Walter Douglas Phillips Patton-Bethune

General Walter Douglas Phillips Patton-Bethune (1821–1901) was a British soldier and landowner.

Life

Born in 1821 at Bishops Hull House, Bishops Hull Taunton, Somerset, he was the eldest son of Thomas Patton (1792–1876), a Captain in the Royal Navy who became a Somerset landowner, and his wife Matilda Winsloe. One of his great-grandmothers was Mary Bethune, who had married Colonel Henry Patton. Thomas and Matilda had nine children while living in Bishops Hull.

Entering the British Army in 1838, he became an ensign by purchase in the 47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot.[1] He served with this regiment in Malta and the West Indies, moving in 1846 as a Captain to the 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot, with whom he served in all operations of the Eighth Kaffir War, commanding the Regiment from November 1851 until October 1852.

As a brevet Lieutenant-Colonel, he fought in the Crimean War, being present at the Battle of Balaclava, the Battle of Inkerman, and the Siege of Sevastopol, and during the Battle of Alma was with the staff of Lord Raglan. For his services there he was awarded the Ottoman Order of the Medjidie.

After further duties in India, he went on half-pay in 1864 but enjoyed further promotions, culminating in 1877 with the rank of full general. He was colonel of 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot from 1876 until their amalgamation with the 71st Foot in 1881, after which he was colonel of the 2nd Battalion of the resultant Highland Light Infantry until his death.[2]

Around 1873, he inherited the mansion and estate of Clayton Priory in Sussex;[3] and in 1882, he received royal permission to add the surname of Bethune after that of Patton.[4][5]

Patton-Bethune died on 28 January 1901 at Clayton Priory. He was buried at the church of St John the Baptist in Clayton,[6] and his will was proved in London on 24 August 1903, showing effects of £12,000 (equivalent to £1,300,000 in 2019).[7][8][9]

Family

On 23 April 1855, in the British Embassy in Paris, he married Julia Elphinstone (1835–1909),[10] daughter of Sir Howard Elphinstone, 2nd Baronet, and his wife Elizabeth Julia Curteis. They had five children.

References
  1. WO 65/102 Annual Army Lists, 1838: Gazetted 28 September 1838: War Office 76/190/159.
  2. "Highland Light Infantry". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 14 July 2006. Retrieved 7 May 2016.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. http://www.sussexlife.co.uk/people/clayton_priory_a_home_with_history_1_1571670 Accessed 5 December 2015
  4. "Whitehall, August 30, 1882". The London Gazette (25415). 8 September 1882. p. 4175. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  5. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/25150/page/4382/data.pdf Accessed 8 December 2015
  6. Gen Walter Douglas Phillips Patton Bethune at Find a Grave. Accessed 7 December 2015
  7. "Find a will | GOV.UK". 1903. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  8. Ancestry.com. England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA http://search.ancestry.co.uk/ (subscription required) Accessed 7 December 2015
  9. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  10. The National Archives of the UK; Kew, Surrey, England; General Register Office: Foreign Registers and Returns; Class: RG 33; Piece: 73
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