William Haviland
Encyclopedia
William Haviland was an Irish
-born general in the British Army
. He is best known for his service in North America
during the Seven Years' War
.
in 1718. He entered military service as an ensign in the 43rd Foot in 1739, and first saw action during the War of Jenkins' Ear
in a failed expedition against Cartagena
(in present-day Colombia
). He then served during the Jacobite Rising of 1745
, and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel by 1752.
In 1757 he was sent to North America
, where he was first in Lord Loudoun
's aborted expedition to Louisbourg
. That winter, as a colonel he was placed in command of Fort Edward
on the upper Hudson River
, the forward outpost on the frontier between British New York
and French Canada
. He participated in James Abercrombie's disastrous attack on Fort Carillon
in 1758, leading one of the attacking columns. In 1759 he served under Jeffery Amherst in his capture of Carillon
, and was rewarded with promotion to brigadier general and command of the 1760 expedition from Ticonderoga to Montreal.
He was then sent to the West Indies, where he participated in the reduction of Martinique and Cuba in 1762, which garnered him a promotion to major general.
He was promoted to lieutenant general in 1774, and served in the defense of Great Britain
. He was promoted a full general in 1783, and died the following year. He was twice married, with a son and daughter by his second wife.
During the Seven Years' War Haviland invented a kind of slide rule "that permitted an officer to quickly determine the number of men to be detached from each company of a regiment, or from a regiment in a larger force, if a draft was made against it, consisting of two circular wheels, one within the other, made of ivory, about three inches across, with useful information on regimental organization etched into the back, which was possibly the first mechanical administrative aide ever invented for officers serving in the field."
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
-born general in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
. He is best known for his service in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
during the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
.
Life
William Haviland was born in IrelandKingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...
in 1718. He entered military service as an ensign in the 43rd Foot in 1739, and first saw action during the War of Jenkins' Ear
War of Jenkins' Ear
The War of Jenkins' Ear was a conflict between Great Britain and Spain that lasted from 1739 to 1748, with major operations largely ended by 1742. Its unusual name, coined by Thomas Carlyle in 1858, relates to Robert Jenkins, captain of a British merchant ship, who exhibited his severed ear in...
in a failed expedition against Cartagena
Battle of Cartagena de Indias
The Battle of Cartagena de Indias was an amphibious military engagement between the forces of Britain under Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon and those of Spain under Admiral Blas de Lezo. It took place at the city of Cartagena de Indias in March 1741, in present-day Colombia...
(in present-day Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
). He then served during the Jacobite Rising of 1745
Jacobite Rising of 1745
The Jacobite rising of 1745, often referred to as "The 'Forty-Five," was the attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for the exiled House of Stuart. The rising occurred during the War of the Austrian Succession when most of the British Army was on the European continent...
, and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel by 1752.
In 1757 he was sent to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, where he was first in Lord Loudoun
John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun
Major-General John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun was a British nobleman and army officer.-Early career:Campbell inherited the peerage on the death of his father in 1731, becoming Lord Loudoun. The earl raised a regiment of infantry that took part in the Jacobite Rising of 1745 on the side of the...
's aborted expedition to Louisbourg
Louisbourg Expedition (1757)
The Louisbourg Expedition was a failed British attempt to capture the French fortress of Louisbourg on Île Royale during the Seven Years' War ....
. That winter, as a colonel he was placed in command of Fort Edward
Fort Edward (village), New York
Fort Edward is a village in Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village population was 3,141 at the 2000 census...
on the upper Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
, the forward outpost on the frontier between British New York
Province of New York
The Province of New York was an English and later British crown territory that originally included all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania...
and French Canada
Canada, New France
Canada was the name of the French colony that once stretched along the St. Lawrence River; the other colonies of New France were Acadia, Louisiana and Newfoundland. Canada, the most developed colony of New France, was divided into three districts, each with its own government: Quebec,...
. He participated in James Abercrombie's disastrous attack on Fort Carillon
Battle of Carillon
The Battle of Carillon, also known as the 1758 Battle of Ticonderoga, was fought on July 8, 1758, during the French and Indian War...
in 1758, leading one of the attacking columns. In 1759 he served under Jeffery Amherst in his capture of Carillon
Battle of Ticonderoga (1759)
The 1759 Battle of Ticonderoga was a minor confrontation at Fort Carillon on July 26 and 27, 1759, during the French and Indian War...
, and was rewarded with promotion to brigadier general and command of the 1760 expedition from Ticonderoga to Montreal.
He was then sent to the West Indies, where he participated in the reduction of Martinique and Cuba in 1762, which garnered him a promotion to major general.
He was promoted to lieutenant general in 1774, and served in the defense of Great Britain
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...
. He was promoted a full general in 1783, and died the following year. He was twice married, with a son and daughter by his second wife.
During the Seven Years' War Haviland invented a kind of slide rule "that permitted an officer to quickly determine the number of men to be detached from each company of a regiment, or from a regiment in a larger force, if a draft was made against it, consisting of two circular wheels, one within the other, made of ivory, about three inches across, with useful information on regimental organization etched into the back, which was possibly the first mechanical administrative aide ever invented for officers serving in the field."