Sir Peregrine Maitland | |
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George Theodore Berthon's Sir Peregrine Maitland
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Born |
6 July 1777 Longparish, Hampshire, Great Britain |
Died |
30 May 1854 (aged 76) Eaton Place, West London, United Kingdom |
Allegiance | Great Britain |
Service/branch | Foot Guards |
Years of service | 1791–1836 |
Rank | Major General, 14 June 1815; Lt. General 1834; General 1843. |
Commands held | Madras Army |
Battles/wars |
Haitian Revolution French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars |
Other work | Lt. Governor of Upper Canada Lt. Governor of Nova Scotia Governor of Cape Colony |
General Sir Peregrine Maitland, GCB (6 July 1777 – 30 May 1854) was a British soldier and colonial administrator. He also was a first-class cricketer from 1798 to 1808.
Born at Longparish House in Longparish, Hampshire, the eldest of five sons of Thomas Maitland of Lyndhurst, Hampshire, (d. 1798) by his spouse Jane, daughter of Edward Mathew, General of the Coldstream Guards by his wife Lady Jane (d. 21 August 1793), daughter of Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven. Thomas Maitland possessed plantations in the parish of St. Thomas Middle Island on the island of St. Christopher in the West Indies.
After joining the 1st Foot Guards at the age of 15 as an ensign he went on to serve in Flanders in 1794, by which time he had achieved his promotion to lieutenant. In 1798, he took part in the unsuccessful landing at Ostend. In the Peninsular War, he served at both the Battle of Vigo, and at Corunna, at which he won a medal. He took part in the Walcheren in 1809. During the later stages of the Peninsula War was second in command of his regiment at Cadiz, and later at the Battle of Seville.
He served with distinction at Quatre Bras and the Battle of Waterloo. Promoted in early June (3 June 1815) to major general, he was assigned to the First Corps, under overall command of the Prince of Orange. On 18 June, the day of Waterloo, he commanded two battalions of the 1st Foot Guards, each 1000-men strong and led the Guards in repelling the final assault of the French Imperial Guard. For his service at Waterloo, Maitland was dubbed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath, (KCB) on 22 June 1815, the Dutch Order of Wilhelm and the Russian Order of St. Vladimir. For their part, the 1st Foot Guards were granted the honorary title of 'First or Grenadier Regiment of Foot Guards'.