General Sir Abraham Roberts GCB (11 April 1784 – 28 December 1873) was a British East India Company Army general who served nearly 50 years in India.
General Sir Abraham Roberts | |
|---|---|
 Sir Abraham Roberts | |
| Born | 11 April 1784 Waterford, Ireland |
| Died | 28 December 1873 (aged 89) |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service | British East India Company |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | 1st Bengal European Regiment |
| Commands | 1st Bengal European Regiment Lahore Division |
| Battles / wars | First Afghan War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
| Relations | Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts (son) Frederick Roberts (grandson) |
Roberts had two sons, who both obtained the highest ranks in the British Army. One son and a grandson would win the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for bravery in the face of the enemy in the British Army.
Early life
editAbraham Roberts was a member of a famous Waterford family. He was the son of Anne (Sandys) and The Reverend John Roberts, a magistrate in County Waterford and a rector of Passage East.
Career
editGeneral Sir Abraham Roberts gained the rank of colonel in the service of the Honourable East India Company and was the commander of the 1st Bengal European Regiment and the Lahore Division.[1] He fought in the First Afghan War.
Roberts was invested as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB). He left India in 1853 to live in Ireland with his second wife, who outlived him. He also had a home in Bristol, 25 Royal York Crescent, Bristol, Somerset BS8 – England.[2]
From 1862 until his death, he was Colonel of the 101st Regiment of Foot (Royal Bengal Fusiliers).[3]
Family
editHe married Frances Isabella Ricketts, daughter of George Poyntz Ricketts, on 20 July 1820. On the death of his first wife, he married Isabella Bunbury, daughter of Abraham Bunbury, on 2 August 1830.
Children with Frances Isabella Ricketts
edit- Frances Eliza Roberts
- Maria Isabella Roberts
- Major General George Ricketts Roberts
Children with Isabella Bunbury
edit- Harriet Mercer Roberts
- Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts
Arms
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Footnotes
edit- ^ "Lord Roberts - A Great Soldier's Story of his Own Career". The New York Times. 16 January 1897. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
- ^ "Will on Genealogy.com". Retrieved 8 January 2023.
This is the last Will of me, General Sir Abraham Roberts KGB. of number 25 Royal York & Crescent Clifton Bristol. I bequeath unto and equally between my dearest Wife, Isabella Roberts and mu Daughter, Harriet Mercer Roberts […]
- ^ "101st Regiment of Foot (Royal Bengal Fusiliers)". regiments.org. Archived from the original on 30 March 2006. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Grants and Confirmations of Arms Vol. G". National Library of Ireland. 1863. p. 111. Retrieved 14 January 2023.