Gerard Lake, 1st Viscount Lake - Revision history

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← Older revision		Revision as of 06:00, 23 November 2022
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			{{Short description\|18th-century British general}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=March 2021}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=March 2021}}
	{{Infobox officeholder		{{Infobox officeholder
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	\| term_start = 1790		\| term_start = 1790
	\| term_end = 1802		\| term_end = 1802
	\| predecessor = [[William Wrightson]]		\| predecessor = [[William Wrightson (MP for Aylesbury)\|William Wrightson]]
	\| successor = [[Robert Bent]]		\| successor = [[Robert Bent]]
	\| birth_date = 27 July 1744		\| birth_date = 27 July 1744
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	==Background==		==Background==
			He was the son of Lancelot Charles Lake (d. 1751) of [[Harrow-on-the-Hill]] and his wife Letitia Gumley, daughter of [[John Gumley]]. He was educated at [[Eton College]].<ref name="ODNB">{{cite ODNB\|id=15900\|first=Anthony S.\|last=Bennell\|title=Lake, Gerard, first Viscount Lake of Delhi (1744–1808)}}</ref>

	Lake entered the foot guards in 1758, becoming lieutenant (captain in the army) in 1762, captain (lieutenant-colonel) in 1776, major in 1784, and lieutenant colonel in 1792, by which time he was a general officer in the army. He served with his regiment in Germany between 1760 and 1762, and with a composite battalion in the [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)\|Battle of Yorktown of 1781]]. After this he was [[equerry]] to the [[Prince of Wales]], afterwards [[George IV of the United Kingdom\|George IV]]. His younger brother [[Warwick Lake\|Warwick]] served as a groom of the bedchamber for the Prince, and later oversaw his stables of [[racehorse]]s.		Lake entered the foot guards in 1758, becoming lieutenant (captain in the army) in 1762, captain (lieutenant-colonel) in 1776, major in 1784, and lieutenant colonel in 1792, by which time he was a general officer in the army. He served with his regiment in Germany between 1760 and 1762, and with a composite battalion in the [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)\|Battle of Yorktown of 1781]]. After this he was [[equerry]] to the [[Prince of Wales]], afterwards [[George IV of the United Kingdom\|George IV]]. His younger brother [[Warwick Lake\|Warwick]] served as a groom of the bedchamber for the Prince, and later oversaw his stables of [[racehorse]]s.

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	== 1798 rebellion in Ireland ==		== 1798 rebellion in Ireland ==
	In December 1796 he was appointed commander in [[Ulster]] and issued a proclamation ordering the surrender of all arms by the civil population, during which time he was 'untroubled by legal restraints or by his troops' violent actions'.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4643\|title=Lake, Gerard\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2009\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography}}</ref> Historians have generally seen Lake's ''Dragooning of Ulster'' in 1797 as effective in disarming and crippling the [[Society of United Irishmen]] in that province, although his effectiveness has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Union: Ireland in the 1790s\|last=Curtin\|first=Nancy J.\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=2000\|isbn=0521661099\|editor-last=Smyth\|editor-first=Jim\|pages=39\|chapter=The Magistracy and Counter-Revolution in Ulster, 1795-1798}}</ref> Lake succeeded ~~Sir~~ [[Ralph Abercromby]] as ~~commander~~-in-~~chief of British troops in~~ Ireland in April 1798 and turned his attention to Leinster, where 'public floggings and torture of suspected rebels became widespread and added to the general atmosphere of terror'.<ref name=":0" /> Rather than cowing the province into submission, 'his crude methods probably contributed to the outbreak of [[Irish Rebellion of 1798\|insurrection]]' in May 1798.<ref name=":0" /> Lake continued to deal harshly with opposition, and issued orders to take no prisoners during the rebellion.<ref~~>{{Cite~~ ODNB~~\|url=http:~~/~~/www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/15900\|title=Lake, Gerard, first Viscount Lake of Delhi (1744–1808)\|last=Bennell\|first=Anthony S.\|date=2004\|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/15900\|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref~~>		In December 1796 he was appointed commander in [[Ulster]] and issued a proclamation ordering the surrender of all arms by the civil population, during which time he was 'untroubled by legal restraints or by his troops' violent actions'.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4643\|title=Lake, Gerard\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2009\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography}}</ref> Historians have generally seen Lake's ''Dragooning of Ulster'' in 1797 as effective in disarming and crippling the [[Society of United Irishmen]] in that province, although his effectiveness has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Union: Ireland in the 1790s\|last=Curtin\|first=Nancy J.\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=2000\|isbn=0521661099\|editor-last=Smyth\|editor-first=Jim\|pages=39\|chapter=The Magistracy and Counter-Revolution in Ulster, 1795-1798}}</ref> Lake succeeded [[Ralph Abercromby\|Sir Ralph Abercromby]] as [[Commander-in-Chief, Ireland]] in April 1798 and turned his attention to Leinster, where 'public floggings and torture of suspected rebels became widespread and added to the general atmosphere of terror'.<ref name=":0" /> Rather than cowing the province into submission, 'his crude methods probably contributed to the outbreak of [[Irish Rebellion of 1798\|insurrection]]' in May 1798.<ref name=":0" /> Lake continued to deal harshly with opposition, and issued orders to take no prisoners during the rebellion.<ref name="ODNB"/>

	In May Lake commanded troops in [[County Kildare]], and, after the unsuccessful [[Battle of Naas\|rebel attack on Naas]] on 24 May, he assisted [[Ralph Dundas\|General Ralph Dundas]] in ensuring the rebel surrender after the [[Battle of Kilcullen]], which Dundas arranged on humane terms. Another rebel force on the nearby [[Curragh]] were also persuaded to surrender, but while this was being arranged by Lake the rebels were mistakenly attacked by separate ~~British~~ forces coming from the opposite direction, resulting in the [[Gibbet Rath ~~massacre~~]] on 29 May. As a result, central Kildare remained quiet for the rest of 1798.{{citation needed\|date=July 2014}}		In May Lake commanded troops in [[County Kildare]], and, after the unsuccessful [[Battle of Naas\|rebel attack on Naas]] on 24 May, he assisted [[Ralph Dundas\|General Ralph Dundas]] in ensuring the rebel surrender after the [[Battle of Kilcullen]], which Dundas arranged on humane terms. Another rebel force on the nearby [[Curragh]] were also persuaded to surrender, but while this was being arranged by Lake the rebels were mistakenly attacked by separate government forces coming from the opposite direction, resulting in the [[Gibbet Rath executions]] on 29 May. As a result, central Kildare remained quiet for the rest of 1798.{{citation needed\|date=July 2014}}

	Lake then took overall command of a force of some 20,000 troops to crush the [[Wexford Rebellion\|Wexford rebels]] and defeated the main rebel army at [[Battle of Vinegar Hill\|Vinegar Hill]] (near [[Enniscorthy]], [[County Wexford]]) on 21 June. His harsh treatment towards Irish rebels found bearing arms brought him into conflict with [[Lord Cornwallis]] who was appointed [[Lord Lieutenant of Ireland]] in June 1798 and instituted an amnesty act to encourage rebels to lay down their arms.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a2058\|title=Cornwallis, Charles Earl Cornwallis\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2012\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography\|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref>		Lake then took overall command of a force of some 20,000 troops to crush the [[Wexford Rebellion\|Wexford rebels]] and defeated the main rebel army at [[Battle of Vinegar Hill\|Vinegar Hill]] (near [[Enniscorthy]], [[County Wexford]]) on 21 June. His harsh treatment towards Irish rebels found bearing arms brought him into conflict with [[Lord Cornwallis]] who was appointed [[Lord Lieutenant of Ireland]] in June 1798 and instituted an amnesty act to encourage rebels to lay down their arms.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a2058\|title=Cornwallis, Charles Earl Cornwallis\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2012\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography\|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref>

	Cornwallis sent Lake to oppose a French expedition of 1,000 troops which had landed at [[Killala Bay]], [[County Mayo]] on 23 August. On 29 August, Lake arrived at [[Castlebar]] with a force of 1,700 (composed of mainly of militia, fencibles and yeomanry) and witnessed the rout of his troops under General [[John Hely-Hutchinson, 2nd Earl of Donoughmore\|Hely-Hutchinson]] (afterwards 2nd Earl of Donoughmore) at the [[Battle of Castlebar]].<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4152\|title=Humbert, Jean-Joseph Amable\|last=Kleinman\|first=Sylvie\|date=2012\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography\|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref> Lake failed to rally his largely inexperienced troops and was forced to retreat to Tuam; the speed of which ~~retreat~~ (and abandonment of material) led the ~~incident~~ to become known as the 'Races of Castlebar'. Hely-Hutchinson shouldered much of the blame, but it was accepted that Lake's troops were inexperienced and a head-on battle with the seasoned French force was probably to be avoided.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=A Military History of Ireland\|last=Bartlett\|first=Thomas\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=1997\|isbn=0521629896\|editor-last=Bartlett\|editor-first=Thomas\|pages=286\|chapter=Defence,counter-insurgency and rebellion: Ireland, 1793-1803\|editor-last2=Jeffery\|editor-first2=Keith}}</ref> However, rumours also abounded that Lake had been drinking heavily the night before the battle and was only woken with difficulty while the French were already attacking.<ref name=":0" />		Cornwallis sent Lake to oppose a French expedition of 1,000 troops which had landed at [[Killala Bay]], [[County Mayo]] on 23 August. On 29 August, Lake arrived at [[Castlebar]] with a force of 1,700 (composed of mainly of militia, fencibles and yeomanry) and witnessed the rout of his troops under General [[John Hely-Hutchinson, 2nd Earl of Donoughmore\|Hely-Hutchinson]] (afterwards 2nd Earl of Donoughmore) at the [[Battle of Castlebar]].<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4152\|title=Humbert, Jean-Joseph Amable\|last=Kleinman\|first=Sylvie\|date=2012\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography\|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref> Lake failed to rally his largely inexperienced troops and was forced to retreat to Tuam; the speed of which (and abandonment of material, artillery and Lake's personal baggage) led the rout to become known as the 'Races of Castlebar'. Hely-Hutchinson shouldered much of the blame, but it was accepted that Lake's troops were inexperienced (less though than the Irish rebel forces) and a head-on battle with the seasoned French force was probably to be avoided.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=A Military History of Ireland\|last=Bartlett\|first=Thomas\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=1997\|isbn=0521629896\|editor-last=Bartlett\|editor-first=Thomas\|pages=286\|chapter=Defence,counter-insurgency and rebellion: Ireland, 1793-1803\|editor-last2=Jeffery\|editor-first2=Keith}}</ref> However, rumours also abounded that Lake had been drinking heavily the night before the battle and was only woken with difficulty while the French were already attacking.<ref name=":0" />

	He defeated the French at the [[Battle of Ballinamuck]] on 8 September.<ref>{{Cite web\|title=Battle of Ballinmuck\|url=http://www.libraryireland.com/frenchinvasion1798/battle-ballinamuck.php\|publisher=LibraryIreland\|access-date=24 February 2017}}</ref>		He defeated the French at the [[Battle of Ballinamuck]] on 8 September.<ref>{{Cite web\|title=Battle of Ballinmuck\|url=http://www.libraryireland.com/frenchinvasion1798/battle-ballinamuck.php\|publisher=LibraryIreland\|access-date=24 February 2017}}</ref>
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	On the outbreak the [[Second Anglo-Maratha War]] in 1803 General Lake took the field against [[Daulat Scindia]], and within two months defeated the [[Maratha Confederacy\|Maratha]]s at Kol (now called [[Aligarh]]), after storming [[Aligarh Fort]] during the [[Battle of Ally Ghur]] (1 September 1803). He then took [[Battle of Delhi (1803)\|Delhi]] (11{{nbsp}}September) and [[Agra]] (10{{nbsp}}October), and won a victory at the [[Laswari\|Battle of Laswari]] (1 November), where the power of Scindia was completely broken with the loss of 31 disciplined battalions, trained and officered by Frenchmen, and 426 pieces of ordnance. This defeat, followed a few days later by Major-General [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington\|Arthur Wellesley]]'s victory at the [[Battle of Argaon]], compelled Scindia to come to terms, and a treaty was signed in December 1803.		On the outbreak the [[Second Anglo-Maratha War]] in 1803 General Lake took the field against [[Daulat Scindia]], and within two months defeated the [[Maratha Confederacy\|Maratha]]s at Kol (now called [[Aligarh]]), after storming [[Aligarh Fort]] during the [[Battle of Ally Ghur]] (1 September 1803). He then took [[Battle of Delhi (1803)\|Delhi]] (11{{nbsp}}September) and [[Agra]] (10{{nbsp}}October), and won a victory at the [[Laswari\|Battle of Laswari]] (1 November), where the power of Scindia was completely broken with the loss of 31 disciplined battalions, trained and officered by Frenchmen, and 426 pieces of ordnance. This defeat, followed a few days later by Major-General [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington\|Arthur Wellesley]]'s victory at the [[Battle of Argaon]], compelled Scindia to come to terms, and a treaty was signed in December 1803.

	Operations continued against [[Yashwantrao Holkar]], who, on 17 November 1804, ~~was~~ defeated by Lake at the [[Battle of Farrukhabad]]. ~~However,~~ Lake was frustrated by [[Jats]] and Yashwantrao Holker at [[Battle of Bharatpur\|Bharatpur]] which held out against five assaults early in 1805.<ref>The fourth assault was on 20 February 1805 with a fifth assault the following day. ''The Gentleman's magazine'' (1805) Volume 75, Part 2, [https://books.google.com/books?id=BOLPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA854 page 854]</ref> Cornwallis succeeded [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley\|Lord Wellesley]] as [[Governor-General of India]] in July of that year – superseding Lake at the same time as commander-in-chief – and determined to put an end to the war. Cornwallis, however, died in October of the same year and Lake pursued Holkar into the [[Punjab region\|Punjab]]. However, after seeing the stronger position of Holkar and his effort to gather all Indian princes under one flag against the British, the British East India Company signed a peace treaty with Holkar which returned to him all his territory and promised no further interference from the Company{{Citation needed\|date=March 2014}}.		Operations continued against [[Yashwantrao Holkar]], who, on 17 November 1804, defeated Lake at the [[Battle of Farrukhabad]]. Lake was now very frustrated by the [[Jats]] and Yashwantrao Holker at [[Battle of Bharatpur\|Bharatpur]] which held out against five assaults early in 1805.<ref>The fourth assault was on 20 February 1805 with a fifth assault the following day. ''The Gentleman's magazine'' (1805) Volume 75, Part 2, [https://books.google.com/books?id=BOLPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA854 page 854]</ref> Cornwallis succeeded [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley\|Lord Wellesley]] as [[Governor-General of India]] in July of that year – superseding Lake at the same time as commander-in-chief – and determined to put an end to the war. Cornwallis, however, died in October of the same year and Lake pursued Holkar into the [[Punjab region\|Punjab]]. However, after seeing the stronger position of Holkar and his effort to gather all Indian princes under one flag against the British, the British East India Company signed a peace treaty with Holkar which returned to him all his territory and promised no further interference from the Company.{{Citation needed\|date=March 2014}}

	Lord Wellesley in a despatch attributed much of the success of the war to Lake's matchless energy, ability and valour. For his services, Lake received the thanks of [[Parliament of the United Kingdom\|Parliament]], and, in September 1804, was rewarded by being created Baron Lake of [[Delhi]] and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the [[County]] of [[Buckingham]]. From 1801 to 1805 Lake was [[Commander-in-Chief, India]], then again from 1805 to 1807 as his successor [[John Graves Simcoe]] had died before heading off to India. At the conclusion of the war he returned to England, and in 1807 he was created [[Viscount Lake]] of Delhi and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the County of Buckingham.		Lord Wellesley in a despatch attributed much of the success of the war to Lake's matchless energy, ability and valour. For his services, Lake received the thanks of [[Parliament of the United Kingdom\|Parliament]], and, in September 1804, was rewarded by being created Baron Lake of [[Delhi]] and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the [[County]] of [[Buckingham]]. From 1801 to 1805 Lake was [[Commander-in-Chief, India]], then again from 1805 to 1807 as his successor [[John Graves Simcoe]] had died before heading off to India. At the conclusion of the war he returned to England, and in 1807 he was created [[Viscount Lake]] of Delhi and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the County of Buckingham.
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imported>Arbil44: /* American War of Independence */

2021-08-15T14:32:30Z

American War of Independence

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:02, 15 August 2021
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	==Background==		==Background==
	Lake entered the foot guards in 1758, becoming lieutenant (captain in the army) in 1762, captain (lieutenant-colonel) in 1776, major in 1784, and lieutenant colonel in 1792, by which time he was a general officer in the army. He served with his regiment in Germany between 1760 and 1762, and with a composite battalion in the [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)\|Battle of Yorktown of 1781]]. After this he was [[equerry]] to the [[Prince of Wales]], afterwards [[George IV of the United Kingdom\|George IV]].		Lake entered the foot guards in 1758, becoming lieutenant (captain in the army) in 1762, captain (lieutenant-colonel) in 1776, major in 1784, and lieutenant colonel in 1792, by which time he was a general officer in the army. He served with his regiment in Germany between 1760 and 1762, and with a composite battalion in the [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)\|Battle of Yorktown of 1781]]. After this he was [[equerry]] to the [[Prince of Wales]], afterwards [[George IV of the United Kingdom\|George IV]]. His younger brother [[Warwick Lake\|Warwick]] served as a groom of the bedchamber for the Prince, and later oversaw his stables of [[racehorse]]s.

	In 1790, he became a major-general, and in 1793 was appointed to command the Guards Brigade in the [[Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany\|Duke of York and Albany]]'s army in [[Flanders]] during the [[French Revolutionary Wars]]. He was in command at the successful [[Battle of Lincelles]] on 18 August 1793, and served on the continent (except for a short time when seriously ill) until April 1794. He later sold his lieutenant-colonelcy in the guards, and became colonel of the [[53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot\|53rd Regiment of Foot]] and governor of [[Limerick]] in [[Ireland]]. In 1797 he was promoted to lieutenant-general.		In 1790, he became a major-general, and in 1793 was appointed to command the Guards Brigade in the [[Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany\|Duke of York and Albany]]'s army in [[Flanders]] during the [[French Revolutionary Wars]]. He was in command at the successful [[Battle of Lincelles]] on 18 August 1793, and served on the continent (except for a short time when seriously ill) until April 1794. He later sold his lieutenant-colonelcy in the guards, and became colonel of the [[53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot\|53rd Regiment of Foot]] and governor of [[Limerick]] in [[Ireland]]. In 1797 he was promoted to lieutenant-general.

	==American ~~Revolution~~==		==American War of Independence==
	As lieutenant-colonel Lake went out with drafts to America in the spring of 1781, made the campaign in North Carolina under [[Charles_Cornwallis,_1st_Marquess_Cornwallis\|Lord Cornwallis]], and commanded the grenadiers of the guards and of the old 80th royal Edinburgh regiment in a sortie, under [[Robert_Abercromby_of_Airthrey\| Colonel Robert Abercromby]], from the British lines at York Town, which inflicted heavy loss on the French and American besiegers, on 11 October that year. After the surrender of Cornwallis's force [on 19 October 1781] Lake remained prisoner on parole until the end of the war.<ref>Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 31 Lake, Gerard by Henry Manners Chichester</ref>		As lieutenant-colonel Lake went out with drafts to America in the spring of 1781, made the campaign in North Carolina under [[Charles_Cornwallis,_1st_Marquess_Cornwallis\|Lord Cornwallis]], and commanded the grenadiers of the guards and of the old 80th royal Edinburgh regiment in a sortie, under [[Robert_Abercromby_of_Airthrey\| Colonel Robert Abercromby]], from the British lines at York Town, which inflicted heavy loss on the French and American besiegers, on 11 October that year. After the surrender of Cornwallis's force [on 19 October 1781] Lake remained prisoner on parole until the end of the war.<ref>Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 31 Lake, Gerard by Henry Manners Chichester</ref> Hugh Wodehouse Pearse reports that "Lake was one of the three field officers selected by lot to take charge of the troops in captivity, but, as he was anxious for private reasons to proceed to England, Major [[James_Gordon_(British_Army_officer,_died_1783)\|Gordon]] of the 76th {{sic}} [80th] Regiment generously volunteered to take his place. Major, then Lieut.-Colonel, Gordon died in captivity.<ref>{{cite book\|title=Memoir of the life and military services of Viscount Lake: Baron Lake of Delhi and Laswaree, 1744-1808\|date=1 January 1908 \|first= Hugh Wodehouse \|last=Pearse \|page=64\|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hnb6b9&view=1up&seq=90&skin=2021&q1=1781}}</ref>

	== 1798 rebellion in Ireland ==		== 1798 rebellion in Ireland ==
	In December 1796 he was appointed commander in [[Ulster]] and issued a proclamation ordering the surrender of all arms by the civil population, during which time he was 'untroubled by legal restraints or by his troops' violent actions'.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4643\|title=Lake, Gerard\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2009\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography}}</ref> Historians have generally seen Lake's ''Dragooning of Ulster'' in 1797 as effective in disarming and crippling the [[Society of United Irishmen]] in that province, although his effectiveness has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Union: Ireland in the 1790s\|last=Curtin\|first=Nancy J.\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=2000\|isbn=0521661099\|editor-last=Smyth\|editor-first=Jim\|pages=39\|chapter=The Magistracy and Counter-Revolution in Ulster, 1795-1798}}</ref> Lake succeeded Sir [[Ralph Abercromby]] as commander-in-chief of British troops in Ireland in April 1798 and turned his attention to Leinster, where 'public floggings and torture of suspected rebels became widespread and added to the general atmosphere of terror'.<ref name=":0" /> Rather than cowing the province into submission, 'his crude methods probably contributed to the outbreak of [[Irish Rebellion of 1798\|insurrection]]' in May 1798.<ref name=":0" /> Lake continued to deal harshly with opposition, and issued orders to take no prisoners during the rebellion.<ref>{{Cite ~~web~~\|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/15900\|title=Lake, Gerard, first Viscount Lake of Delhi (1744–1808)\|last=Bennell\|first=Anthony S.\|date=2004\|~~website~~=~~Oxford Dictionary of National Biography~~\|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref>		In December 1796 he was appointed commander in [[Ulster]] and issued a proclamation ordering the surrender of all arms by the civil population, during which time he was 'untroubled by legal restraints or by his troops' violent actions'.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web\|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4643\|title=Lake, Gerard\|last=Quinn\|first=James\|date=2009\|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography}}</ref> Historians have generally seen Lake's ''Dragooning of Ulster'' in 1797 as effective in disarming and crippling the [[Society of United Irishmen]] in that province, although his effectiveness has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite book\|title=Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Union: Ireland in the 1790s\|last=Curtin\|first=Nancy J.\|publisher=Cambridge University Press\|year=2000\|isbn=0521661099\|editor-last=Smyth\|editor-first=Jim\|pages=39\|chapter=The Magistracy and Counter-Revolution in Ulster, 1795-1798}}</ref> Lake succeeded Sir [[Ralph Abercromby]] as commander-in-chief of British troops in Ireland in April 1798 and turned his attention to Leinster, where 'public floggings and torture of suspected rebels became widespread and added to the general atmosphere of terror'.<ref name=":0" /> Rather than cowing the province into submission, 'his crude methods probably contributed to the outbreak of [[Irish Rebellion of 1798\|insurrection]]' in May 1798.<ref name=":0" /> Lake continued to deal harshly with opposition, and issued orders to take no prisoners during the rebellion.<ref>{{Cite ODNB\|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/15900\|title=Lake, Gerard, first Viscount Lake of Delhi (1744–1808)\|last=Bennell\|first=Anthony S.\|date=2004\|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/15900\|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref>

	In May Lake commanded troops in [[County Kildare]], and, after the unsuccessful [[Battle of Naas\|rebel attack on Naas]] on 24 May, he assisted [[Ralph Dundas\|General Ralph Dundas]] in ensuring the rebel surrender after the [[Battle of Kilcullen]], which Dundas arranged on humane terms. Another rebel force on the nearby [[Curragh]] were also persuaded to surrender, but while this was being arranged by Lake the rebels were mistakenly attacked by separate British forces coming from the opposite direction, resulting in the [[Gibbet Rath massacre]] on 29 May. As a result, central Kildare remained quiet for the rest of 1798.{{citation needed\|date=July 2014}}		In May Lake commanded troops in [[County Kildare]], and, after the unsuccessful [[Battle of Naas\|rebel attack on Naas]] on 24 May, he assisted [[Ralph Dundas\|General Ralph Dundas]] in ensuring the rebel surrender after the [[Battle of Kilcullen]], which Dundas arranged on humane terms. Another rebel force on the nearby [[Curragh]] were also persuaded to surrender, but while this was being arranged by Lake the rebels were mistakenly attacked by separate British forces coming from the opposite direction, resulting in the [[Gibbet Rath massacre]] on 29 May. As a result, central Kildare remained quiet for the rest of 1798.{{citation needed\|date=July 2014}}

>PWilkinson: /* Indian campaigns */ Link correction

2021-07-05T13:22:48Z

Indian campaigns: Link correction

New page

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = [[General (United Kingdom)|General]] [[The Right Honourable]]
| name =The Viscount Lake
| image =Gerard Lake.jpg
| caption =
| office = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] for [[Aylesbury (UK Parliament constituency)|Aylesbury]]
| term_start = 1790
| term_end = 1802
| predecessor = [[William Wrightson]]
| successor = [[Robert Bent]]
| birth_date = 27 July 1744
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1808|02|20|1744|07|27|df=y}}
| placeofburial_label =
| placeofburial =
| birth_place = [[Harrow, London|Harrow]], [[Middlesex]], [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]]
| death_place = London
| placeofburial_coordinates = 
| nickname =
| allegiance =[[File:Union_flag_1606_(Kings_Colors).svg|22px]] [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] {{flagicon|GBR}} [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]]
| branch = [[British Army]]
| serviceyears = 1758–1808
| rank = [[General (United Kingdom)|General]]
| unit =
| commands =
| battles =[[American Revolutionary War]] [[French Revolutionary Wars]] [[Irish Rebellion of 1798]] [[Second Anglo-Maratha War]]
| awards =
| relations =
| laterwork =
}}

'''Gerard Lake, 1st Viscount Lake''' (27 July 1744 – 20 February 1808) was a [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] general. He commanded British forces during the [[Irish Rebellion of 1798]] and later served as [[Commander-in-Chief, India|Commander-in-Chief]] of the military in [[British India]].

==Background==
Lake entered the foot guards in 1758, becoming lieutenant (captain in the army) in 1762, captain (lieutenant-colonel) in 1776, major in 1784, and lieutenant colonel in 1792, by which time he was a general officer in the army. He served with his regiment in Germany between 1760 and 1762, and with a composite battalion in the [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)|Battle of Yorktown of 1781]]. After this he was [[equerry]] to the [[Prince of Wales]], afterwards [[George IV of the United Kingdom|George IV]].

In 1790, he became a major-general, and in 1793 was appointed to command the Guards Brigade in the [[Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany|Duke of York and Albany]]'s army in [[Flanders]] during the [[French Revolutionary Wars]]. He was in command at the successful [[Battle of Lincelles]] on 18 August 1793, and served on the continent (except for a short time when seriously ill) until April 1794. He later sold his lieutenant-colonelcy in the guards, and became colonel of the [[53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot|53rd Regiment of Foot]] and governor of [[Limerick]] in [[Ireland]]. In 1797 he was promoted to lieutenant-general.

==American Revolution==
As lieutenant-colonel Lake went out with drafts to America in the spring of 1781, made the campaign in North Carolina under [[Charles_Cornwallis,_1st_Marquess_Cornwallis|Lord Cornwallis]], and commanded the grenadiers of the guards and of the old 80th royal Edinburgh regiment in a sortie, under [[Robert_Abercromby_of_Airthrey| Colonel Robert Abercromby]], from the British lines at York Town, which inflicted heavy loss on the French and American besiegers, on 11 October that year. After the surrender of Cornwallis's force [on 19 October 1781] Lake remained prisoner on parole until the end of the war.<ref>Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 31 Lake, Gerard by Henry Manners Chichester</ref>

== 1798 rebellion in Ireland ==
In December 1796 he was appointed commander in [[Ulster]] and issued a proclamation ordering the surrender of all arms by the civil population, during which time he was 'untroubled by legal restraints or by his troops' violent actions'.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4643|title=Lake, Gerard|last=Quinn|first=James|date=2009|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography}}</ref> Historians have generally seen Lake's ''Dragooning of Ulster'' in 1797 as effective in disarming and crippling the [[Society of United Irishmen]] in that province, although his effectiveness has been questioned.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Union: Ireland in the 1790s|last=Curtin|first=Nancy J.|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2000|isbn=0521661099|editor-last=Smyth|editor-first=Jim|pages=39|chapter=The Magistracy and Counter-Revolution in Ulster, 1795-1798}}</ref> Lake succeeded Sir [[Ralph Abercromby]] as commander-in-chief of British troops in Ireland in April 1798 and turned his attention to Leinster, where 'public floggings and torture of suspected rebels became widespread and added to the general atmosphere of terror'.<ref name=":0" /> Rather than cowing the province into submission, 'his crude methods probably contributed to the outbreak of [[Irish Rebellion of 1798|insurrection]]' in May 1798.<ref name=":0" /> Lake continued to deal harshly with opposition, and issued orders to take no prisoners during the rebellion.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/15900|title=Lake, Gerard, first Viscount Lake of Delhi (1744–1808)|last=Bennell|first=Anthony S.|date=2004|website=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography|access-date=25 July 2017}}</ref>

In May Lake commanded troops in [[County Kildare]], and, after the unsuccessful [[Battle of Naas|rebel attack on Naas]] on 24 May, he assisted [[Ralph Dundas|General Ralph Dundas]] in ensuring the rebel surrender after the [[Battle of Kilcullen]], which Dundas arranged on humane terms. Another rebel force on the nearby [[Curragh]] were also persuaded to surrender, but while this was being arranged by Lake the rebels were mistakenly attacked by separate British forces coming from the opposite direction, resulting in the [[Gibbet Rath massacre]] on 29 May. As a result, central Kildare remained quiet for the rest of 1798.{{citation needed|date=July 2014}}

Lake then took overall command of a force of some 20,000 troops to crush the [[Wexford Rebellion|Wexford rebels]] and defeated the main rebel army at [[Battle of Vinegar Hill|Vinegar Hill]] (near [[Enniscorthy]], [[County Wexford]]) on 21 June. His harsh treatment towards Irish rebels found bearing arms brought him into conflict with [[Lord Cornwallis]] who was appointed [[Lord Lieutenant of Ireland]] in June 1798 and instituted an amnesty act to encourage rebels to lay down their arms.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a2058|title=Cornwallis, Charles Earl Cornwallis|last=Quinn|first=James|date=2012|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref>

Cornwallis sent Lake to oppose a French expedition of 1,000 troops which had landed at [[Killala Bay]], [[County Mayo]] on 23 August. On 29 August, Lake arrived at [[Castlebar]] with a force of 1,700 (composed of mainly of militia, fencibles and yeomanry) and witnessed the rout of his troops under General [[John Hely-Hutchinson, 2nd Earl of Donoughmore|Hely-Hutchinson]] (afterwards 2nd Earl of Donoughmore) at the [[Battle of Castlebar]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dib.cambridge.org/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a4152|title=Humbert, Jean-Joseph Amable|last=Kleinman|first=Sylvie|date=2012|website=Dictionary of Irish Biography|access-date=26 July 2017}}</ref> Lake failed to rally his largely inexperienced troops and was forced to retreat to Tuam; the speed of which retreat (and abandonment of material) led the incident to become known as the 'Races of Castlebar'. Hely-Hutchinson shouldered much of the blame, but it was accepted that Lake's troops were inexperienced and a head-on battle with the seasoned French force was probably to be avoided.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A Military History of Ireland|last=Bartlett|first=Thomas|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1997|isbn=0521629896|editor-last=Bartlett|editor-first=Thomas|pages=286|chapter=Defence,counter-insurgency and rebellion: Ireland, 1793-1803|editor-last2=Jeffery|editor-first2=Keith}}</ref> However, rumours also abounded that Lake had been drinking heavily the night before the battle and was only woken with difficulty while the French were already attacking.<ref name=":0" />

He defeated the French at the [[Battle of Ballinamuck]] on 8 September.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Battle of Ballinmuck|url=http://www.libraryireland.com/frenchinvasion1798/battle-ballinamuck.php|publisher=LibraryIreland|access-date=24 February 2017}}</ref>

== Indian campaigns ==
In 1799, Lake returned to England, and soon afterwards travelled to [[British India]] where he was appointed [[Commander-in-Chief, India|Commander-in-Chief]]. He took up his duties at [[Calcutta]] in July 1801, and applied himself to the improvement of the [[East India Company]] army, especially in the direction of making all arms, infantry, cavalry and artillery, more mobile and more manageable. In 1802 he was made a full general.

On the outbreak the [[Second Anglo-Maratha War]] in 1803 General Lake took the field against [[Daulat Scindia]], and within two months defeated the [[Maratha Confederacy|Maratha]]s at Kol (now called [[Aligarh]]), after storming [[Aligarh Fort]] during the [[Battle of Ally Ghur]] (1 September 1803). He then took [[Battle of Delhi (1803)|Delhi]] (11{{nbsp}}September) and [[Agra]] (10{{nbsp}}October), and won a victory at the [[Laswari|Battle of Laswari]] (1 November), where the power of Scindia was completely broken with the loss of 31 disciplined battalions, trained and officered by Frenchmen, and 426 pieces of ordnance. This defeat, followed a few days later by Major-General [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington|Arthur Wellesley]]'s victory at the [[Battle of Argaon]], compelled Scindia to come to terms, and a treaty was signed in December 1803.

Operations continued against [[Yashwantrao Holkar]], who, on 17 November 1804, was defeated by Lake at the [[Battle of Farrukhabad]]. However, Lake was frustrated by [[Jats]] and Yashwantrao Holker at [[Battle of Bharatpur|Bharatpur]] which held out against five assaults early in 1805.<ref>The fourth assault was on 20 February 1805 with a fifth assault the following day. ''The Gentleman's magazine'' (1805) Volume 75, Part 2, [https://books.google.com/books?id=BOLPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA854 page 854]</ref> Cornwallis succeeded [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley|Lord Wellesley]] as [[Governor-General of India]] in July of that year – superseding Lake at the same time as commander-in-chief – and determined to put an end to the war. Cornwallis, however, died in October of the same year and Lake pursued Holkar into the [[Punjab region|Punjab]]. However, after seeing the stronger position of Holkar and his effort to gather all Indian princes under one flag against the British, the British East India Company signed a peace treaty with Holkar which returned to him all his territory and promised no further interference from the Company{{Citation needed|date=March 2014}}.

Lord Wellesley in a despatch attributed much of the success of the war to Lake's matchless energy, ability and valour. For his services, Lake received the thanks of [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]], and, in September 1804, was rewarded by being created Baron Lake of [[Delhi]] and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the [[County]] of [[Buckingham]]. From 1801 to 1805 Lake was [[Commander-in-Chief, India]], then again from 1805 to 1807 as his successor [[John Graves Simcoe]] had died before heading off to India. At the conclusion of the war he returned to England, and in 1807 he was created [[Viscount Lake]] of Delhi and Laswary and of Aston Clinton in the County of Buckingham.

One of his sons Major [[George Augustus Frederick Lake]] accompanied him in Ireland and then India, acting as his aide-de-camp and military secretary during the campaign: at one stage offering his mount when the elder Lake's horse had been shot from under him at an engagement near the village of Mohaulpoor. Minutes after seeing his father mounted Major Lake was seriously wounded in the presence of his father. Major G A F Lake recovered from his wound and went on to command the 29th Regiment of Foot during the Peninsular Campaign. He was killed in action at the Battle of Roliça, Portugal on 17 August 1808.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Containing the Services of General and Field Officers of the Indian Army|journal=The East India Military Calendar|date=1826|volume=3|page=511|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MiTv2GT6MG8C&pg=PA511|last1=Philippart|first1=John}}</ref>

== Parliamentary career ==
Like many contemporaries, Lake pursued both a parliamentary and military career. He represented [[Aylesbury (UK Parliament constituency)|Aylesbury]] in the [[British House of Commons]] from 1790 to 1802, and he also was brought into the [[Irish House of Commons]] by the government as member for [[Armagh Borough (Parliament of Ireland constituency)|Armagh Borough]] in 1799 to vote for the [[Act of Union 1800|Act of Union]].

== Later years ==
Viscount Lake was recorded as being an inveterate gambler who lost most of his family's fortune. He died in London on 20 February 1808 leaving his children with little or no inheritance. This was seen by many at court and the then prime minister the [[William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland|Duke of Portland]], as a sad end for such a stalwart of Empire and his children. Portland made a special request to King George III to remedy the situation, particularly with respect to the unmarried Lake daughters.<ref>{{cite book|last1=(King of Great Britain)|first1=George III|title=The Later Correspondence of George Iii|date=1808|publisher=CUP Archive|pages=22–23|edition=Vol Five|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q-w8AAAAIAAJ&q=George+Augustus+Frederick+Lake+burke+peerage&pg=PA22|language=en}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==
*See H Pearse, ''Memoir of the Life and Services of Viscount Lake'' (London, 1908); [[George Bruce Malleson|GB Malleson]], ''Decisive Battles of India'' (1883); J Grant Duff, ''History of the Mahrattas'' (1873); short memoir in ''From Cromwell to Wellington'', ed. Spenser Wilkinson.
*{{EB1911|wstitle=Lake, Gerard Lake, 1st Viscount|volume=16|pages=85–86}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lake, Gerard}}
[[Category:1744 births]]
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