Henry Boswell Bennett
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant Henry Boswell Bennett of the 45th Regiment of Foot (Sherwood Foresters), on 31 May 1838 he became the first officer to die in the service of Queen Victoria when he was shot by John Nichols Thom
in Kent.
Bennett was of Irish
parentage, was buried in Canterbury Cathedral
Precincts on Saturday 2 June with full military honours and in the presence of six thousand spectators. In view of the special circumstances the Cathedral Chapter waived the normal ban on the firing of guns in the precincts, and three volleys were fired over the grave at the end of the funeral service. Later a tablet which can still be seen was affixed to the north wall of the Cathedral nave in memory of Lt. Bennett. It bears the following inscription.
Bossenden Wood
, is situated about 3.5 miles northwest of Canterbury
, is just one of many small forests that pepper the Kent
landscape. The last armed insurrection staged on English soil, headed by rebel leader John Nichols Thom
alias 'Mad Tom'
John Nichols Thom
John Nichols Thom, or Mad Tom, was a Cornishman, a self-declared messiah who, in the 19th century led the last battle to be fought on English soil.-Early life:...
in Kent.
Bennett was of Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
parentage, was buried in Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
Precincts on Saturday 2 June with full military honours and in the presence of six thousand spectators. In view of the special circumstances the Cathedral Chapter waived the normal ban on the firing of guns in the precincts, and three volleys were fired over the grave at the end of the funeral service. Later a tablet which can still be seen was affixed to the north wall of the Cathedral nave in memory of Lt. Bennett. It bears the following inscription.
| Within the cloisters of this Cathedral are desposited the remains of HENRY BOSWELL BENNETT (Lieutenant in the 45th Regiment) who fell in the strict and manly discharge of his duties, in Bossenden Wood, in the Ville of Dunkirk, on the 31st of May 1838. Aged 29 years. |
|---|
Bossenden Wood
Battle of Bossenden Wood
The Battle of Bossenden Wood, also known as the Battle of Bosenden Wood, took place on 31 May 1838 near Hernhill in Kent; it has been called the last battle on English soil....
, is situated about 3.5 miles northwest of Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
, is just one of many small forests that pepper the Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
landscape. The last armed insurrection staged on English soil, headed by rebel leader John Nichols Thom
John Nichols Thom
John Nichols Thom, or Mad Tom, was a Cornishman, a self-declared messiah who, in the 19th century led the last battle to be fought on English soil.-Early life:...
alias 'Mad Tom'