Sir James Outram | |
|---|---|
 Outram inc. 1858-61 | |
| Nickname | The Bayard of India |
| Born | (1803-01-29)29 January 1803 Butterley,Derbyshire, England |
| Died | 11 March 1863(1863-03-11) (aged 60) |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | East India Company |
| Branch | Bombay Army Bengal Army |
| Years of service | 1819–1860 |
| Rank | Lieutenant-general |
| Battles / wars | First Anglo-Afghan War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Companion of the Order of the Star of India |
| Alma mater | Marischal College,University of Aberdeen |
| Other work | Resident Minister ofLucknow Chief Commissioner ofOudh |
Lieutenant-GeneralSir James Outram, 1st Baronet (29 January 1803 – 11 March 1863) was a British army officer who served in theIndian Rebellion of 1857.
James Outram was the son ofBenjamin Outram ofButterley Hall,Butterley,Derbyshire, a civil engineer, and Margaret Anderson, a daughter ofJames Anderson of Hermiston, a Scottish writer on agriculture. His father died in 1805, and his mother moved toAberdeenshire in 1810. FromUdny school the boy went in 1818 to theMarischal College,Aberdeen, and in 1819 an Indian cadetship was given to him. Soon after his arrival atBombay his remarkable energy attracted notice, and in July 1820 he became acting adjutant to the first battalion of the 12th regiment on its embodiment atPoona, an experience which he found to be of immense advantage to him later in his career.[1]
In 1825, he was sent toKhandesh, where he trained alight infantry corps, formed of theBhils, a tribe native to the densely forested hills of that region. He gained over them a marvellous personal influence, and employed them with great success in checking outrages and plunder. Their loyalty to him had its principal source in their admiration of his hunting achievements, which in cool daring and hairbreadth escapes have perhaps never been equalled. Originally a puny lad, and for many years after his arrival inIndia subject to constant attacks of sickness, Outram seemed to gain strength by every new illness, eventually acquiring a strong constitution and "nerves of steel, shoulders and muscles worthy of a six-footHighlander."[1]
In 1835 he was sent toGujarat to make a report on theMahi Kantha district, and for some time he remained there as political agent. On the outbreak of theFirst Afghan War in 1838 he was appointed extra aide-de-camp on the staff of SirJohn Keane, and went toAfghanistan, where he conducted various raids againstAfghan tribes and performed an extraordinary exploit in capturing a banner of the enemy beforeGhazni. In 1839, he was promoted tomajor and appointed political agent in Lower Sindh, later being moved toUpper Sindh (at this time, Gujarat and Sindh were both under theBombay Presidency). While in Sindh, he strongly opposed the policy of his superior, SirCharles Napier, which led to the annexation of Sindh into British India. However, when war broke out, he heroically defended the residency atHyderabad against 8000Baluchis, causing Sir Charles Napier to describe him as the "Bayard of India." On his return from a short visit to England in 1843, he was, with the rank of brevet lieutenant-colonel, appointed to a command in theMahratta country, and in 1847 he was transferred fromSatara toBaroda, where he incurred the resentment of the Bombay government by his fearless exposure of corruption.[1]
In 1854 he was appointed resident atLucknow, in which capacity two years later he carried out the annexation ofOudh and became the first chief commissioner of that province. Appointed in 1857, with the rank of lieutenant-general, to command an expedition againstPersia during theAnglo-Persian War, he defeated the Persian forces in February 1857 after an attempted ambush by their commanderKhanlar Mirza atKhushab. Outram conducted the campaign with such rapid decision that peace was concluded by theTreaty of Paris in March 1857, his services being rewarded by the grand cross of the Bath.[2] Later that year, the Governor-General's wife,Lady Canning was unimpressed with him when he stayed at Government House in August 1857: she recorded that ‘he is a very common looking little dark Jewish bearded man, with a desponding slow hesitating manner, very unlike descriptions — or rather the idea raised in one’s mind by the old Bombay name the "Bayard of the East" . . . He is not the least my idea of a hero.’[3]
From Persia he was summoned in June to India, with the brief explanation "We want all our best men here". It was said of him at this time that a fox is a fool and a lion a coward by the side of Sir J. Outram. Immediately on his arrival inCalcutta he was appointed to command the two divisions of the Bengal army occupying the country from Calcutta toCawnpore; and to the military control was also joined the commissionership of Oudh. Already hostilities had assumed such proportions as to compelHenry Havelock to fall back on Cawnpore, which he held only with difficulty, although a speedy advance was necessary to save the garrison at Lucknow. On arriving at Cawnpore with reinforcements, Outram, in admiration of the brilliant deeds of General Havelock, conceded to him the glory of relieving Lucknow, and, waiving his rank, tendered his services to him as a volunteer. During the advance he commanded a troop of volunteer cavalry, and performed exploits of great brilliancy atMangalwar, and in the attack at theAlambagh; and in the final conflict he led the way, charging through a very tempest of fire. The volunteer cavalry unanimously voted him theVictoria Cross, but he refused the choice on the grounds that he was ineligible as the general under whom they served. Resuming supreme command, he then held the town until the arrival of SirColin Campbell, after which he conducted the evacuation of the residency so as completely to deceive the enemy. In the second capture of Lucknow, on the commander-in-chief's return, Outram was entrusted with the attack on the side of theGomti, and afterwards, having recrossed the river, he advanced through theChattar Manzil to take the residency, thus, in the words of Colin Campbell, putting the finishing stroke on the enemy. After the capture of Lucknow he was gazetted lieutenant-general.[2] While in Lucknow he employed a code whereby letters were transliterated using theGreek alphabet, which was a common practice in the military at the time.[4]
In February 1858, he received the special thanks of both houses ofParliament, and in the same year the dignity ofbaronet with an annuity of £1,000. When, on account of shattered health, he returned finally to England in 1860, a movement resulted in the presentation of a public testimonial, and the erection of statues in London (by sculptorMatthew Noble) and Calcutta.[2]
He died atPau in the south of France[5] on 11 March 1863,[6] and was buried on 25 March in the nave ofWestminster Abbey, where the marble slab on his grave bears the poignant epitaphThe Bayard of India.[5][7]
He was married to Margaret Clementine Anderson (1813-1911). She is buried inDean Cemetery inEdinburgh. The gravestone is also to the memory of Sir James. Their son Sir Francis Boyd Outram lies with her.[8]
A memorial to Outram was erected inWestminster Abbey in 1863 to the designs ofMatthew Noble.[9]
General James Outrum appears as a character inFlashman in the Great Game[13] byGeorge MacDonald Fraser.Outram is played byRichard Attenborough in the 1977Satyajit Ray filmThe Chess Players.
No doubt he does," mutters Outram, "but he'll no more pass for a native than my aunt's parrot.
Attribution:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Outram, Sir James".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 381–382.On this occasion also Major Outram gave me his able assistance, as well as in flanking the extremity of the Bolan pass near Kundye, where I had good reason to expect again to meet some hostile tribes, but the total disappointment of the Kakurs on the 3d, and the effectual flanking arrangements made on all occasions by our troops, seem to have prevented any renewal of interruption.[dead link]
| Baronetage of the United Kingdom | ||
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| New creation | Baronet (of Bengal) 1858–1863 | Succeeded by Francis Boyd Outram |
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