William Gordon Cameron
General Sir William Gordon Cameron GCB (Chinese translated Name: 金馬倫; 16 October 1827 – 2 March 1913) was a British soldier and colonial administrator.
Sir William Gordon Cameron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 16 October 1827 Kingdom of France |
| Died | 2 March 1913 (aged 85) Christchurch, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom |
| Allegiance |  |
| Service/ |  |
| Years of service | 1844–1896 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands held | Northern District Commander of British Troops in China, Hong Kong and the Straits Settlements Cape Colony |
| Battles/wars | Crimean War (1854-56) Abyssinian Expedition (1867-68) |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
| Relations | Helen Colebrook Mary Cameron (wife) Colonel Aylmer Cameron VC (brother) |
Military career
William Gordon Cameron was commissioned into the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot in 1844.[1][2] He transferred to the Grenadier Guards in 1847.[1] In 1854 he was deployed to the Crimean War and took part in the Battle of Alma.[1] He was appointed Commanding Officer of 3rd Regiment of the British German Legion in 1855.[1]
In 1867 he became Commanding Officer of 1st Battalion 4th King's Own Royal Regiment and led the capture of Magdala during the British Expedition to Abyssinia.[1]
In 1875, he became commander of a brigade at Gibraltar and in 1875 of a brigade at Aldershot.[1] In April 1881 he was appointed General Officer Commanding Northern District.[1] Then in 1884 he became Commander of British Troops in China, Hong Kong and the Straits Settlements.[1] He governed Hong Kong in a period between April 1887 to October 1887.[3]
He was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 5th (West Middlesex) Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps in 1880.[4]
From January 1891 to December 1892 and then again in May to July 1894 he was Administrator of the Cape Colony.[5] He retired in 1895.[1]
Family
General Sir William Gordon Cameron was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel William Gordon Cameron J.P. (1790-1856) and his wife Caroline née Edwards (1801-1872), and the elder brother of Colonel Aylmer Cameron VC, who won the Victoria Cross in 1858 during the Indian Mutiny.[6]
He married Helen Colebrooke Mary, daughter of General Sir John Hunter Littler, GCB on the 20 January 1857 in the Church of the Holy Trinity, Buckfastleigh, Devon, England.[7]
Memory
Several places in Hong Kong were named after Cameron: Cameron Road and Cameron Lane in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, as well as Mount Cameron and Mount Cameron Road.[8]
References
- DNW Medal Auction, 30 June 1994. Retrieved 16 February 2020
- "King's Own Museum". Retrieved 16 February 2020.
- Legislative Council Order No.38 Retrieved 16 February 2020
- "No. 24893". The London Gazette. 19 October 1880. p. 5327.
- Cape Colony Administrators
- Obituary of Aylmer Cameron. The Times, 12 June 1909, page 11.
- Walford, Edward. The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled and untitled aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.
- Yanne, Andrew; Heller, Gillis (2009). Signs of a Colonial Era. Hong Kong University Press. pp. 56–57. ISBN 9789622099449.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Willis |
GOC Northern District 1881–1884 |
Succeeded by Frederick Willis |
| Preceded by John Sargent |
Commander of British Troops in China, Hong Kong and the Straits Settlements 1885–1889 |
Succeeded by Sir James Edwards |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by Acting Administrator William H. Marsh |
Administrator of Hong Kong April–October 1887 |
Succeeded by Sir William Des Vœux |
| British occupation 1806–1814 |
|  |
|---|---|---|
| British colony 1814–1910 |
Those in italics were Acting Governors
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