Roberts, Frederick Sleigh, 1832-1914 (1st Earl Roberts of Kandahar and Field Marshal)
Dates
- Existence: 1832 - 1914
Biography
Frederick Sleigh Roberts (1832-1914), 1st Earl Roberts of Kandahar and Field Marshal, was born on 30 September 1832 at Cawnpore, India. Frederick went to Eton College in 1845 but stayed only a year before going to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, in January 1847, and was commissioned into the Bengal artillery on 12 December 1851. In 1856 he was appointed to the quartermaster-general (India)'s department as acting deputy assistant quartermaster-general at Peshawar. At Khudaganj in January 1858 he won the Victoria Cross for saving the life of a loyal sepoy and capturing a rebel standard. He was promoted to captain and given a brevet majority in 1860, and in 1868 he went as acting quartermaster-general to the Bengal brigade. On 1 January 1875 he was promoted to substantive colonel and became quartermaster-general India, with the temporary rank of major-general. On 29 September 1900 Roberts had been offered the post of commander-in-chief of the British army in succession to Wolseley, and on 29 November he handed over command in South Africa to Lord Kitchener. He died of pneumonia at 52 rue Carnot, St Omer, on 14 November 1914.
Found in 2 Collections and/or Records:
Correspondence from Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, 19 July 1906-17 Apr. 1912
Letters to Owen Seaman, many accepting or declining invitations to a dinner of the Royal Literary Fund in 1912.
Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts: Letter to J. Peile, 1893
Artificial collection of single item or small collection accessions. Mainly correspondence but includes other papers.