- Robert Carey (British Army officer)
Robert Carey (1821-1883) was aMajor-General in theBritish Army , and served as Colonel in theNew Zealand Wars .Biography
Youth
Robert Carey was born to Octavius Carey and Harriot Hirzel Carey (nee Le Marchant) ofCastel, Guernsey onDecember 12 ,1821 . He was educated there at Elizabeth College from 1833-1834.Afghanistan & Punjab
In 1839 he was gazetted as an Ensign in the 40th regiment. He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1841, and from 1841-1842 served in the Afghan war with Sir William Nott’s force, taking part in the actions of
Bolan Pass ,Khojak Pass ,Quetta , Ghuznee, andKandahar . He participated in the relief of Killar Shilgie, the occupation ofKabul , and in further actions atKhoord , Kabul,Tyeen ,Jugdullah andKhyber Pass (The Punjab and First Sikh War). He was awarded clasps for Kandahar, Ghuznee and Kabul, and received the 1842 Afghan medal.Crimea
Carey was promoted to Captain in 1847, and in 1854 served in the Crimean War as the Acting
Quartermaster-General with the Turkish Contingent, and then commanding aBrigade (Brevet of Major). He was awarded the 4th classMedjidie and the Turkish medal.Promotions & Marriage
He was promoted to
Major in 1856, and onDecember 31 of that same year married Caroline Le Marchant, with whom he had three sons; Robert, Denis and Walter. In 1859 he was promoted toLieutenant-Colonel .Australia & New Zealand
Carey served as Deputy Adjutant General (D.A.G.) in
Australia in 1860, and served in the Maori war of 1860-1861 inNew Zealand where he was recognised for his services as a Companion in the Most Honourable Order of the Bath. He was D.A.G. for the forces in theWaikato district in 1863, and was promoted to Colonel for the action ofRangiriri in the New Zealand Campaign of 1863-1865, and also in the actions atPaterangi ,Te Awamutu ,Orakau ,Pukehinahina andMukimam . He was involved in the Campaign of 1866, including the capture ofOtapawa andWaikato , and operations around Mount Egmont in theSecond Taranaki War , and was awarded a medal.Retirement
Carey retired as
Major-General in 1866. He served as Deputy Judge Advocate at Headquarters from 1870-1882, and was a recipient of theDistinguished Service Award .Death
Robert Carey died on
January 25 ,1883 , aged 61.References
* The History of the Carey Family of Guernsey A.D. 1393 – 2007 website: Gallery: [http://www.careyroots.com/ee3.html Robert Carey Ee3]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.