Sir John Fox Burgoyne | |
|---|---|
 Lieutenant General Sir John Fox Burgoyne, GCB, photo byRoger Fenton, 1855 | |
| Born | 24 July 1782 |
| Died | 7 October 1871 (aged 89) Kensington, London |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Service years | 1798–1868 |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
| Conflicts | French Revolutionary Wars Peninsular War War of 1812 Crimean War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Field MarshalSir John Fox Burgoyne, 1st Baronet,GCB (24 July 1782 – 7 October 1871) was aBritish Army officer. After taking part in theSiege of Malta during theFrench Revolutionary Wars, he saw action underSir John Moore and then under theDuke of Wellington in numerous battles of thePeninsular War, including theSiege of Badajoz and theBattle of Vitoria. He served underSir Edward Pakenham as chief engineer during theWar of 1812. He went on to act as official advisor toLord Raglan during theCrimean War advocating theBay of Kalamita as the point of disembarkation for allied forces and recommending aSiege of Sevastopol from the south side rather than acoup de main, so consigning the allied forces to a winter in the field in 1854.
Born the illegitimate son of GeneralJohn Burgoyne and the opera singer Susan Caulfield,[1] Burgoyne was brought up by the12th Earl of Derby (a nephew of his father's late wife) following his father's early death.[2] Educated atEton College and theRoyal Military Academy, Woolwich, he was commissioned as asecond lieutenant in theRoyal Engineers on 29 August 1798.[3] Promoted to lieutenant on 1 July 1800,[4] he took part in theSiege of Malta in Autumn 1800 during theFrench Revolutionary Wars before becomingaide-de-camp to GeneralHenry Fox.[2] Promoted again, this time tosecond captain on 18 March 1805,[5] he took part in thecapture of Alexandria in February 1807 and the subsequentoccupation of Rosetta in April 1807.[2]
During thePeninsular War, Burgoyne became commanding engineer on the staff ofSir John Moore in April 1808 and went with Moore's army toSweden in May 1808 and toPortugal in September 1808.[2] He then took part in theretreat from Corunna blowing up bridges behind the retreating army in January 1809.[2]
Burgoyne returned to Portugal in April 1809 to joinSir Arthur Wellesley's army.[2] Promoted tocaptain on 5 July 1809,[6] Burgoyne became engineer officer for the3rd Division, in which role he took part in theBattle of Bussaco in September 1810, theSecond Siege of Badajoz in June 1811 and theSiege of Ciudad Rodrigo in January 1812.[2] Promoted to brevet major on 6 February 1812,[7] he led the storming parties at theSiege of Badajoz in March 1812.[2] Promoted again this time to brevetlieutenant colonel on 27 April 1812,[8] he took part in theBattle of Salamanca in July 1812, theSiege of Burgos in September 1812 and theBattle of Vitoria in June 1813 before going on to be present at theSiege of San Sebastián in August 1813, theBattle of Nivelle in November 1813 and theBattle of the Nive in December 1813.[9] In the closing stages of the War he was also present at the crossing of theRiver Adour in February 1814 and theBattle of Bayonne in April 1814.[9] He was appointed aCompanion of the Order of the Bath in 1814.[1]
In theWar of 1812, Burgoyne went to the United States and fought under GeneralEdward Pakenham as chief engineer at theBattle of New Orleans in January 1815 and at theSecond Battle of Fort Bowyer in February 1815.[9] He then served as chief engineer of the Army of Occupation in France until 1821 when he became commanding engineer at theRoyal Engineers Depot, Chatham.[9] In 1826 he accompanied GeneralHenry Clinton on a mission to Portugal to support the constitutional government against the absolutist forces ofDom Miguel.[9] He became garrison engineer atPortsmouth in 1828 and, having been promoted to brevetcolonel on 22 July 1830, became chairman of the Board of Public Works in Ireland.[9]
Promoted to the substantive rank of colonel on 10 January 1837[10] and to the rank ofmajor-general on 28 June 1838,[11] Burgoyne was advanced toKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 19 July 1838[12] and becameInspector-General of Fortifications in 1845.[9] In this role he advised on relief works during theGreat Famine in Ireland.[9] He also advised on the fortifications in Gibraltar in 1848 making the wise recommendation that the guns on theDevil's Tongue Battery be directed intoGibraltar Harbour.[13] He was promoted tolieutenant general on 11 November 1851[14] and advanced toKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 31 March 1852.[1]
Before the outbreak of theCrimean War, Burgoyne went toConstantinople to assist in its fortification and that of theDardanelles.[9] Appointed an official advisor toLord Raglan, he advocated theBay of Kalamita as the point of disembarkation for allied forces and recommended skirtingSevastopol to the east to facilitate asiege from the south side rather than acoup de main, so consigning the allied forces to a winter in the field in 1854.[9] He became colonel commandant of the Royal Engineers on 22 November 1854[15] and, following his recall to England in February 1855, he was promoted to full general on 5 September 1855.[9] He was created abaronet on 18 April 1856[16] and awarded the FrenchLegion of Honour, 2nd Class on 2 August 1856.[17] He was appointed one of the Colonels Commandant of the Royal Engineers in 1854,[18] and also served as honorary colonel of1st Middlesex Engineer Volunteer Corps[19] and of the1st Lancashire Engineer Volunteer Corps.[20]
Burgoyne was appointedConstable of the Tower in April 1865[21] and promoted tofield marshal on his retirement on 1 January 1868.[22] He died at 5, Pembridge Square, Bayswater,Kensington in London on 7 October 1871 and was buried at theChurch of St Peter ad Vincula.[23] Castle Hill Fort in Dover was renamedFort Burgoyne in memory of him.[24]
In 1821 Burgoyne married Charlotte Rose; they had a son, (CaptainHugh Talbot BurgoyneVC), and seven daughters.[1]One of their grand-children was the preacher,Charles Spurgeon.[25]
Lady Burgoyne (wife of Sir John F. Burgoyne, Constable of the Tower, and mother of the first Mrs. J. A. Spurgeon,) was a member of the church at the Tabernacle.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Inspector-General of Fortifications 1845–1862 | Succeeded by Himself |
| Preceded by Himself | Inspector-General of Engineers and Director of Work 1862–1868 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Constable of the Tower Lord Lieutenant of the Tower Hamlets 1865–1871 | Succeeded by |
| Baronetage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Baronet (of the Army) 1856–1871 | Extinct |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
