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He served in India as an ensign in the [[Madras Army]] in 1752, rising to the rank of captain.<ref name=odnb/> In 1761 returned to London and became a prominent shareholder in the [[East India Company]].<ref name=odnb/> | He served in India as an ensign in the [[Madras Army]] in 1752, rising to the rank of captain.<ref name=odnb/> In 1761 returned to London and became a prominent shareholder in the [[East India Company]].<ref name=odnb/> | ||
When he went out to India again in 1764 it was as [[Colonel]] of one of the East India Company's three [[brigade]]s.<ref name=odnb/> In 1767 he was promoted to [[Commander-in-Chief, India]].<ref name=smith>[https://books.google.com/books?id=P_cNAAAAQAAJ | When he went out to India again in 1764 it was as [[Colonel]] of one of the East India Company's three [[brigade]]s.<ref name=odnb/> In 1767 he was promoted to [[Commander-in-Chief, India]].<ref name=smith>[https://books.google.com/books?id=P_cNAAAAQAAJ&dq=%22General+Charles+Morgan%22&pg=RA1-PR20 The Bengal almanac, for 1827, compiled by S. Smith and Co., Page XX]</ref> He was made Brigadier-General in 1768 before retiring in 1770.<ref name=hop>{{cite web | url = http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1790-1820/member/smith-richard-1734-1803|title= SMITH, Richard (1734-1803), of Harley Street, Mdx. and Chilton Lodge, Hungerford, Berks.|publisher= History of Parliament Online|accessdate = 29 June 2013}}</ref> | ||
==Political career== | ==Political career== | ||
| Line 39: | Line 39: | ||
He later served as MP for [[Wendover (UK Parliament constituency)|Wendover]] in 1780 and as MP for [[Wareham (UK Parliament constituency)|Wareham]] in 1790.<ref name=odnb/> He was appointed [[High Sheriff of Berkshire]] for 1779–80.<ref name=hop/> | He later served as MP for [[Wendover (UK Parliament constituency)|Wendover]] in 1780 and as MP for [[Wareham (UK Parliament constituency)|Wareham]] in 1790.<ref name=odnb/> He was appointed [[High Sheriff of Berkshire]] for 1779–80.<ref name=hop/> | ||
He became notorious as a [[nabob]], one of the Englishmen returned from India with considerable wealth, and may have served as a "type" for [[Samuel Foote|Samuel Foote's]] [[The Nabob|1772 play of that title]]. He was satirically attacked by a Captain Joseph Price and a portrait of him appeared opposite that of [[Elizabeth Armistead]] (one of the favourite courtesans, and eventually the wife, of [[Charles James Fox]]) in ''[[Town and Country Magazine#Content|Town and Country Magazine]]''. He gambled huge amounts, on horses and at cards, and is said to have lost heavily to Fox.<ref name=odnb/> | He became notorious as a [[nabob]], one of the Englishmen returned from India with considerable wealth. He was "reputed to have made between £200,000 and £300,000 in India".<ref>{{cite journal | title = "Our Execrable Banditti": Perceptions of Nabobs in Mid-Eighteenth Century Britain | journal = Albion | publisher = Cambridge University Press | date= 1984 | first1= Philip | last1= Lawson | first2 = Jim | last2= Phillips | doi = 10.2307/4048755 | access-date =24 November 2024 | volume =16 | issue = 3 | pages = 225–241 | jstor = 4048755 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/albion/article/abs/our-execrable-banditti-perceptions-of-nabobs-in-mideighteenth-century-britain/6BDEC01F21FE45C4DE5F7AA168ED8704 | url-access = subscription | hdl = 1807/138674 | hdl-access = free }}</ref> and may have served as a "type" for [[Samuel Foote|Samuel Foote's]] [[The Nabob|1772 play of that title]]. He was satirically attacked by a Captain Joseph Price and a portrait of him appeared opposite that of [[Elizabeth Armistead]] (one of the favourite courtesans, and eventually the wife, of [[Charles James Fox]]) in ''[[Town and Country Magazine#Content|Town and Country Magazine]]''. He gambled huge amounts, on horses and at cards, and is said to have lost heavily to Fox.<ref name=odnb/> | ||
==Family and descendants== | ==Family and descendants== | ||
He lived at | He lived at [[Chilton Lodge]] near [[Hungerford]] in [[Berkshire]].<ref name=odnb/> In 1756 he married Amelia Hopkins, the daughter of master mariner Captain Charles Hopkins. His ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'' entry says only that the couple had a son and a daughter, without naming them.<ref name=odnb/> He is also known to have had an illegitimate daughter via his sister-in-law Sarah Hopkins. This daughter was named Amelia and she later married William Marsh.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://jjhc.info/smithgeneralrichard1803|title= Gen Richard Smith Of India and of London And of Chilton Foliat, Hungerford 1734-1803|publisher=J. J. Heath-Caldwell|access-date=26 November 2022}}</ref> The ''[[History of Parliament]]'' contains a biography both for him, stating that in 1780 he [[rotten borough|purchased a seat]] at [[Wendover (UK Parliament constituency)|Wendover]] for an unnamed son,<ref>{{cite web|title=SMITH, Richard (1734-1803), of Chilton Foliat, Wilts.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1754-1790/member/smith-richard-1734-1803|website=[[History of Parliament]]|accessdate=20 October 2016}}</ref> and for a [[John Mansell Smith]], which says he was the only son of Richard Smith.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Cannon|first1=J.A.|title=SMITH, John Mansell (b. ?1758), of Chilton Foliat, Wilts.|url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1754-1790/member/smith-john-mansell-1758|website=[[History of Parliament]]|accessdate=20 October 2016}}</ref> | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
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[[Category:Madras Staff Corps officers]] | [[Category:Madras Staff Corps officers]] | ||
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies]] | [[Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies]] | ||
[[Category:Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Wareham]] | |||
[[Category:British Commanders-in-Chief of India]] | [[Category:British Commanders-in-Chief of India]] | ||
[[Category:British MPs 1774–1780]] | [[Category:British MPs 1774–1780]] | ||
| Line 84: | Line 85: | ||
[[Category:British MPs 1790–1796]] | [[Category:British MPs 1790–1796]] | ||
[[Category:British East India Company Army generals]] | [[Category:British East India Company Army generals]] | ||
[[Category:High | [[Category:High sheriffs of Berkshire]] | ||
[[Category:Military personnel from London]] | [[Category:Military personnel from London]] | ||
[[Category:British politicians convicted of crimes]] | [[Category:British politicians convicted of crimes]] | ||
Latest revision as of 07:54, 16 March 2026
Richard Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | baptised 1734 |
| Died | 3 July 1803 |
| Allegiance | File:Union flag 1606 (Kings Colors).svg Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Service/ | British Army |
| Rank | Brigadier-General |
| Commands held | Indian Army |
Brigadier-General Richard Smith (baptised 1734 – 3 July 1803) was Commander-in-Chief, India of the East India Company (Bengal).
Early life[edit | edit source]
He was the eldest son of John Smith, cheesemonger, of Jermyn Street, St. James’s, in what is now central London.[1]
Military career[edit | edit source]
He served in India as an ensign in the Madras Army in 1752, rising to the rank of captain.[1] In 1761 returned to London and became a prominent shareholder in the East India Company.[1]
When he went out to India again in 1764 it was as Colonel of one of the East India Company's three brigades.[1] In 1767 he was promoted to Commander-in-Chief, India.[2] He was made Brigadier-General in 1768 before retiring in 1770.[3]
Political career[edit | edit source]
In 1774 he went into politics and was briefly elected to Parliament as the member for Hindon, Wiltshire, by spending 15 guineas per vote.[4] On petition the election was declared void due to bribery by the winning candidates. He and his fellow candidate, Thomas Brand Hollis, were prosecuted, fined one thousand marks, and imprisoned for six months. In a rerun of the election Brand Hollis withdrew his name but Smith was re-elected.[5]
He later served as MP for Wendover in 1780 and as MP for Wareham in 1790.[1] He was appointed High Sheriff of Berkshire for 1779–80.[3]
He became notorious as a nabob, one of the Englishmen returned from India with considerable wealth. He was "reputed to have made between £200,000 and £300,000 in India".[6] and may have served as a "type" for Samuel Foote's 1772 play of that title. He was satirically attacked by a Captain Joseph Price and a portrait of him appeared opposite that of Elizabeth Armistead (one of the favourite courtesans, and eventually the wife, of Charles James Fox) in Town and Country Magazine. He gambled huge amounts, on horses and at cards, and is said to have lost heavily to Fox.[1]
Family and descendants[edit | edit source]
He lived at Chilton Lodge near Hungerford in Berkshire.[1] In 1756 he married Amelia Hopkins, the daughter of master mariner Captain Charles Hopkins. His Oxford Dictionary of National Biography entry says only that the couple had a son and a daughter, without naming them.[1] He is also known to have had an illegitimate daughter via his sister-in-law Sarah Hopkins. This daughter was named Amelia and she later married William Marsh.[7] The History of Parliament contains a biography both for him, stating that in 1780 he purchased a seat at Wendover for an unnamed son,[8] and for a John Mansell Smith, which says he was the only son of Richard Smith.[9]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Richard Smith at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ↑ The Bengal almanac, for 1827, compiled by S. Smith and Co., Page XX
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "SMITH, Richard (1734-1803), of Harley Street, Mdx. and Chilton Lodge, Hungerford, Berks". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ↑ Bradley, James E. (20 June 2002). Religion, Revolution and English Radicalism: Non-conformity in Eighteenth-Century Politics and Society. Cambridge University Press. p. 103. ISBN 9780521890823. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ↑ "Brand Hollis, Thomas (c.1719-1804), of Ingatestone, Essex and Corscombe, Dorset". History of Parliament. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
- ↑ Lawson, Philip; Phillips, Jim (1984). ""Our Execrable Banditti": Perceptions of Nabobs in Mid-Eighteenth Century Britain". Albion. 16 (3). Cambridge University Press: 225–241. doi:10.2307/4048755. hdl:1807/138674. JSTOR 4048755. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
- ↑ "Gen Richard Smith Of India and of London And of Chilton Foliat, Hungerford 1734-1803". J. J. Heath-Caldwell. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
- ↑ "SMITH, Richard (1734-1803), of Chilton Foliat, Wilts". History of Parliament. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ↑ Cannon, J.A. "SMITH, John Mansell (b. ?1758), of Chilton Foliat, Wilts". History of Parliament. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lord Clive |
Commander-in-Chief, India 1767–1770 |
Succeeded by Sir Robert Barker |
| Unrecognised parameter | ||
| Preceded by Thomas Dummer |
Member of Parliament for Wendover 1780–1784 With: John Mansell Smith |
Succeeded by Robert Burton |
| Preceded by John Calcraft |
Member of Parliament for Wareham 1790–1796 With: Lord Robert Spencer |
Succeeded by Charles Ellis |
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