Charles James Napier

General Sir Charles Napier GCB


Governor of Sindh
In office 1843–1847
Monarch	Victoria
Governor-General	The Lord Ellenborough Sir Henry Hardinge
Preceded by	New office
Succeeded by	Richard Keith Pringle As Chief Commissioner of Sindh
Personal details
Born	(1782-08-10)10 August 1782 Whitehall Palace, London, England
Died	29 August 1853(1853-08-29) (aged 71) Portsmouth, England
Resting place	Royal Garrison Church, Portsmouth
Awards	Army Gold Medal Military General Service Medal Sindh Medal
Military service
Allegiance	United Kingdom / British Empire East India Company
Service/branch	British Army Bombay Army
Years of service	1794–1851
Rank	General
Commands	Northern District Commander-in-Chief of India
Battles/wars	Peninsular War Conquest of Scinde

General Sir Charles James Napier, GCB (10 August 1782 – 29 August 1853), was a soldier and governor of the British Empire and the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in India, during which period he led the military conquest of Sindh.

Charles James Napier was the eldest son of Colonel (the Honourable) George Napier, and his second wife, Lady Sarah Lennox, with this being the second marriage for both parties. Lady Sarah was the great-granddaughter of King Charles II. Napier was born at the Whitehall Palace in London, and he received part of his education at boarding school in Celbridge, Ireland. He joined the 33rd Infantry Regiment of the British Army in January 1794, and decided to become a career soldier.

Napier commanded the 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot during the Peninsular War in Iberia against Napoleon Bonaparte. Napier's activities there ended during the Battle of Corunna, in which he was wounded and left for dead on the battlefield. Napier was rescued, barely alive, by a French Army drummer named Guibert, and taken as a prisoner-of-war. Nevertheless, Napier was awarded an Army Gold Medal after he was returned to British hands.