Lieutenant Charles James KEITH / KEITH-FALCONER — 4th Light Dragoons

Birth & early life

Born on the 1st of July 1832, the son of Anthony Adrian Keith-Falconer, the 7th Earl of Kintore, and his wife by his second marriage, Louisa Hawkins, the daughter of Francis Hawkins, Esq.

The family seat is Keith Hall, near Inverurie, Aberdeenshire.

Service

Before his Army service he was a Midshipman in the Royal Navy for three years, and was wounded in the Boat action ofHMS "Eurydice" and HMS "President" against Arab pirates in the river Augozha, on the East coast of Africa, on the 23rd of November 1847.

HMS Eurydice

HMS Eurydice, launched 1843, was a very fast 26-gun Royal Navy corvette designed to operate in shallow waters. Under Captain Talavera Vernon Action, her second commission between 1846 and 1850 was spent on the South African ("Cape of Good Hope") station.

Later, it was the victim of one of Britain's worst peace-time naval disasters. On 24 March 1878, after a very fast passage across the Atlantic, Eurydice was caught in a heavy snow storm off the Isle of Wight, and capsized and sank. Only two of the ship's 319 crew survived, most of those who were not carried down with the ship died of exposure in the freezing waters.

One of the witnesses to the disaster was a young Winston Churchill, who was living at Ventnor with his family at the time.

[Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Eurydice_(1843) (accessed 20.11.12)]

(Click on images to enlarge)

Cornet in the 4th Light Dragoons: 15th of February 1850.

Lieutenant, 4th Light Dragoons: 31st of October 1851.

Captain, 4th Light Dragoons: 25th of May 1855.

He assumed the surname of Keith-Falconer in 1857.

Marriage registered

Charles James Keith Falconer married Caroline Diana Aldridge, March Quarter 1857, Horsham.

On the 24th of January 1857, he married Caroline Diana Aldridge, daughter of Robert Aldridge, Esq., of St. Leonards Forest, Sussex, at St. John's Church, at Lower Beeding, Sussex.

Children of the marriage

Diana Mary Keith-Falconer, born 8 Nov 1858, died 2 Apr 1952

Lt-Col Cecil Edward, born 11 Oct 1860, died 10 Nov 1899

Charles Adrian, born 12 Dec 1861, died 23 Feb 1920

Florence, born 18 May 1864, died 13 Nov 1939

Ida Madaleine, born 2 Mar 1868, died 2 Jan 1955

Captain Victor Francis Alexander, born 27 Oct 1869, died 21 Feb 1900

Evelyn Millicent, born 20 May 1874, died 20 Aug 1914

Violet Katherine, born 21 Jul 1875, died 2 Sep 1881

Sybil Blanche, born c 1878, died 15 Apr 1966

Major, 4th Light Dragoons: 8th of May 1860.

Retired, by the sale of his commission, on the 8th of May 1860.

Campaign service

Captain Keith served the Eastern campaign of 1854-55, including the battle of the Alma and the Siege and fall of Sebastopol. He was also present with the Expedition to Eupatoria.

He was A.D.C. to Sir Richard England, commanding the 2nd Division, at the time of the battle of Balaclava and was also later A.D.C. to General D'Allonville of the French Army during the Expedition to Eupatoria.

In January 1854 he applied for leave of absence for 3 months for the purpose of visiting the military operations on the Danube but this was refused on the grounds of "not being pressing and no necessity for him to do so."

Returned to England on the 9th of February 1856.

Medals

Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasps for Alma and Sebastopol, the Turkish Medal, the Sardinian War Medal and the Order of the Medjidie, 5th Class.

Further detailed medal information archived.

Commemorations

Member of the Balaclava Commemoration Society in 1879.

Life after service

1871 Census

7, Gledhow Gardens, Kensington.

Chas J.K. Falconer, 38, Peer's son, Honourable, Major Retired, J.P. for Kincardinshire, born Parish of Keith Hall, Aberdeenshire.

Caroline D K Falconer, 33.

Four children are present: Cecil 10, Charles 9, Florence 6, Ida 3, and Victor 1.

A Governess and seven servants are also shown.

Commissioner of Inland Revenue from 1874.

Provost of Kintore and Deputy-Lieutenant for Kincardinshire.

Lived at No. 7 Gledborough Gardens, South Kensington. He is also believed to have lived at New Lodge, St. Leonard's Forest, Horsham, Sussex.

1881 Census

31 Collingham Road, Kensington, London

The 1881 Census shows him as aged 48, a Major in the Army, (Rtd.), born in Scotland, living with his wife, Caroline D., 43, born at Horsham, Sussex.

His eldest son, Cecil, aged 20, was shown as a Lieutenant in the Royal F. Militia, and there were six daughters, aged from 22 to 6 years.

Six Domestic Staff were also shown.

Death & burial

Death registered

Charles James K Falconer, aged 56, March Quarter 1889, Brighton.

He died at No. 3 Cavendish Place, Brighton, Sussex, on the 9th of January 1889.

Extracts from "The Times" for the 9th of January, the "Brighton Gazette" for the 17th of January, and the "West Sussex Times" for the 19th of January 1889:

"We have to announce the death at the comparatively early age of 56 of Major the Hon Charles Keith-Falconer, which occurred somewhat suddenly at Brighton on the 7th inst.

He was the third son of the seventh Earl of Kintore and uncle to the present peer. In his early life Major Keith-Falconer was a Midshipman in the Royal Navy and saw some service on the West coast of Africa. Subsequently entering the 4th Hussars he served as aide-de-camp when in the Crimea to the late General Sir Richard England.

In 1874 Lord Beaconsfield appointed him to a Commissioner ship of the Inland Revenue, and his sudden loss will surely be very much regretted throughout the whole Inland Revenue Department, where he was deservedly popular."

__________

"Funeral of Major Keith-Falconer

The remains of Major the Hon Charles J. Keith-Falconer, who died at Brighton on Monday of last week, were taken to Coolhurst, near Horsham. The funeral took place on Saturday in a private grave. [A list of the relatives and mourners who attended follows.]

On the coffin rested a very large number of wreaths and crosses sent by relatives and friends." [A list of wreath-senders follows.]

__________

"On Saturday last the mortal remains of Major the Hon. Charles J. Keith-Falconer were carried to the last resting-place, the funeral taking place in the first snow-storm experienced in this part of the country this winter.

The deceased had been for many years the chief agent of the Conservative party and that great statesman, the Earl of Beaconsfield, had acknowledged his services by conferring on him a Commissionership in charge of the Inland Revenue Department, at the same time expressing his sense of the great loss the party was sustaining by the reversion of the gallant officer from the position he had filled in connection with it.

After his death (which had occurred at Brighton) his mortal remains were removed to Coolhurst for interment in the private burial ground of the Scrase-Dickens family (Mrs. Scrase-Dickens being his sister-in-law) the service being conducted by the Revd. Prebendary Forrest, D.D. Vicar of St. Jude's, South Kensington, London, where the deceased had been church-warden for many years.

The coffin was absolutely covered with wreaths and crosses sent by relatives." [A list of the mourners and wreath-senders follows.]

A search of the private graveyard of the Scrase-Dickson family at Coolhurst, Sussex, shows no trace of a memorial stone to him, although there is one to his son and daughter-in-law and at least three other members of his greater family.

That to his son reads: "Charles Adrian Keith-Falconer, son of Major the Hon. C.J. Keith-Falconer and grandson of Anthony Adrian, Earl of Mentmore, died 22nd of February 1920."

1985: Although now forming part of the graveyard of St. John's Church (built in 1838) at Lower Beeding, it was obviously originally separate and appears to have been part of the park land and forest surrounding a large house. (There is such a house, now [1986] a private school, which may have been the Scrase-Dickson family home, close by.)

Sited amongst the trees and shrubbery, all the graves (some before 1800) are of the Scrase-Dickson family, relatives and possibly friends, the last visible interment being that of a member of the Scrase-Dickson family (ex-RAF) who died in 1976. (There were flowers on the grave in 1985.) All the other graves are grouped around the small church.

EJB's later note:

A further search of the Scrase-Dickson burial ground at Coolhurst reveals a number of tombstones to the Keith-Falconer family enclosed in a marble-kerbed space some fifteen feet square. The tallest of these (that surmounted by a cross) has on the front:

"In loving memory of Charles James Keith-Falconer, son of the 7th Earl of Mentmore. Born 1st of July 1832 — Died January 7th 1889."

At the very base of the stone, and now partly sunken into the ground, are the words:

"Caroline Diana, daughter of Robert Aldridge ...[illegible]"

From this, it would seem that almost every member of his family is buried in this particular graveyard.

1891 Census

The Grange, Lower Beeding, Horsham.

Caroline D K Falconer, aged 54, widow, visitor, living on own means, born Lower Beeding, Sussex.

1901 Census

Hampton Court The Palace (apartment of more than 5 rooms).

Caroline D Keith Falconer, widow, aged 63, independent means, born Horsham, Sussex.

Also Ida, 33, and Evelyn, 20.

Three servants are also shown.

1911 Census

11, Chichester Terrace, Brighton.

Caroline Diana Keith Falconer, aged 73, Aunt, widow, private means, born Lower Beeding.

Also Ida, 43, cousin, single, private means, born Kensington.

Living with Charles Robert Dickens and his family.

Death registered

Caroline D K Falconer, aged 82, March Quarter 1920, Kingston.

Two of his sons are known to have served in the Army:

Cecil Edward Keith-Falconer

Cecil Edward served in Dongola in 1896, with the Nile Expedition in 1897 and at Abbu Hammet, Berber Atbara and at Khartoum in 1898 with the 13th Soudanese. He was killed-in-action when serving as a Captain/Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel with the 1st Battalion of the Northumberland Fusiliers on the 10th of November 1899 at Belmont, South Africa.

Victor Francis Alexander Keith-Falconer

Cecil's brother Victor Francis Alexander had served as Lieutenant and Adjutant of the 2nd Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry during the Mohmand campaign of 1897 and was killed-in-action at Hussar Hill near the Tugula River in South Africa on the 21st of February 1900. He was buried close to where he fell, at Fort Wyllie.

The names of both officers are inscribed on a framed tablet placed in the Court House of the Spelthorne Division of Middlesex, in memory of those of the Division who fell in that war. Their names are also engraved on the tablet in the War Memorial Cloister erected at Charterhouse.

Further detailed medal information archived.

References & acknowledgements

Additional Census information for 1871-1901, and details of a number of registrations of deaths and marriages kindly provided by Chris Poole.