Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Rich, 5th Baronet (1717 – 19 May 1785) was a British Army general and Governor of Londonderry and Culmore.
Sir Robert Rich | |
|---|---|
 Rich in 1756, by Arthur Devis | |
| Born | 1717 |
| Died | 19 May 1785 Bath, Somerset |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Service | British Army |
| Years of service | 1735–1774 |
| Rank | Lieutenant-General |
| Unit | 1st Foot Guards |
| Commands | 4th Regiment of Foot Governor of Londonderry |
| Battles / wars | |
| Alma mater | Westminster School |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Ludlow (m. 1752–1755)Elizabeth Williams
(m. 1771–1785) |
| Children | 2 |
| Relations | Sir Robert Rich, 4th Baronet (father) Elizabeth Griffith (mother) |
He fought at the Battle of Culloden in 1746 as colonel of the 4th King's Own (Barrell's) Regiment, where he lost his left hand to a sword cut and nearly lost the right forearm to another, in addition to six cuts to his head.[1]
In 1756 he was appointed Governor of Londonderry and Culmore, in Ireland, and in 1760, made a Lieutenant-General.
He married Mary, sister of Peter Ludlow, 1st Earl Ludlow, and had an only daughter, Mary Frances. She married on 4 January 1784 the Reverend Charles Bostock of Shirley House, Hampshire.
On 4 May 1785, he died at Bath, Somerset. He left his estates to his daughter. These included Waverley Abbey in Surrey and Roos Hall in Suffolk.[2]
The baronetcy passed to his brother, George. His son-in-law, Charles, assumed the surname of Rich in 1790 and was himself created a baronet in 1791. He died on 19 May 1785 at age 68.
References
edit- ^ Cannon, Richard (1839). Historical record of the fourth, or the King's own regiment of foot, containing an account of the formation of the regiment in 1680 and of its subsequent services to 1839. London: Longman, Orme and Co. p. 148. OCLC 457261349.
- ^ Ayerst, Francis (1853). The Ghost of Junius: Or, the Authorship of the Celebrated 'Letters' by this Anonymous Writer Deduced from a Letter, &c. Addressed in 1775-6. by Lieut.-Gen. Sir Robert Rich ... to the Right Hon. Lord Viscount Barrington ... Illustrated with a Genealogical Chart, Shewing the Connection Between Sir Robert Rich and the Ennobled Families of Grenville, Lyttelton, Etc. Thomas Bosworth. p. 13. OCLC 11180804.