Bindon Blood
Encyclopedia
General
Sir Bindon Blood GCB
(7 November 1842 – 16 May 1940) was a British
military commander who served in Egypt
, Afghanistan
, India and Africa
.
, Scotland
, Blood was a descendant of Colonel Thomas Blood
who attempted to steal the Crown Jewels
in 1671. Blood attended the Royal School, Banagher, Queen's College, Galway
, and the Addiscombe Military Academy
. He was commissioned in 1860 in the Royal Engineers
as a temporary lieutenant in charge of signaling and pontoon bridge
construction in India
, and for brief periods in Zululand
and South Africa
. Promoted to captain in 1873, he served with British forces in the North-West Frontier
(Jowaki). In 1879 he was sent back to Africa for the Anglo-Zulu War
. He went on to fight in the Second Anglo-Afghan War
and the battle of Tel-el-Kebir. By 1882 he was a brevet
lieutenant-colonel.
The following year, 1883, Blood married Lady Charlotte E. Colvin, second daughter of Sir Auckland Colvin, a distinguished Indian administrator from a well-connected family
. Then he returned to India
and took command of the Bengal Sappers and Miners in 1885. After seven years he reached the rank of brigadier-general, serving in the garrison at Rawalpindi
, and then in the relief force known as the Chitral Expedition
. He then commanded the Malakand
Field Force and the Buner
Field Force, relieving the garrison during the siege of Malakand
. At the end of this command he was promoted to major-general. In 1901, Lord Kitchener
requested Blood for service in South Africa, where he was stationed in eastern Transvaal
.
In November 1907 he retired to London
, where he continued to lead a very active life. He was made colonel-commandant of the Royal Engineers in 1914 and worked to recruit soldiers for the World War I
. He was aged 94 when he was made Chief Royal Engineer
(CRE) in 1936. He died in 1940, survived by his one daughter.
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Sir Bindon Blood GCB
Order 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...
(7 November 1842 – 16 May 1940) was a British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
military commander who served in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, India and Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
Military career
Born near JedburghJedburgh
Jedburgh is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and historically in Roxburghshire.-Location:Jedburgh lies on the Jed Water, a tributary of the River Teviot, it is only ten miles from the border with England and is dominated by the substantial ruins of Jedburgh Abbey...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Blood was a descendant of Colonel Thomas Blood
Thomas Blood
Colonel Thomas Blood was an Irish colonel best known for attempting to steal the Crown Jewels of England from the Tower of London in 1671...
who attempted to steal the Crown Jewels
Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom
The collective term Crown Jewels denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the sovereign of the United Kingdom during the coronation ceremony and at other state functions...
in 1671. Blood attended the Royal School, Banagher, Queen's College, Galway
National University of Ireland, Galway
The National University of Ireland, Galway is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland...
, and the Addiscombe Military Academy
Addiscombe Military Academy
The East India Company Military Seminary, colloquially known as Addiscombe Seminary, Addiscombe College, or Addiscombe Military Academy was a British military academy at Addiscombe, Surrey, in what is now the London Borough of Croydon. It was established in 1809, and closed in 1861...
. He was commissioned in 1860 in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
as a temporary lieutenant in charge of signaling and pontoon bridge
Pontoon bridge
A pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
construction in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and for brief periods in Zululand
Zulu Kingdom
The Zulu Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or, rather imprecisely, Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north....
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Promoted to captain in 1873, he served with British forces in the North-West Frontier
North-West Frontier (military history)
The North-West Frontier was the most difficult area, from a military point of view, of the former British India in the Indian sub-continent. It remains the frontier of present-day Pakistan, extending from the Pamir Knot in the north to the Koh-i-Malik Siah in the west, and separating the...
(Jowaki). In 1879 he was sent back to Africa for the Anglo-Zulu War
Anglo-Zulu War
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom.Following the imperialist scheme by which Lord Carnarvon had successfully brought about federation in Canada, it was thought that a similar plan might succeed with the various African kingdoms, tribal areas and...
. He went on to fight in the Second Anglo-Afghan War
Second Anglo-Afghan War
The Second Anglo-Afghan War was fought between the United Kingdom and Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the nation was ruled by Sher Ali Khan of the Barakzai dynasty, the son of former Emir Dost Mohammad Khan. This was the second time British India invaded Afghanistan. The war ended in a manner...
and the battle of Tel-el-Kebir. By 1882 he was a brevet
Brevet
Brevet may refer to:* Brevet , a temporary authorization for a person to hold a higher rank* Brevet , a long-distance bicycle ride with check-point controls* Aircrew brevet, a Royal Air Force and British Army badge...
lieutenant-colonel.
The following year, 1883, Blood married Lady Charlotte E. Colvin, second daughter of Sir Auckland Colvin, a distinguished Indian administrator from a well-connected family
Colvin family
The Colvin family, for the purposes of this article, are that group of people descended from James Colvin , a merchant trading between London and Calcutta during the East India Company. This Anglo-Indian family was intimately involved with the British Raj, first as traders and then as...
. Then he returned to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and took command of the Bengal Sappers and Miners in 1885. After seven years he reached the rank of brigadier-general, serving in the garrison at Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
, and then in the relief force known as the Chitral Expedition
Chitral Expedition
The Chitral Expedition was a military expedition in 1895 sent by the British authorities to relieve the fort at Chitral which was under siege after a local coup.-Background to the conflict:Chitral was at the extreme north west of British India...
. He then commanded the Malakand
Malakand
Malakand may refer to:in Pakistan*Malakand District, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, also known as Malakand Protected Area*Malakand Agency, a tribal area in the North West Frontier Province before 1970...
Field Force and the Buner
Buner
Chinglai Buner may refer to:* Buner Valley in Pakistan.* Buner District in Pakistan....
Field Force, relieving the garrison during the siege of Malakand
Siege of Malakand
The Siege of Malakand was the 26 July – 2 August 1897 siege of the British garrison in the Malakand region of colonial British India's North West Frontier Province...
. At the end of this command he was promoted to major-general. In 1901, Lord Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
requested Blood for service in South Africa, where he was stationed in eastern Transvaal
South African Republic
The South African Republic , often informally known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer-ruled country in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Not to be confused with the present-day Republic of South Africa, it occupied the area later known as the South African...
.
In November 1907 he retired to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he continued to lead a very active life. He was made colonel-commandant of the Royal Engineers in 1914 and worked to recruit soldiers for the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He was aged 94 when he was made Chief Royal Engineer
Chief Royal Engineer
The Chief Royal Engineer is the official head of the Corps of Royal Engineers. He was also the professional head of the Corps until 1941, when that role was moved to that of the Engineer-in-Chief.-Origin and development:...
(CRE) in 1936. He died in 1940, survived by his one daughter.
External links
- Royal Engineers Museum Blood's Pontoon (1870–89)
- Royal Engineers Museum The Corps between the wars (1919–39)- General Blood's appointment to Chief Royal Engineer