Born on the 1st of September 1829, the son of John Hely-Hutchinson, 3rd Earl of Donoughmore and his second wife, Barbara, the daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel William Reynell, of Castle Reynell, Co. Westmeath, and his wife, Jane, daughter of Sir William Montgomery, of Macbie Hill, Peebleshire, Scotland. The family home was at Knocklofty, near Clonmell, Co. Tipperary.
His father was born in the parish of St. George's, Dublin, in 1787 and had entered the Army as an Ensign in the 1st Foot Guards on the 25th of September 1807 and to Lieutenant and Captain on the 9th of November 1812.
He served at Corunna during the Peninsula campaign, being awarded the medal and clasp for this. He was however, deprived of his commission in 1816, but was soon re-instated before going on to half-pay on the 27th of May 1819. He remained as such until his death.
In reply to a circular in 1838, asking all officers on half-pay if they wished to be considered for further employment he stated, "Not desirous." He became the 3rd Earl of Donoughmore, following the death of an uncle, in June of 1832. M.P and Lord Lieut. for Co. Tipperary, Knight of St. Patrick in April of 1834, P.C. for Ireland in November of 1834, and died at Palmerston House, near Dublin, on the 14th of September 1851. His widow died at Geneva, Switzerland, from bronchitis on the 11th of December 1856.
On the 1st of March 1984 his M.G.S. medal with the single clasp for Corunna appeared in a Sotheby's auction and was named to "The Earl of Donoughmore. Ensn. 1st Ft. Gds." (This is unusual in that the medal was named to his title at the time of the award and not as John Hely-Hutchinson as he was at the time of the actual battle for which it was awarded, but the ruling on this was, rank at the time of the battle commemorated, but any subsequent honours (i.e. titles) were put on the medal.)
There was a considerable write-up about him and besides the service details already noted claimed that he had participated in the battle of Waterloo. (He is not on any roll of the regiment for this nor can any other indication be found that he did so.) The muster rolls for the period however, show him as being with the regiment in France "at whole or intermediate times," from the 24th of December 1814 to the 24th of December 1815 and again during the whole of 1816. Both the 2nd and 3rd Bns. of the regiment are said to have been present at Waterloo. (This medal formed part of a three lot family group to other members of the Hely-Hutchinson family, although the others were sold as separate lots. The second was to Lt. Hon. P.M. Hely-Hutchinson. R.N. and comprised the Egypt 1882 medal with the clasp for Alexandria 11th July and the Khedive's Star (unnamed). His added service details showed that he had acted as a Sub. Lieut. of H.M.S. "Shah" during the engagement with the Peruvian rebel ship "Huascar" off the town of Ylo on the 29th of May 1887. Also accompanied the Retshowe Relief Column and was present at the battle of Gighiloivo. Later he advanced with Crealock's Division to Port Durnford (Zulu medal and clasp) and during the Egyptian campaign had witnessed the bombardment of Alexandria Town. He later served with the Australian Navy, being employed with the Victoria Naval Defence Force, initially as a Torpedo Lieut. in 1884 and as the Commandant of the Permanent Defence Force of Victoria in 1888.
The third group was to the 6th Earl of Donoughmore. B.R.C.S. and comprising of the 1914-15 Star, B.W.M. and Victory medal with oak palm as the Earl of Donoughmore, (was twice mentioned in despatches) the 1935 Jubilee, Coronation 1937 (these last two unnamed as issued) and the Officer's breast badge of the Belgium Order of St. Leopold. This lot was also sold with three identical miniature trios (including the O. St. J. and a bronze commemorative medallion.) The write-up showed: Richard Hely-Hutchinson (6th Earl of Donoughmore). Born 1875. Under Sec. of State for War Dept. 1903-05; Created a Knight of St. Patrick in 1916. Was a Captain in the 3rd. Bn. Royal Irish Regt. (Mil.) and a Temporary Colonel whilst serving with the British Red Cross Society between 1916 and 1920. He was also created a Knight of Justice and a Director of the St. John Ambulance service in 1916.
Lieut. Hon. Percival Maurice Hely-Hutchinson, R.N. was the son of Richard John the 4th Earl. Born in April of 1875, he died, un-married, in January of 1893, and Richard Walter Hely-Hutchinson, 6th Earl of Donoughmore, was the son of John Luke George, the 5th Earl and died in 1948.)
It further states that:
"On the Allied occupation of Paris he was quartered there and assisted in the escape of General Lavalette (who had been sentenced to death as an accomplice of the recent usurpation of Napoleon) by secreting him in his rooms on the night of the 20th of December 1815.
Together with Lieut. Bruce of his own regiment and General Sir Robert Wilson he was put on trial in Paris. However, public sympathy was on the side of the accused and the judge passed a lenient sentence of three months' imprisonment and charged them the costs of the trial. In addition, the recipient was struck off the British Army List but was later restored to his commission."
No break in the entry for him in the "Army Lists" can be found.
Extract from the "Gazette de France" of the 13th of January 1816:
"The following facts relative to the arrest of the three English Officers are stated: An agent of Police had, it is said, observed, at an hotel in the Rue St. Honore, several equipages of which no use seemed to be made, but were kept as if to be employed in a long journey.
He got into conversation with the porter of the hotel, who told him that these carriages had recently left it, and returned in about 60 hours; he knew not where they had been, but said that the valet of an English General, who lodged at the hotel, could give him more correct details. This domestic was bribed; he discovered that his master had a very extensive correspondence. He was desired to purloin it, and the very next day this valet produced a very long letter addressed to a well-known society in London. This letter contained a full account of Lavalette's escape. The police forthwith made searches. We are assured that amongst the papers seized upon the foreigners, there are some proving certain facts connected with the escape from the Isle of Elba."
Same paper: "We are assured that it was not until Tuesday of last week that Lavallette was able to leave Paris with the assistance of the English Officers and it deserves remark that he was the same day executed in effigy.".
Extract from the "Journal des Debats":
"Lavalette set off from the Rue de Helder, where Captain Hutchinson lodged, who conveyed him in his carriage as far as Compeigne. Sir Robert Wilson, who it is said suggested the disguise of Lavalette, was waiting for him in that town. It is remarked that Captain Hutchinson lodged in the house of M. Dupois, the judge employed to take the examinations relevant to the escape...
General Lavalette's Escape: On the 20th of December 1815, the night before General Lavalette was to be executed, his wife and daughter and an elderly governess made a final visit to his place of confinement. The General and his wife were permitted to dine in private quarters and it was here that Lavalette changed into her clothes. Acting out this new identity with a skilful bearing, he was able to leave the prison with his daughter and the governess. Various elements of luck and the sheer stupidity of the two prison guards also assisted his successful escape.
It is interesting to note that the General's wife was a very tall and slim woman, whilst his stature was rather short and plump — moreover, the guards never even lifted the veil he was wearing. Lavellette remained hidden in Paris until the 10th of January 1816. On the evening of the same, he walked with a friend to the lodgings of Captain Hely-Hutchinson and there changed into the uniform of an English Colonel. Assuming the name of Losak, he then travelled with General Robert Wilson (who had been a sworn enemy of Napoleon) and successfully departed from Paris and arriving at Mons soon after. Eventually Lavalette went into exile in Bavaria and it was not until he received a pardon from Louis XV111, in 1822, that he returned to Paris...
At the time of the trial the (presumed Lieutenant) described himself as Michael Bruce, a private person visiting Paris. When the accused were called upon to state their name and quality Mr Bruce said with energy, "I am an English citizen".
A television programme was screened in 1995 which depicted the life of Lady Hester Stanhope, a niece of William Pitt, the Prime Minister. Following his death, and that of her intended husband, Sir John Moore at Corrunna, she decided to go to the East, following a fortune-teller's claim that it was her destiny and taking only a doctor and her maid.
On the island of Malta she met up with Michael Bruce (in 1810) and they became lovers. At this time she had but little money, but Bruce's father (said to be a very rich man) financed their journey to Syria and finally to the town of Palmyra. Here the Pasha of Acre ceded to her the ruins of a convent and by open-handed charity in relieving the poor and distressed of the region caused herself to be regarded with superstitious veneration as a kind of prophetess.
On her adopting Eastern manners and customs Bruce became very disillusioned with the simple life and wished to return to Italy. She refused to do so however and he left her there, the doctor leaving soon after.
By 1838 she was left with only five native retainers and walling up the gate refused to see any visitors. On hearing that she was ill, the English Consul at Beirut, accompanied by an American missionary, rode over the mountains to see her but found the place deserted, the servants having fled with any plunder they could carry, not a single thing been left in the room where she lay dead. She was buried in the gardens next to her servant, a Miss Williams, who had died in 1828.
Captain Hutchinson wore the uniform of his military rank and Sir Robert Wilson appeared in grand uniform decorated with no fewer than eight orders of different European states.
From a French official account it appears that the first proposal in attempting to save General Lavalette was made to Mr. Bruce on January the 2nd or 3rd when an unknown person brought an anonymous letter to the effect that the General was still in Paris and that he (Bruce) alone could save him and requesting an answer on the subject.
Of all that followed, Sir Robert Wilson was entirely ignorant until he was informed by Bruce, who prevailed upon him to contribute his efforts. Captain Hutchinson was associated with the same project. These gentlemen were influenced partly by their commiseration for the unfortunate individual and partly by their political sentiments. (Of his accomplices, the Regimental History refers to one of them as Mr. Michael Bruce, (his name is "starred" and a footnote added that he was the son of Crawford Bruce.)
He is not listed as ever being an officer of the 1st. Foot Guards, in spite of his being mentioned as such in the newspaper reports of the time. Little more is shown in the history than already known except that "The three were arrested without notice being made to the British Ambassador and committed to the "Abbaye".
On the expiration of their sentence they were required to quit France. Although Mr. Bruce and Sir Robert Wilson left for England, the order was resisted by Captain Hutchinson and in July he rejoined his battalion at Cambrai." (The 2nd Bn. had left Paris for England at the end of January 1816, so in all probability he was serving in the 3rd during his service in France. The other, General Sir Robert Wilson, had a long career in the Army, the "Army List" of 1846 showing that he had 55 years service and that he had served "In Flanders and Holland in 1793/4/5; in the rebellion in Ireland in 1798; in Holland in 1779, the Egyptian campaign of 1801; capture of the Cape of Good Hope in 1806; raised and commanded the Lusitanian Legion in 1808/9 in Spain and Portugal. Served several campaigns with the Russian army in Russia, Poland, Germany and France; and with the Austrian army in Italy."
The "Annual Register" records that he was born in London in August of 1773, the third son of the portrait painter Benjamin Wilson, and although originally educated for the legal profession at Westminster and Winchester, he entered the 15th Light Dragoons as a Cornet in 1793 after serving as a volunteer with the Duke of York at Courtray.
In 1798, he and seven other officers of the 15th Hussars were given gold medals by the Emperor Francis 11 as a reward for saving him from the French and King George 111 gave them permission for this to be worn as "an honorary badge of their bravery in the field." Four years later the Emperor conferred upon the same officers the Cross of the Order of Maria Theresa and the rank of Baron of the Holy Roman Empire and of Knighthood attached. This again they were allowed to accept.
A Lieutenant in October of 1794 and Captain in September of 1796, he purchased a majority in Hompesch's' Mounted Riflemen in June of 1800 and was made a Knight of the Order of the Crescent of Turkey for his services in Egypt. Purchasing a Lt. Colonelcy in the 19th Light Dragoons in August of 1804 he exchanged in the March of the following year into the 20th for service at the Cape of Good Hope.
In 1804 Wilson made his first public protest against corporal punishment in the Army and complimented by many for the service thus rendered to humanity. In 1806, following the peace agreement of Tilsit he was awarded the Cross of St. George for his services with the Russian Army, and in August of 1808 was given the command of the Loyal Lusitanian Legion, a body raised out of Portuguese refugees in England, with the rank of Brigadier-General. On the unit being integrated in the Portuguese Army he was made a Knight-Commander of the Portuguese Order of the Tower and Sword.
By now back in the British Army as a Colonel he was employed on special duties by Lord Wellesley in May of 1810. Again going to Russia in 1812 as a local Brigadier-General, during his service there he was decorated by the Emperor in front of the Imperial Guard with the Cross of Knight Commander of the Order of St. George, he taking it from his own neck and making a complimentary speech as to Wilson's courage and talent.
Exchanging into the 22nd Light Dragoons in December of 1812, he was promoted Major-General in 1813, and was serving in Austria when he lost his Cross of the Order of Maria Theresa in a melee and the Emperor of Austria presented him with another, as well as the King of Prussia awarding him the Order of the Red Eagle. On Lord Castlereagh wishing to send him on diplomatic missions he was recalled to England in spite of the various Continental armies wishing to retain his services. Lord Castlereagh attributed this as being unwarrantable interference. Party politics alone account for the fact that, although loaded with distinctions from foreign governments, he received none from his own. In 1813 he was awarded the Moscow medal for 1812 and in the same year the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Anne by the Emperor of Russia and promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of Marie Theresa by the Emperor of Russia. For his part in the escape of Lavallette an order was issued by the Prince Regent expressing his "high displeasure at his conduct in the affair and the false pretences under which it had been accomplished."
In August of 1821 Queen Caroline died and Wilson came over from Paris to attend the funeral and was present in the procession. A scuffle took place between the Household Cavalry and a mob when the cortege was passing through Cumberland Gate. Shots were fired and two men in the crowd were killed, the jury at the inquest recording verdicts, in one case of one, "Manslaughter" against the officers and men of the Life Guards and in the other of "Wilful murder" against some Life Guardsman unknown. It does not quantify what in these circumstances alone occasioned the displeasure of his Majesty or whether it was the manner in which the General conducted himself on this occasion. It was even suggested that he had attended a meeting where the plan of interrupting the funeral procession was conceived, but this was most unlikely as he had only arrived from Paris the day before, and had even been suspected of encouraging the mob to pull up the pavements.
Another ground for his later dismissal was that after the firing by the military he had ridden up to Captain Oakes, the officer on duty and remonstrated with him on the conduct of the soldiers under his command, which he affirmed to be "disgraceful to the regiment and injurious to the service." Captain Oakes declined to enter into any discussion and reported the matter to his senior officer and it was placed before the Commander-in-Chief.
He was "Removed from the Service by order of his Majesty" on the 15th of September 1821 without any reason being assigned or opportunity of explanation being afforded except that the royal displeasure was "published to the Army at large — in order to record in the most public manner the strong sense which his Royal Highness entertains of the flagrant misconduct of this officer were such an offence to pass without such an expression of the danger which might accrue to the reputation and discipline of the British Army."
On the receipt of his dismissal Sir Robert had written to the Commander-in-Chief requesting that the King should instantly summon some form of military court where he (Sir Robert) might have every opportunity given to vindicate himself and to pursue the falsehoods, whatever they might be, which had disposed his Majesty to remove him from an army in which he had served 29 years and in which he had purchased every commission with the exception of the most minor one. He was informed that although his request had been placed before the King, his Majesty had not thought it fit to comply with it. All of his foreign decorations were also reclaimed by the respective sovereigns.
Great indignation was expressed by the general public with the conduct of the Government, Sir Robert Wilson had lost a lot of money and in this respect a subscription was raised which was more than sufficient to make up the loss he had sustained in his income. He then entered politics until 1831, but having in the meantime, on the accession of William IV, been re-instated in the army with the rank of Major-General.
In December of 1835 he was appointed Colonel of his old regiment, the 15th Hussars, in November of 1841 to General and in 1842 to be Governor and Commander-in-Chief at Gibraltar. He had only recently returned home when he died suddenly on the 9th of May 1849 (aged 71) at Marshall Thompson's Hotel in Oxford Street, London, and was buried on the 10th of May beside his wife in the north aisle near the western entrance of Westminster Abbey and a fine memorial brass marks the vault.
He had married Jemima (who died in 1823), the daughter of General William Belford of the Royal Artillery. Both Wilson and Miss Belford were wards of chancery and under age, and the ceremony, with the consent of both families, took place at Gretna Green on the 8th of July 1797 and again on the 10th of March 1798 at St. George's, Hanover Square.
Seven sons and six daughters were born into this family. An author of a number of works, several engraved portraits of him exist (in 1897). One by Ward, from a painting by Pickersgill, represents him in uniform with all of his orders, etc. He also figures in the well-known painting of the death of Abercromby.
Cornet in the 13th Light Dragoons: 8th of October 1847.
Lieutenant, 13th Light Dragoons: 8th of October 1850.
Captain, 13th Light Dragoons: 10th of March 1854.
Left in command of the Depot Troop when the regiment went to the Crimea in May of 1854.
Letter sent from the:
"Horse Guards.
23rd March 1855.
Sir, With reference to your letter of the 9th inst, referred to this Department by the Military Secretary requesting that the usual leave of absence may be granted to the officer named in the margin, (Captain Hon, J.W. Hutchinson) on retiring from the Staff of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, I am directed by the General Commanding-in-Chief that there is no such rule and the services of this officer are urgently required with either his respective regiment or Depot.
I have, etc. etc.,
R. P. Doyle.
A.A.G.
[To] The Secretary, Vice Regal Lodge, Dublin."
Joined the regiment, in charge of a draft, on the 23rd of May 1855.
Died at Scutari on the 2nd of July 1855, when his next-of-kin was shown as his mother, The Dowager Countess of Donoughmore, Palmerston House, near Dublin.
Captain Portal of the 4th Light Dragoons refers to him in one of his letters home (dated 3rd of July 1855):
"Poor Hutchinson of the 13th Light Dragoons came out three weeks ago, was seized with dysentery and sent down to Scutari, died yesterday. I never saw a young fellow looking such a picture of health as he was when he came out."
Captain Hely-Hutchinson served the Eastern campaign from the 21st of May 1855, including the Siege of Sebastopol.
Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasp for Sebastopol and the Turkish Medal.
Died at Scutari on the 2nd of July 1855, when his next-of-kin was shown as his mother, The Dowager Countess of Donoughmore, Palmerston House, near Dublin.
In 1979 a television documentary on the life of Florence Nightingale showed a portion of the General Cemetery at Scutari and in this his marble gravestone was clearly visible and in a remarkably good state of preservation, although the iron railing is now no longer around it.
Enquiry showed that the cemetery is maintained by the British Consulate at Ankara, and that the inscription on the stone reads:
"To the memory of the Honble. John William Hely-Hutchinson, Capt. 13th Light Dragoons, who died at Scutari July 2 1855, aged 25. This stone is erected by his brother officers. 'He that believeth in the son hath life everlasting. John 3, 36.'"
In 1987 it was learnt that the Commonwealth War Graves Eastern Mediterranean Area Office was actually, until recently (1985), responsible for the maintenance of the cemetery, but it is now controlled by the Head Office in England. There are about 6000 graves of the Crimean War period, but only a few are marked, and the others are civilian and from the Two World Wars (in the first instance being men who died as prisoners of war in Turkey.)