Thomas Picton
| Thomas Picton | |
|---|---|
Portrait of Thomas Picton by Thomas Lawrence
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| Born | 24 August 1758 Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
| Died | 18 June 1815 (aged 56) Waterloo |
| Buried at | St George's, Hanover Square, London. (later reburied at St Paul's Cathedral) |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
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| Service/branch |
 British Army
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| Years of service | 1771–1815 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Picton GCB (24 August 1758 – 18 June 1815), a Welsh officer of the British Army, fought in a number of campaigns for Britain in the Napoleonic Wars. According to the historian Alessandro Barbero, Picton was "respected for his courage and feared for his irascible temperament". The Duke of Wellington called him "a rough foul-mouthed devil as ever lived", but found him capable.
Picton came to public attention initially for his alleged cruelty during his governorship (1797–1803) of Trinidad, as a result of which he was put on trial in England for illegally torturing a woman. Though he was convicted, the conviction was later overturned.
He is chiefly remembered for his exploits under Wellington in the Iberian Peninsular War of 1807–1814, during which he fought in many engagements, displaying great bravery and persistence. He was killed in 1815 fighting at the Battle of Waterloo, during a crucial bayonet charge in which his division stopped d'Erlon's corps' attack against the allied centre left. He was the most senior officer to die at Waterloo.
Thomas Picton was the seventh of twelve children of Thomas Picton (1723–1790) of Poyston, Pembrokeshire, Wales, and his wife, Cecil née Powell (1728–1806). He was born in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire on (probably) 24 August 1758. In 1771 he obtained an ensign's commission in the 12th Regiment of Foot, but he did not join until two years later. The regiment was then stationed at Gibraltar, where he remained until he was made captain in the 75th in January 1778, at which point he then returned to Britain.
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