William Tomkinson

Lieutenant-general William Tomkinson (18 January 1790 – 1872) was a British Army officer who served during the Peninsular War and the Waterloo Campaign.

William Tomkinson in an image from The Diary of a Cavalry Officer in the Peninsular War and Waterloo Campaign [1]

Life

The fourth son of Henry Tomkinson of Dorfold, Cheshire, his mother was Anne, daughter of John Darlington of Aston, Chester.[2]

Tomkinson was gazetted to the 16th Light Dragoons as a cornet in December 1807, joining his regiment the following April.[3] During the Peninsular War (1809-1813) he was seriously wounded at the crossing of the Douro on 11 May 1809 but recovered to see action at the battles of Busaco (1810), Redhina (1811), Fuentes de Oñoro (1811), El Bodón (1811), Salamanca (1812) and Vittoria (1813).[4]

The battle damaged sabre of then Captain William Tomkinson, inscribed with his initials WT.

He was subsequently at Waterloo and remained in France with the Army of Occupation until December 1815.[4]

Retirement

Tomkinson retired on half-pay in 1821 and bought the land for Willington Hall, Cheshire, on the former estate of Lord Alvanley in 1827.[5] In retirement he became a magistrate and huntsman.[6]

Family

In 1836 he married Susan, daughter of Thomas Tarleton of Bolesworth Castle, Cheshire. The couple had four sons and two daughters including James Tomkinson who became an M.P. and Henry, who joined the army and went on to command the 1st Royal Dragoons.[7]

References
  1. The Diary of a Cavalry Officer in the Peninsular War and Waterloo Campaign
  2. Dalton 1904, p. 88.
  3. Tomkinson 1894, p. vi-vii.
  4. Bromley & Bromley 2015, p. 361.
  5. "Willington Hall: History". Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  6. Tomkinson 1894, p. vii.
  7. Tomkinson 1894, p. vi.
Bibliography
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.