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Colonel Sir William Douglas (c. 1778 – 25 August 1818) K.C.B., was a British Army officer during the Napoleonic Wars.^[1]^[2]

Biography

He was the son of William Douglas of Brigton (died 1814), and his wife Elizabeth Graham, daughter of Robert Graham, 11th of Fintry.^[3] He served at the Cape of Good Hope in 1795. He was promoted to major in 74th Foot on 4 December 1796. He joined the 91st Foot in 1798.^[4] He was promoted a brevet Lieutenant-Colonel 1 January 1800.^[5]

He served on the Hanover expedition in 1805 and fought in the Peninsular War from August 1808 to June 1809. While in theatre he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel of 91st Foot on 25 November 1808 and commanded the 1st Battalion from 1808 to 1818. He served in the Walcheren expedition of 1809; again in Iberia and then France under Wellington from January 1813 to April 1814. He obtained the rank of brevet Colonel on 4 June 1814.^[5] He served in Waterloo Campaign of 1815, during which he led one of the columns that stormed Cambray on 24 June 1815.^[6] He was awarded the Army Gold Cross (one of only 163 so honoured).^[4] He died in August 1818 at Valenciennes in France.^[7]

Notes

^ Bridges 1812, p. 74.
^ Timmermans 2008.
^ "(69) Page 57 – Heraldry of the Douglases – Histories of Scottish families – National Library of Scotland". digital.nls.uk.
^ ^a ^b The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Museum 2014.
^ ^a ^b Brown 2011.
^ Siborne 1848, pp. 678–679.
^ Goff 1891, pp. 75–76.

References

"The 91st Argyllshire Highlanders, 1794–1881", Official web site, The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Museum, 26 March 2014, archived from the original on 18 December 2013, retrieved 1 March 2014
Bridges, James (1812), "Forfarshire: Roll of Freeholders made up at the Michaelmas Head Court, held at Forfar 1st of October 1811.", View of the Political State of Scotland at Michaelmas 1811..., Hill, pp. 70–75
Brown, Steve (April 2011), British Regiments and the Men Who Led Them 1793–1815: 91st Regiment of Foot, Napoleonic series, retrieved 1 March 2014^{[better source needed]}
Goff, Gerald Lionel Joseph (1891), Historical records of the 91st Argyllshire Highlanders, ... to 1881, London: R. Bentley, pp. 75–76
Siborne, William (1848), The Waterloo Campaign, 1815 (4th ed.), Westminster: A. Constable
Timmermans, D. (24 September 2008), Douglas's tome in Valenciennes, Les Monuments de l'Empire — Erected by the Officers, non–coms and privates XCI British Regiment to the memory of Colonel Sir William Douglas K.C.B. Their Commanding Officer as a feeble testimony of regard and their regret for one of the bravest and the best of men Died XXV Aug MDCCCXVIII aged XL.