William Lumley

Sir William Lumley
Major-General William Lumley.
Born	28 August 1769
Died	15 December 1850 (1850-12-16) (aged 81) Grosvenor Square, London
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1787 to 1825
Rank	British Army General
Battles/wars	French Revolutionary Wars Irish Rebellion of 1798 • Battle of Antrim Eyptian Expedition Napoleonic Wars Capture of Cape Colony Río del Plata Campaign • Battle of Montevideo Sicilian Expedition Peninsula War • Battle of Albuera
Awards	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Other work	Groom of the Bedchamber

General Sir William Lumley, GCB (1769–1850) was a British Army officer and courtier during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The son of the Earl of Scarborough, Lumley enjoyed a rapid rise through the ranks aided by a reputation for bravery and professionalism established on campaign in Ireland, Egypt, South Africa, South America, Italy, Portugal and Spain. Following his retirement from the army due to ill health in 1811, Lumley served as Governor of Bermuda and later gained a position as a courtier to the Royal Household. Lumley is especially noted for his actions at the Battle of Antrim where he saved the lives of several magistrates and was seriously wounded fighting hand-to-hand with United Irish rebels in the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

Lumley was born the seventh son of Richard Lumley, 4th Earl of Scarborough and his wife Barbara neé Savile. He was educated at Eton College and at 18 in 1787 joined the 10th Light Dragoons as a cornet. Due to the system then in place of officers being able to purchase promotions, Lumley rose steadily through the ranks, becoming major in 1793 at the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars. By 1795 Lumley had transferred to the 22nd Dragoons as lieutenant colonel and in 1798 was sent to Ireland to help defeat the United Irishmen forces during the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

During this conflict, Lumley used his regiment for patrolling the countryside and on 7 June 1798 was at Antrim when the town was attacked by at least 4,000 rebels led by Henry Joy McCracken. The town was defended by a mixture of regular soldiers, militia and loyalist volunteers who made their stand at Antrim Castle, Lumley commanding the cavalry. The initial rebel attack was beaten back and Lumley's cavalry troops attempted to rout them with a charge whilst the remainder of the garrison retreated into the castle. The cavalry were counter-attacked by pikemen and Lumley severely wounded before reinforcements from Belfast dispersed the United Irishmen. Lumley's charge had given time for the rest of the garrison to escape, the only person of note to lose their life being the magistrate Lord O'Neill.