Brigadier-General Sir William Hope Meiklejohn, KCB, CMG (/ˈmiːkəlˌdʒɒn/; 1845 – 1909)[1] was a British military commander of the British Indian Army, who was in charge of the British garrison during the siege of Malakand in 1897.
William Hope Meiklejohn | |
|---|---|
 William Meiklejohn | |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service |  British Indian Army |
| Rank | Brigadier-General |
| Commands | Malakand Field Force |
| Battles / wars | Siege of Malakand 26 July – 2 August 1897 |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George |
Military career
editMeiklejohn was commissioned a second lieutenant on 4 December 1861, promoted to lieutenant on 11 December 1862, captain on 24 May 1871, and major on 1 July 1881. He advanced to senior rank as lieutenant-colonel on 4 December 1887, and was promoted to colonel on 29 August 1893.[2]
As colonel, he was in charge of the British garrison during the siege of Malakand in northern India from 26 July to 2 August 1897 and later led a relief force to the besieged fort of Chakdara along with Sir Bindon Blood,[3] fighting against 50,000–100,000 Pashtun tribesmen[4][5] and suffering only 206 casualties. Meiklejohn was later credited for his skills in providing such a victory in dispatches sent to the military government in British India.[6]
He was appointed in command of a district in the Bengal Army on 8 December 1898, and posted to Rohilkhand, where he stayed in command until February 1900, when he returned home for a prolonged leave for medical reasons.[7] He was promoted to major-general on 19 March 1900. In April 1901 he was posted to Lucknow, and officiated in command there until late 1902 when the actual commanding officer Sir Alfred Gaselee arrived.[8] Meiklejohn had been appointed in command of the district at Derajat in August 1901,[9] but it appears he did not take up this position as he officiated in Lucknow.
Family
editMeiklejohn married, in 1893, Maud Louisa Hamilton Beamish, daughter of Rear-Admiral Henry Hamilton Beamish.[10]
Notes
edit- ^ Wylly p. 138
- ^ Hart's Army list, 1901
- ^ BBC News Rare British India documents surface Retrieved 2 June 2007
- ^ Wilkinson-Latham p. 20
- ^ Gore p. 405
- ^ Dispatches from Major-General G de C Morton, 15 September 1897, cited in The Risings on the North-west Frontier, The Pioneer press, 1898 appendix III
- ^ "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36063. London. 12 February 1900. p. 11.
- ^ "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36890. London. 4 October 1902. p. 10.
- ^ "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36525. London. 5 August 1901. p. 8.
- ^ "Sitter: Lady Meiklejohn, née Maud Louisa Hamilton Beamish ( )". Lafayette Negative Archive.
References
editPrinted sources:
- Gore, Surgeon General at Nowshera, for The Dublin Journal of Medical Science, 1898
- Wilkinson-Latham, Robert North-west Frontier 1837–1947, 1977 ISBN 0-85045-275-9
- Wylly, Harold C. From the Black Mountain to Waziristan, 1912
Websites:
- BBC News Rare British India documents surface Retrieved 2 June 2007
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