The Earl Ligonier | |
|---|---|
 John Ligonier, 1st Earl Ligonier | |
| Master-General of the Ordnance | |
| In office 1759–1763 | |
| Commander-in-Chief of the Forces | |
| In office 1757–1759 | |
| Military Governor of Plymouth | |
| In office 1752–1759 | |
| Governor of Guernsey | |
| In office 1750–1752 | |
| Member of Parliament forBath | |
| In office 1748–1763 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jean Louis de Ligonnier[1] (1680-11-07)7 November 1680 Castres, France |
| Died | 28 April 1770(1770-04-28) (aged 89) North Audley St,London |
| Resting place | St Andrews,Cobham, Surrey[2] |
| Relations | Francis Ligonier (1693–1746) |
| Awards | Knight of the Bath |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | England Great Britain |
| Branch/service | English Army British Army |
| Years of service | 1702–1759 |
| Rank | Field marshal |
| Unit | 7th Dragoon Guards (1720–1749) 1st Regiment of Foot Guards (1757–1770) |
| Battles/wars | |
Field MarshalJohn Ligonier, 1st Earl Ligonier,KB, PC (bornJean Louis de Ligonnier; 7 November 1680 – 28 April 1770), styledSir John Ligonier from 1743 to 1757, was a British army officer and politician who served in theEnglish andBritish armies for more than half a century. In 1757, he was appointedCommander-in-chief and raised to the peerage asViscount Ligonier in 1757, and in 1766, further elevated asEarl Ligonier.
Ligonier was aHuguenot refugee who fled his nativeCastres for England in 1697, following the 1685Edict of Fontainebleau, which stripped the rights of French Protestants to practice their religion. He joined the British Army in 1702 as a volunteer and remained dedicated to the British cause for the next six decades. He fought in the European wars of theSpanish Succession, of theQuadruple Alliance, and of theAustrian Succession. During theSeven Years' War, he also served asMaster-General of the Ordnance, effectively acting as Minister of War for thePitt–Newcastle ministry. He retired from active duty in 1763 and died at his home in London on 28 April 1770.
He sat in theHouse of Commons of Great Britain forBath from 1748 to 1763 and served asGovernor of Guernsey from 1750 to 1752.
John Ligonier was born Jean-Louis de Ligonnier inCastres,Languedoc, the second son of Louis de Ligonnier,sieur deMontcuquet, and Louise de Ligonnier, daughter of Louis du Poncet. His parents were married on 28 March 1677 atRoquecourbe.[3] His grandfather built the family'shôtel particulier,Hôtel Poncet [fr], in Castres. Louis de Ligonnier died around 1690.[4]John, aHuguenot, was educated in France andSwitzerland.[5] In 1697, he became the first of Louis' three younger sons who left for England, where they altered their name to Ligonier.[6]
His younger brother Antoine de Ligonnier followed in 1698. He served in several of theDuke of Marlborough's campaigns during theWar of the Spanish Succession and died unmarried in 1767, with the rank of major. His youngest brother, François-Auguste de Ligonnier, emigrated in 1710.[7]
Their eldest brother, Abel de Ligonnier (1669-1769), inherited his father's estates and stayed in Castres. He married Louise de Boileau, daughter of Jacques de Boileau de Castelnau, sister of Huguenot refugee Charles Boileau, the progenitor of the Boileau family in Britain, many of whom served in the British Army.[4] Abel was recorded living in France as late as 1769.[8]
In 1702, Ligonier volunteered to join a regiment inFlanders commanded byLord Cutts.[5]
He fought, with distinction, in theWar of the Spanish Succession and was one of the first to mount the breach at theSiege of Liège in October 1702.[9] After becoming acaptain in the10th Foot on 10 February 1703,[9] he commanded a company at the battles ofSchellenberg in July 1704[9] andBlenheim in August 1704,[9] and was present atMenen[10] where he led the storming of the covered way as well asRamillies in May 1706,[9]Oudenarde in July 1708[5] andMalplaquet in September 1709[9] where he received twenty-three bullets through his clothing yet remained unhurt.[11] In 1712, he became governor of Fort St. Philip,Menorca.[5] During theWar of the Quadruple Alliance in 1719, he was adjutant-general of the troops employed in theVigo expedition, where he led the stormers ofPontevedra.[9][12]
Two years later, he becamecolonel of theBlack Horse.[5] He was made abrigadier general in 1735,[13]major general in 1739,[5] and accompaniedLord Stair in the Rhine Campaign of 1742 to 1743.[9] He was promoted tolieutenant general on 26 February 1742[14] andGeorge II made him aKnight of the Bath on thefield of Dettingen in June 1743.[9][12] AtFontenoy in May 1745, Ligonier commanded the British, Hanoverian, andHessian infantry.[5]
During theJacobite rising of 1745, he was called home to command the British army in theMidlands.[15] In November 1745, he led a column of troops sent toLancashire to oppose the rebels.[16] Having been promoted to the rank of general of horse on 3 January 1746,[17] he was placed at the head of the British and British-paid contingents of the Allied army in theLow Countries in June 1746.[18]
He was present atRocoux in October 1746[19] and, having been madeLieutenant-General of the Ordnance on 19 March 1747,[20] he fought atLauffeld in July 1747, where he led the charge of the British cavalry.[19] He did this with such vigour that he overthrew the whole line of French cavalry.[21] In this encounter his horse was killed and he was taken prisoner byLouis XV, but was exchanged within a few days.[22] The official despatch reported:
it is impossible to commend too much the conduct of the generals both horse and foot. Sir John Legonier, who charged at the head of the British dragoons with that skill and spirit that he has shown on so many occasions, and in which he was so well seconded...[22]
He becameMember of Parliament forBath in March 1748[19] and was appointed colonel of the2nd Dragoon Guards in 1749.[19] From 1748 to 1770, he also served as governor of theFrench Hospital.[23]
On 6 April 1750 he was appointedGovernor of Guernsey[24] and on 3 February 1753 he became colonel of theRoyal Horse Guards.[25]
In September 1757, following the disgrace of theDuke of Cumberland who had signed theConvention of Klosterzeven, Ligonier was madeCommander-in-Chief of the Forces.[19] He worked closely with thePitt–Newcastle ministry who sought his strategic advice in connection with theSeven Years' War which was underway at this time.[19] Ligonier was also made afield marshal on 3 December 1757,[26] Colonel of the1st Regiment of Foot Guards on the same date[26] and a peer of Ireland on 10 December 1757 under the title of Viscount Ligonier of Enniskillen.[27] He was notionally given command of British forces in the event of aplanned French invasion in 1759 though it never ultimately occurred.[5] He stood down as commander-in-chief in 1759 and becameMaster-General of the Ordnance.[5] He was given a further Irish peerage on 1 May 1762 as Viscount Ligonier of Clonmell (with remainder to his nephew) and on 19 April 1763 he became a Baron, and on 6 September 1766 an Earl, in the British peerage.[28]
Fort Ligonier, commanded by Lord Ligonier from 1758 to 1766, became the permanent settlement ofLigonier, Pennsylvania and lent its name toLigonier Valley andLigonier Valley Railroad.[29] After extensive excavations, Fort Ligonier was reconstructed in 1954 and was added to theNational Register of Historic Places.[30]
Ligonier spent his later years atCobham Park inCobham, Surrey, which he bought around 1750.[31] He died, still unmarried, on 28 April 1770 and was buried inCobham Church.[32] There is a monument to him, sculpted byJohn Francis Moore[33] inWestminster Abbey.[32]
The earldom became extinct but the Irish viscountcy and Cobham Park passed to his nephewEdward (son of his younger brotherFrancis), who would also be created Earl Ligonier in thePeerage of Ireland six years later.[5]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Ligonier, John Ligonier, Earl".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 679.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forBath 1748–1763 With:Robert Henley 1748–1757 William Pitt 1757–1763 | Succeeded by |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by | Colonel ofSir John Ligonier's Regiment of Horse (Black Horse) 1720–1749 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance 1748–1757 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Colonel ofThe Queen's Regiment of Dragoon Guards 1749–1753 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Guernsey 1750–1752 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Plymouth 1752–1759 | Succeeded by |
| Vacant Title last held by The Duke of Richmond | Colonel of theRoyal Horse Guards Blue 1753–1758 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief of the Forces 1757–1759 | Vacant Title next held by Marquess of Granby |
| Preceded by | Colonel of the1st Regiment of Foot Guards 1757–1770 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Vacant | Master-General of the Ordnance 1759–1763 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| New creation | Earl Ligonier 1766–1770 | Extinct |
| Baron Ligonier 1763–1770 | ||
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
| New creation | Viscount Ligonier 1757–1770 | Extinct |
| Viscount Ligonier 1762–1770 | Succeeded by | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
