Born at Stafford on the 21st of October 1828, the son of Thomas Robert Charles, the 4th Baron Dimsdale of the Russian Empire, J.P. Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, and a J.P. for Essex and the Liberty of St. Alban's, and his wife, Lucinda, daughter of Henry Manning Esq., of Wanford House, Co. Devon. He was christened in the church of St. Mary the Virgin at Essendon, Hertfordshire, on the 25th of April 1829.
A number of letters were written by his father and mother to the War Office prior to his being originally commissioned:
Camfield House,
May 26th 1847.
My Lord, — I have the honour to request you will be good enough to have my son's name placed on His Grace the Commander-in-Chief's list for a commission in the Infantry. His name is Henry Francis Dimsdale. He is 18 years of age and at present is an undergraduate at Oxford.
I have the honour to be, etc. etc.,
Dimsdale.
A further letter, dated the 30th of May, stated that he was born on the 21st of October 1828.
Two further letters were written by his mother:
Camfield House,
December 15th 1847.
My Lord, — I have the honour to request that you may be good enough to transfer my son's name (Henry Francis Dimsdale) from your Lordship's list of candidates for a commission in the Infantry to that of Cavalry. I trust that your Lordship will soon have an opportunity for entering my son for purchase.
I have the honour to be, etc. etc.,
L. Dimsdale.
Her second letter, dated the 2nd of January 1848, read:
My Lord, — In applying to you to remove my son's name (Henry F. Dimsdale) from Infantry to Cavalry, I omitted to mention that it is my wish he should be placed in a Regiment of Cavalry serving in India and if at all possible in the Bombay Presidency. I trust that the change may enable your Lordship to make an early decision. I believe that Lord John Russell was not aware at the time he addressed your Lordship in my son's favour, of our wish for him to be gazetted in a Cavalry Regiment serving in Bombay.
I have the honour to be, etc. etc.,
L. Dimsdale.
Cornet in the 3rd Light Dragoons: 11th of February 1848,
The regulated sum of £480 was paid for this commission and he joined the Maidstone Cavalry Depot on the 18th of February, the 3rd Light Dragoons then being at Umballa, India.
Cornet in the 10th Hussars: 15th of August 1848.
He embarked on the 6th of September 1848 and joined the regiment at Kirkee, India, on the 4th of February 1849.
Cornet in the 1st Dragoons: 18th of September 1850,
(There is no available reference as to just when he left the 10th Hussars, but the regiment was still in India until 1855. His first entry on the musters of the 1st Dragoons shows him as being with them from the 18th of September, the regiment then being at York. He went "On leave" from the 22nd of October 1850 to the 9th of February 1851 and "Retired from the service by the sale of his commission" at Nottingham on the 13th of February 1851.
He next wrote to the Military Secretary at the Horse Guards from:
10 Bury Street,
St. James's,
London.
11th December 1854.
Sir, I have the honour to request that you will forward this my application for the consideration of the General Commanding-in-Chief, for permission to re-enter the Service by a commission in some Cavalry Corps now serving in the Crimea, being most conscious at the present time to serve my country — my age is 26.
I have the honour to be, Sir,
Your humble and obedient servant,
Henry Fraser Dimsdale.
Late 1st Royal Dragoons.
(Commented on the reverse of this letter was: Are there are any opportunities for Mr. Dimsdale... And added (in another hand)... See enclosed his own application of the 11th December 1854, which was refused on account of his age — which is 26...
He also wrote to Lady Palmerston from the same address and on the same date:
Dear Lady Palmerston,
Pray excuse my troubling you with this, but from your kind promise some time ago that you would be happy to render me a service should the opportunity occur, emboldens me to ask this very pressing favour of you. Having heard that Lord Hardinge at the present time has allowed retired officers to enter the service again by giving them a commission without purchase, and being most anxious to serve my country again now there is so good an opportunity for a soldier. I would take it so very kind of you if you would ask Lord Hardinge to give me a cornetcy in some Light Cavalry Corps now serving in the Crimea, without purchase. By granting me this favour you would be rendering me a great service and I shall ever be grateful to you.
Allow me to remain,
Yours very truly,
Henry F. Dimsdale.
P.S. My formal application has been sent to the Horse Guards, with my Father's and Mother's consent.
Lady Palmerston wrote on his behalf:
Carlton Gardens,
Dear Lord Hardinge,
Are there any commissions to be given. Mr. Dimsdale is a young man of property in Hertfordshire, the son of Baron Dimsdale. He served some years ago in the Army and I believe he came out because his father thought he spent too much money. I enclose Mr. Dimsdale's letter to me — With many excuses for the trouble I give you.
Believe me,
Yours truly,
14th December 1854. G(?) Palmerston.
Commented on the reverse of this letter was:
"Under the present circumstances he may be noted for a commission without purchase. Please acquaint Mr. Dimsdale with reference to his letter of the 11th Dec. 1854 that under the present circumstances the General Commanding-in-Chief will be happy to note him for a commission without purchase, and to provide for him at once.
Another letter also exists, written by the Commanding Officer of the 3rd Light Dragoons:
Manchester, 28th December 1854.
Sir, In reply to your letter of the 26th ult. I have the honour to state for the information of the General Commanding-in-Chief that Mr. Dimsdale never joined the 3rd Light Dragoons, but was appointed to the 10th Hussars on the 15th August 1848, from which regiment, I presume, he afterwards retired.
I have the honour to be,
Your most obedient servant.
Lieut. Colonel. W. Unnett,
Commdg, 3rd Light Dragoons.
Cornet in the 11th Hussars: 11th of January 1855.
Horse Guards,
24th February 1855.
Sir, — I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, irregularly addressed to the General Commanding-in-Chief, which has been forwarded to me for reply. Your formal application to proceed direct to the Crimea was refused and I have only now to repeat that as a remount of horses and men will shortly proceed to Constantinople the services of officers will be required and if the Officer Commanding at Newbridge thinks proper to detach you for that duty you will accompany them.
I am, etc. etc.,
G.A. Weatherall, AAG.
[To:] Cornet Dimsdale, 11th Hussars. 11 Bury Street, St. James's, London.
Horse Guards.
30th March 1855.
Sir, — I have laid before the General Commanding-in-Chief your letter of the 27th inst. and am directed to acquaint you in reply that his Lordship approves of Cornet Dimsdale of the 11th Hussars joining the detachment of his regiment now at Exeter for the purpose of embarking with it to Constantinople.
I am, etc. etc.,
A. Weatherall, AAG.
[To:] Colonel Gibsone, Commanding Cavalry Depot, Newbridge.
Horse Guards,
10th April 1855.
Sir, — I am in receipt of your letter of the 5th inst. and by direction of the Field Marshal Commanding-in Chief to desire that you will acquaint me with what accommodation on board ship you will require in order that application may be made for your passage to the East.
I have. etc. etc.,,
W.F. Forster, AAG.
[To:] Cornet Dimsdale, 11th Hussars, Junior Military Services Club, London.
Embarked for service in the Crimea on the 25th of April 1855, joining the regiment on the 24th of May, but was sent back to England, " On sick leave" on the 4th of July 1855 until rejoining the Depot on the 1st of October 1855.
Horse Guards,
24th August 1855.
Sir, — I have the General Commander-in-Chief's command to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of yesterday and to acquaint you that his Lordship approves of the man named in the margin (1331 Private Thomas Powell) to immediately rejoin the Depot of his Corps at Newbridge Barracks, Ireland. A route, (No. 61852) for this man is enclosed.
I am, etc. etc.,
W. F. Forbes, AAG.
[To:] Cornet Dimsdale, 11 Bury Street, St. James's.
Memorandum to the Officer Commanding the Cavalry Depot, Newbridge.
Horse Guards,
24th August 1855.
Sir, — The General Commanding in Chief has been pleased to approve of the man named in the margin (No. 1331 Private Thomas Powell, 11th Hussars) to proceed immediately to rejoin the Depot of his Corps as his master, Cornet Dimsdale, has reported that he absented himself without leave from the 20th to the 24th inst.
Horse Guards,
15th August 1856.
Sir, — With reference to your letter of the 13th inst. I am directed by HRH the Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief to request that you will acquaint me whether your state of health will permit you to proceed to London and appear before the Army Medical Board. If not, your Medical adviser is to certify to that effect.
I have, etc. etc.,
W.F. Forster. AAG.
[To:] Cornet Dimsdale, Camfield Place, Hertfordshire.
Died on the 16th of January 1857, whilst "on leave" at his home, Camfield Place, in Hertfordshire.
Cornet Dimsdale served the Eastern campaign from the 25th of May 1855, including the Siege of Sebastopol. (Medal and Clasp and the Turkish Medal.)
Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasp for Sebastopol and the Turkish Medal.
[PB: Some at least of the following appears to be a quote. Check against source and edit.
The Dimsdale lineage in "A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage".
His ancestor, Dr. Thomas Dimsdale, the 1st Baron, had, in 1745, made a gratuitous offer of his services to the medical staff of the Army sent North to suppress the Scotch rebellion. This Army was under the command of the Duke of Cumberland, and he continued in the service until after the surrender of Carlisle to the King's forces, when he received the thanks of His Royal Highness, the Commander-in-Chief.
The ample fortune enjoyed by Dr. Dimsdale induced him to retire for several years from the practice of his profession, but when his high reputation reached the ears of Catherine, Empress of Russia, he was especially invited by her Majesty to the Court of St. Petersbourg in 1762 for the purpose of inoculating herself and the Grand Duke, her son, against small-pox, which invitation he accepted and acquitted himself so much to the satisfaction of his Imperial patients that her Majesty awarded him with the appointment of an actual councillor of state and physician to her Imperial Majesty with an annuity of £600 per annum, conferring on him at the same time a Barony of the Russian Empire with the title of Honourable attached, to be borne by him and the eldest of his lawful sons in succession. She likewise gave him the sum of £20,000, with £2,000 for the expenses of his journey and presented him with a miniature of herself and the Grand Duke, richly set in diamonds.
His second son, Nathaniel, who had accompanied his father to the Russian Court, had conferred on him at the same time a similar dignity, with similar limitations. Her Imperial Majesty was further pleased to grant to both father and son, and to their lawful descendants, permission to add to their family arms a wing of the displayed black eagle of the Russian Imperial coat on a gold shield placed in the centre, with the usual helmet over the shield and surmounted by the Baron's coronet. A patent to be in accordance was prepared and embellished with the portrait of her Majesty and other splendid ornaments and delivered to the Barons Dimsdale, of the Priory, Co. Hertfordshire.
(Although the Empress may have felt sure of his capabilities she was not so sure of her people, as she established a chain of relay posts with coaches and horses always available, by which he could have got out of the country very quickly if anything had gone wrong.)
The first Baron was the grandson of Robert Dimsdale, who had accompanied William Penn to America.]
Extract from the "Navy and Military Gazette", 14th of February 1857:
11th Hussars. — The senior Cornet, Henry Frazer Dimsdale, who died on January the 16th at Carnfield House [sic] Hertfordshire, after a long and painful illness (Crimean fever*) was the second and youngest son of the Hon. Baron Dimsdale of the Russian Empire, and was born on the 21st of October 1828.
He entered the service as a Cornet (by purchase) in the 3rd Light Dragoons, but did not join the regiment, being transferred to the 10th Hussars on the 15th of August 1848, which corps he joined in India. He again transferred to the Royal Dragoons, and joined that corps on his return to Europe.
He retired from the service on the 11th of January 1851, and married. He re-entered the service on January 11th 1855 as a Cornet in the 11th Hussars, and joined the Regiment at Newbridge. Sailed from Devonport on the 21st of April 1855 for the Crimea aboard Chalmer's transport, No. 38, with a draft of 37 men and 62 horses belonging to the 11th Hussars.
He was examined by a Medical Board on July 3rd, and received leave to proceed from Scutari to England on sick leave.
He joined the Depot in September and would have been promoted to Lieutenant on February 6th 1857, had he survived. It is curious to record that this officer was never dismissed from the Riding School of any of the four Cavalry Regiments in which he served, until after his return from the Crimea in 1855.
When he was transferred from the 10th Hussars to the Royal Dragoons it was taken for granted that he had been drilled and taught to ride, and when he joined the 11th Hussars it was again taken for granted that he had already been drilled and taught to ride in the three years he had already passed in the Service.
The error was only discovered when he joined the service troops in the Crimea."
* The diagnosis ofCrimean fever was presumably the disease now generally called Brucellosis.
Extract from the "County Press" for the 18th of January 1857:
Death — On the 16th inst. at Camfield Place, Henry Frazer Dimsdale, Esq., 11th (Prince Albert's Own) Hussars, youngest son of the Hon. Baron Dimsdale, after a long and painful illness, the consequence of Crimean fever.
The parish records show that he was buried in the churchyard of St. Mary the Virgin at Essendon, Hertfordshire, on the 22nd of January 1857 at the age of 28 years. His elder brother, Thomas Robert Charles, who died at Brompton, London, was also buried there on the 23rd of January 1858 and his father, also Thomas Robert Charles, who died at Camfield Hall, on the 28th of November 1865, aged 65 years.
From information kindly sent by Mr. L.J. Wombwell of Essendon, who has been associated with the church for many years (as church-warden) it is now known that there is a family vault in the churchyard of St. Mary the Virgin at Essendon and inside the church a total of seven memorials to various members of the family. One of the plaques reads as follows:
"In memory of Henry Frazer Dimsdale, Cornet, 11th P.A.O Hussars, who died at Camfield Place from the effects of Crimean Fever, January 16th 1857. "In my Father's House are many Mansions." St. John X1V 2. Erected by his sister, Finetta Esther."
Following this, in 1992, an articlewas published, based on this record, in the local Church magazine and was seen by a member of his greater family still living in the area, who wished to know how this came about. An invitation to his house followed, where it transpired there were a considerable number of paintings of the family members over the years and items relating to the original granting of the baronetcy. Also possessed was a painting by William Butler in 1848 of Henry Dimsdale in the uniform of the 10th Hussars. Permission to photograph this was readily granted.
Henry Dimsdale's medals still exist and are in the possession of another branch of the family, now residing in Canada.
Following changed Government legislation in 1932 the present owner of the title of Baron Dimsdale cannot now apparently refer to himself as such.