Sir John Murray, 8th Baronet
Encyclopedia
General Sir John Murray, 8th Baronet, GCH
(c.1768 – 15 October 1827) led a brigade under Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
in the Peninsular War
. Later in the war, he commanded an independent force that operated on the east coast of Spain.
Murray commanded the 7th Brigade, the largest brigade in Wellington's army. This 2,900-strong unit included the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th King's German Legion (KGL) Infantry battalions, plus elements of the 1st and 2nd KGL Light Infantry. After giving Murray two additional cavalry squadrons, Wellington entrusted him with the task of crossing the Douro River and cutting off the escape route of Marshal Nicolas Soult
's French corps. Accordingly, Murray crossed the Douro at a ferry five miles east of Porto and moved north. However, he failed to seriously contest the French retreat to the northeast. Instead, he skirmished ineffectually with the enemy. Michael Glover, historian of the Peninsular War, calls Murray "a stupid and irresolute officer."
He soon left Portugal because he feared he would have to serve under William Carr Beresford, who was Marshal of the Portuguese Army. Beresford was junior to Murray in British rank, but as a Marshal, would outrank him in the field. He became 8th Baronet Murray of Dunerne in 1811.
On July 31, 1812, an 8,000-man Anglo-Sicilian force under Thomas Maitland landed at Alicante
on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. It then went through a succession of commanders until February 1813, when Murray, now a Lieutenant-General, took command. By this time, the force was 10,000 men strong. Of these, 3,000 were Sicilians and Italians, while the rest were British and KGL troops. Two Spanish divisions, 8,000 men, also came under his orders.
With his 18,200-man army, Murray defeated Marshal Louis Suchet
at the Battle of Castalla
on April 13, 1813. Though Suchet's 13,200 were considerably outnumbered and the battle was largely won by the steadiness of the British and Spanish infantry, Castalla was undoubtedly Murray's finest hour. But he did not pursue the beaten French, continuing his withdrawal to the coast.
. By this maneuver, Wellington intended to distract Suchet from his summer offensive (this ended in victory in the Battle of Vitoria
). Rear-Admiral Benjamin Hallowell Carew
put Murray's 16,000 men ashore six miles south of Tarragona on June 2. Joined by Spanish Maj-Gen Francisco Copons with 7,000 men, the Allies quickly invested the 1,600-man Franco-Italian garrison of Brig-Gen Bertoletti. Thus began the Siege of Tarragona
's comedy of errors. Bertoletti quickly pulled most of his men into the inner defenses, leaving token garrisons in two outworks. Rather than storm these, Murray chose to reduce them by siege. By June 7, his siege guns had reduced one of the two forts to rubble.
Meanwhile, Maj-Gen Charles Decaen sent Maj-Gen Maurice Mathieu with 6,000 men south from Barcelona to interfere with the siege. At the same time, Suchet marched 8,000 men north from Valencia toward Tarragona. Soon, a Spanish move against Valencia caused the southern column to be recalled. Mathieu bumped into Copons' pickets, found that he was facing a combined force of 23,000 men and quickly backpedaled.
By this time, Murray had been driven into a state of panic by rumors of the two French relief columns. He cancelled a planned June 11 attack on the small outwork and ordered his supplies to be taken aboard ship. Later, he decided to withdraw his entire force. Issuing a stream of orders that confused everyone and enraged Hallowell, Murray finally got his entire force aboard ship after spiking and abandoning the eighteen heavy siege cannons. Copons was advised to flee to the mountains.
Once safely aboard, Murray determined to land at a different place on June 15. Soon, confusion again reigned. In despair, Hallowell wrote, "the debarkation and the re-embarkation continually going on was enough to confound any operation in the world." Mathieu finally marched into Tarragona on June 16. The appearance of these fresh troops caused Murray to give up his plans again, and his thwarted expedition returned to Alicante. He was relieved of command on June 18.
, but he was denied.
He was Member of Parliament
(MP) for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis
from 1811 to 1818.
Murray died on October 15, 1827.
Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
(c.1768 – 15 October 1827) led a brigade under Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
in the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
. Later in the war, he commanded an independent force that operated on the east coast of Spain.
Early career
Murray served as Quartermaster General in India from 1801 to 1805. There, "his alternations of torpor and feverish activity had greatly embarrassed the young Arthur Wellesley with whom he was supposed to be cooperating." He married Anne Elizabeth Cholmley Phipps on August 25, 1807.Peninsula
During the Second Battle of Porto in 1809, Major GeneralMajor General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Murray commanded the 7th Brigade, the largest brigade in Wellington's army. This 2,900-strong unit included the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th King's German Legion (KGL) Infantry battalions, plus elements of the 1st and 2nd KGL Light Infantry. After giving Murray two additional cavalry squadrons, Wellington entrusted him with the task of crossing the Douro River and cutting off the escape route of Marshal Nicolas Soult
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult
Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia , the Hand of Iron, was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804. He was one of only six officers in French history to receive the distinction of Marshal General of France...
's French corps. Accordingly, Murray crossed the Douro at a ferry five miles east of Porto and moved north. However, he failed to seriously contest the French retreat to the northeast. Instead, he skirmished ineffectually with the enemy. Michael Glover, historian of the Peninsular War, calls Murray "a stupid and irresolute officer."
He soon left Portugal because he feared he would have to serve under William Carr Beresford, who was Marshal of the Portuguese Army. Beresford was junior to Murray in British rank, but as a Marshal, would outrank him in the field. He became 8th Baronet Murray of Dunerne in 1811.
On July 31, 1812, an 8,000-man Anglo-Sicilian force under Thomas Maitland landed at Alicante
Alicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. It then went through a succession of commanders until February 1813, when Murray, now a Lieutenant-General, took command. By this time, the force was 10,000 men strong. Of these, 3,000 were Sicilians and Italians, while the rest were British and KGL troops. Two Spanish divisions, 8,000 men, also came under his orders.
With his 18,200-man army, Murray defeated Marshal Louis Suchet
Louis Gabriel Suchet
Louis Gabriel Suchet, 1st Duc d'Albufera was a Marshal of France and one of Napoleon's most brilliant generals.-Early career:...
at the Battle of Castalla
Battle of Castalla
In the Battle of Castalla on 13 April 1813, an Anglo-Spanish-Sicilian force commanded by Lieutenant General John Murray, 8th Baronet fought Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet's French Army of Valencia and Aragon. Murray's troops successfully repelled a series of French attacks causing Suchet to retreat....
on April 13, 1813. Though Suchet's 13,200 were considerably outnumbered and the battle was largely won by the steadiness of the British and Spanish infantry, Castalla was undoubtedly Murray's finest hour. But he did not pursue the beaten French, continuing his withdrawal to the coast.
Fiasco at Tarragona
Soon after, Wellington ordered Murray to move by sea to capture the port of TarragonaTarragona
Tarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
. By this maneuver, Wellington intended to distract Suchet from his summer offensive (this ended in victory in the Battle of Vitoria
Battle of Vitoria
At the Battle of Vitoria an allied British, Portuguese, and Spanish army under General the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, leading to eventual victory in the Peninsular War.-Background:In July 1812, after...
). Rear-Admiral Benjamin Hallowell Carew
Benjamin Hallowell Carew
Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew GCB, was a senior officer in the Royal Navy...
put Murray's 16,000 men ashore six miles south of Tarragona on June 2. Joined by Spanish Maj-Gen Francisco Copons with 7,000 men, the Allies quickly invested the 1,600-man Franco-Italian garrison of Brig-Gen Bertoletti. Thus began the Siege of Tarragona
Siege of Tarragona
Siege of Tarragona may refer to several historical sieges of Tarragona including:* Siege of Tarragona , during the Catalan Revolt* Siege of Tarragona , during the Peninsular War* Siege of Tarragona , during the Peninsular War...
's comedy of errors. Bertoletti quickly pulled most of his men into the inner defenses, leaving token garrisons in two outworks. Rather than storm these, Murray chose to reduce them by siege. By June 7, his siege guns had reduced one of the two forts to rubble.
Meanwhile, Maj-Gen Charles Decaen sent Maj-Gen Maurice Mathieu with 6,000 men south from Barcelona to interfere with the siege. At the same time, Suchet marched 8,000 men north from Valencia toward Tarragona. Soon, a Spanish move against Valencia caused the southern column to be recalled. Mathieu bumped into Copons' pickets, found that he was facing a combined force of 23,000 men and quickly backpedaled.
By this time, Murray had been driven into a state of panic by rumors of the two French relief columns. He cancelled a planned June 11 attack on the small outwork and ordered his supplies to be taken aboard ship. Later, he decided to withdraw his entire force. Issuing a stream of orders that confused everyone and enraged Hallowell, Murray finally got his entire force aboard ship after spiking and abandoning the eighteen heavy siege cannons. Copons was advised to flee to the mountains.
Once safely aboard, Murray determined to land at a different place on June 15. Soon, confusion again reigned. In despair, Hallowell wrote, "the debarkation and the re-embarkation continually going on was enough to confound any operation in the world." Mathieu finally marched into Tarragona on June 16. The appearance of these fresh troops caused Murray to give up his plans again, and his thwarted expedition returned to Alicante. He was relieved of command on June 18.
Later career
After the war ended in 1814, Murray was court-martialed for his conduct before Tarragona. The court acquitted him of all charges except one: he was found guilty of abandoning his guns without due cause and admonished by the court. Acting as though he was cleared of all charges, Murray petitioned to become a member of the Order of the BathOrder of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, but he was denied.
He was Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis
Weymouth and Melcombe Regis (UK Parliament constituency)
Weymouth and Melcombe Regis was a parliamentary borough in Dorset represented in the English House of Commons, later in that of Great Britain, and finally in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was formed by an Act of Parliament of 1570 which amalgamated the existing boroughs of Weymouth and...
from 1811 to 1818.
Murray died on October 15, 1827.