The Earl of Lucan | |
|---|---|
 The 3rd Earl of Lucan. Engraving by D. J. Pound, c. 1860 | |
| Nicknames | "The Exterminator", "Lord Look-on" |
| Born | (1800-04-16)16 April 1800 |
| Died | 10 November 1888(1888-11-10) (aged 88) |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Service years | 1816–1877 |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
| Commands | Cavalry Division |
| Conflicts | Crimean War |
| Awards | |
| Spouse | |
George Charles Bingham, 3rd Earl of Lucan,GCB (16 April 1800 – 10 November 1888), styledLord Bingham before 1839, was an Anglo-Irish peer and military officer. He was one of three men, along withLouis Nolan andLord Raglan, responsible for the fateful order during theBattle of Balaclava in October 1854 that led to theLight Brigade commander,the Earl of Cardigan, leading theCharge of the Light Brigade. He was subsequently promoted to field marshal. He was a ruthless landlord during theGreat Famine inIreland, evicting thousands of his tenants and renting his land to wealthy ranchers. He also came up with a solution that allowed Jews to sit inParliament.
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Born the first son ofRichard Bingham, 2nd Earl of Lucan, anAnglo-Irish peer, and Elizabeth Bingham (née Belasyse), Lord Bingham (as he was styled up until late June 1839) attendedWestminster School but left formal education to be commissioned as anensign in the6th Regiment of Foot on 29 August 1816.[3] He transferred to the11th Light Dragoons on 24 December 1818.[4]
Lord Bingham became a lieutenant in the8th Regiment of Foot on 20 January 1820, acaptain in the74th Regiment of Foot on 16 May 1822 and was promoted to major, unattached, on 23 June 1825.[5] He transferred to the17th Lancers on 1 December 1825 and became commanding officer of the regiment with the rank oflieutenant colonel on 9 November 1826; he lavished such expense on his officers' uniforms and horses that the officers became known as "Bingham's Dandies".[5] He was also elected as MP forCounty Mayo in 1826[6] and held that seat until 1830.[5] During theRusso-Turkish War, which began in 1828, he acted observer with theImperial Russian Army.[5]
Lord Bingham succeeded his father as 3rdEarl of Lucan in thePeerage of Ireland on 30 June 1839 and, having become anIrish Representative Peer in June 1840[7] and having been promoted tocolonel on 23 November 1841, he becameLord Lieutenant of Mayo in 1845.[3] During theGreat Famine in the late 1840s, he was ruthless and introduced mass evictions from villages such asBallinrobe. Famously stating that he "would not breed paupers to pay priests," he demolished over 300 homes and evicted 2,000 people in Ballinrobe alone between 1846 and 1849. He even insisted on closing the workhouse inCastlebar at the height of the Famine. For this, Lord Bingham earned the hatred of many Irishmen and became known as "The Exterminator".[8] He was promoted tomajor general on 11 November 1851.[9]
At the outbreak of theCrimean War, Lord Lucan applied for a post and was made commander of theCavalry Division. His brother-in-law,the 7th Earl of Cardigan, was one of his subordinates, commanding theLight Brigade – an unfortunate choice as the two men heartily detested each other.[3] Promoted to brevetlieutenant general on 18 August 1854,[10] he was present at theBattle of Alma in September 1854 but, on the orders of the army commander,Lord Raglan, he held his division in reserve. This incident earned Lucan the undeserved, but persistent, nickname of "Lord Look-on".[11][12]
At theBattle of Balaclava in October 1854, Lucan received an order from Raglan that the cavalry were to advance. Raglan's order stated that infantry would be in support, but none had arrived so Lucan did not comply.[13] It was not until Raglan saw that Russian troops were about to capture some artillery pieces did he issue a further order, now requiring an "immediate" cavalry advance. At this point Lucan ordered Cardigan to lead the Light Brigade forward, and theCharge of the Light Brigade commenced. Lucan in turn led the Heavy Brigade forward in support, at a more restrained pace. Both brigades came under heavy fire, and Lucan was slightly wounded.[14] While the Light Brigade continued the charge as far as the enemy guns, receiving very heavy casualties and with no significant gain,[15] Lucan ordered the Heavy Brigade to retire.[13] Raglan blamed Lucan for the loss ("You have lost the light brigade"), and censured him in despatches. Although Lucan complained against this censure, as the relationship between the army commander and the cavalry commander had clearly broken down, he was recalled to England, where he returned at the beginning of March 1855.[12]
On his arrival, Lucan's demand for acourt-martial was declined and instead he defended himself with a speech to theHouse of Lords on 19 March 1855, blaming Raglan and his deceasedaide-de-camp, CaptainLouis Nolan.[3] This tactic appears to have been successful as he was subsequently appointedKnight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 5 July 1855,[16] and colonel of the8th Light Dragoons, who had charged with the Light Brigade, on 17 November 1855.[17]
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A significant contribution was made by Lucan to Parliament when he produced a solution to the problem of admitting Jews toParliament. Prior to this, distinguished Jews had declined to take the oath "on the true faith of a Christian" and having not been sworn in as required by statute, were refused voting rights although having been elected an MP. Lucan proposed, by way of a compromise, that each House could decide and modify its own oath. TheHouse of Lords, who had long opposed the admission of Jews, agreed to this. A prominent Jew,Lionel Nathan Rothschild, was thus allowed to enter theHouse of Commons and was sworn in on 26 July 1858.[18]
Although Lucan never again saw active duty, he was promoted tolieutenant general on 24 December 1858,[19] and, having become colonel of the1st Regiment of Life Guards on 27 February 1865,[20] he was to promoted to general on 28 August 1865 and advanced toKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in 1869.[21][22] He formally retired in October 1877,[23] but after some lobbying he was promoted tofield marshal on 21 June 1887.[24] He died at 13 South Street, Park Lane, London, on 10 November 1888 and was buried atLaleham inMiddlesex.[3]
In 1829, Bingham married Lady Anne Brudenell, seventh daughter ofRobert Brudenell, 6th Earl of Cardigan; they had six children, two daughters being still born or dying soon after birth:[3]
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| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forMayo 1826–1830 With:James Browne | Succeeded by |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by Sir John Brown | Colonel of the8th (The King's Royal Irish) Hussars 1855–1865 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Colonel of the1st Regiment of Life Guards 1865–1888 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Lord Lieutenant of Mayo 1845–1888 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
| Preceded by | Earl of Lucan 1839–1888 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Representative peer for Ireland 1840–1888 | Succeeded by |
