Discover

'Robert Cornelis Napier, 1st Baron Napier of Magdala', GCB, GCSI, CIE, FRS (1810-1890), was a British soldier.

Contents

Biography

Sources and External links

Biography

He was the son of Major Charles Frederick Napier, who was wounded at the storming of Meester Corneis (August 26 1810) in Java and died some months later. Robert was born in Ceylon on December 6 1810. He joined the Bengal Engineers at the age of 18 and served with distinction throughout the Sikh Wars.
He later served in the North West Frontier District and saw action in Peshawar and Afghanistan.
He served during the Indian Mutiny, helping to mop up the final resistance before commanding a division during the war with China.
He achieved his greatest fame as Field Marshal, leading a punitive expedition in 1867 to Amba Mariam alias fort Magdala, near the capital of Abyssinia, which rescued several captured British diplomats and soundly defeated the Abyssinian forces. He received a parliamentary pension, was made Grand Commander of the Order of the Bath and a freeman of the City of London and by way of victory title was given a hereditary peerage, Baron Napier of Magdala. He was inducted into the Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge in 1869. [1]
He later became Commander-in-Chief in India and also served as Governor of Gibraltar from 1876 to 1883.
Lord Napier of Magdala died on January 14 1890.

Sources and External links

★ [2]

★ Royal Engineers Museum - Sapper Biographies

★ Royal Engineers Museum - Corps History - campaigns

★ Almanach de Bruxelles (now a paying site)