GCB.[3]
His service as
Notes
- ^ Douglas had previously been proposed as a parliamentary candidate for Liverpool in 1832 by Nicholas Robinson but came fourth.[13] He came third when he again attempted to enter parliament in the 1835 election.[14]
References
- ^ Young, D. Murray (1976). "DOUGLAS, Sir HOWARD". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. IX (1861–1870) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
- ^ "Douglas, Howard". Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 15. Smith, Elder, & Company. 1888. p. 298.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Douglas, Sir Howard". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 446. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1816). Essay on the Principles and Construction of Military Bridges and the Passage of Rivers in Military Operations. London: T. Egerton, Military Library, Whitehall. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1859) [1819]. Observations on the Motives, Errors and Tendency of M. Carnots System of Defence (reprint ed.). London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1855). A Treatise on Naval Gunnery (fourth ed.). London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1855). A Treatise on Naval Gunnery (fourth ed.). London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ISBN 978-3-8472-1070-2.
- ^ Blain, Virginia; Clements, Patricia; Grundy, Isobel, eds. (1990). "Armour, Agatha". The Feminist Companion to Literature in English: Women Writers from the Middle Ages to the Present. London: B. T. Batsford Limited. p. 30.
- ^ London, 1832.
- ^ "99th (Lanarkshire) Regiment of Foot". regiments.org. Archived from the original on 18 July 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Historical list of MPs: L". Leigh Rayment's peerage pages. Archived from the original on 29 October 2008. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Liverpool Election". Gore's Liverpool General Advertiser. 13 December 1832. p. 3.
- ^ "Public Notices". Liverpool Mercury. 9 January 1835. p. 5.
- ^ "Sir Howard Douglas". HANSARD 1803–2005 → People (D). Retrieved 24 July 2015.
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1859). Observations on the Modern System of Fortification. London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street.
- ^ Howard, Douglas (1860). On Naval Warfare With Steam. London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street.
Further reading
- Fullom, S.W. (1863). The Life and Correspondence of General Sir Howard Douglas. London: John Murray, Ablemarle Street.
- Lambert, Richard Stanton (1956). Redcoat Sailor: The Adventures of Sir Howard Douglas. Volume 11 of Great Stories of Canada. MacMillan.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Howard Douglas
- Young, D. Murray (1976). "DOUGLAS, Sir HOWARD". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. IX (1861–1870) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
- Biography at the Centre for Newfoundland Studies Archives, Memorial University Library Website
- Sir Howard Douglas
- "Archival material relating to Howard Douglas". UK National Archives.