Hill, Roland

Second son of the 3rd baronet Hill.

Educated in a private school in Chester . Service began July 21, 1790 in the 38th Staffordshire Infantry Regiment in Ireland . At the same time in 1790, he took a course in a military school in Strasbourg . January 24, 1791 promoted to lieutenant , March 23, 1794 - to captain . Then he served in Scotland , the garrison of Edinburgh .

Turning to the diplomatic service, some time in the rank of captain was at the British Embassy in Germany . After the outbreak of hostilities between Britain and France, he returned to the army in the army and was sent to Toulon occupied by the British. Consisted as adjutant of the commander of the troops in Toulon, General Mülgrav. May 13, 1794 promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 90th Infantry Regiment. In 1795 he went on an expedition to San Domingo . In 1796-98 served in the garrison of the island, and in 1798 - on Minorca . In May 1799, recalled to England. January 1, 1800 promoted to colonel and sent with a diplomatic mission to Switzerland and Italy . Upon returning back to his regiment, who was in Gibraltar , participated in hostilities against Cadiz , then served in Malta .

In 1801 he was transferred to the troops of General R. Abercrombie in Egypt . In the battle of Alexandria (March 13, 1801), he commanded the vanguard of the brigade of General Kradok and was seriously wounded. Upon returning from Egypt in March 1803, he was promoted to brigadier general, and on October 30, 1805, to major general . He commanded a brigade during an expedition to Hannover in December 1805 (part of his troops later took part in hostilities in Germany as part of the Allied army). In 1807 he was transferred to Ireland, where he led the formation of the light brigade and the preparation of the Irish police.

After the outbreak of hostilities in the British army in the Iberian Peninsula in 1808, he received a brigade in the army of General A. Wellesley in Portugal. He was famous for his actions under Rolene and Vimeira. During the expedition, General D. Moore commanded a brigade in the division of General D. Hope. His brigade was formed from battalions of the 1st Royal, 5th, 14th and 32nd Infantry Regiments. He covered the evacuation of British troops after the defeat at A Coruña. After the battle, he was recalled to England, but when Wellington returned to the Pyrenees, he called Hill in 1809 and put him at the head of the brigade operating under Oporto.

During the battle of Talavera (July 28, 1809) after the wounding of General E. Nedzheta took command of the 2nd Infantry Division. In this battle, showed outstanding courage and he was seriously wounded in the head. In January 1810 he was appointed commander of a separate corps, created on the basis of his own division. He was entrusted with the defense of Portugal at the Hyadian-Tagus front. He acted together with Wellington, played a decisive role in the battle of Busaco on September 27, 1810. In December 1810, he became ill with dysentery and was evacuated to Lisbon and then to England, and his troops were transferred under the command of W. Beresford.

After recovery on May 23, 1811, he returned to the command of the division. While Wellington was fighting in the Ciudad Rodrigo area, Hill led the 2nd and 4th divisions and the cavalry brigade in the area of ​​Alemteyo. October 29, 1811, together with General Morillo, defeated the detachment of General J. Girard , who assembled a small detachment in Merida. He captured General Brun and Prince Aremberg, as well as 1,300 prisoners. Then he acted against the French in the direction of Tagus and Almarat. January 1, 1812 promoted to lieutenant general .

In 1812 he was transferred with his corps to Badajoz, where he acted on communications in cooperation with the units of General T. Graham . After the victory at Badajoz with 6 thousand people. sent to Almaratz. May 19, 1812 conducted a brilliant operation, destroyed the strategically important and well-protected bridge in Almarat. In 1812 he was elected a member of the House of Commons from Shrewsbury . On June 20, 1813, having occupied the heights of Gwebla, he cut off the French army from Vittoria, but on July 25 was thrown back to Trurit. Then participated in the siege of Pamplona. He played a crucial role in the battle of Nivelles on November 10, 1813, where his troops broke through the line of defense of Marshal Soult .

He participated in the battles of Niva, Orthez and Toulouse, where after the departure of Wellington to Paris, took command of the British troops. For the successful end of the campaign received a lifetime pension of 2 thousand pounds. In 1814, Wellington recommended Hill as governor of Gibraltar, but instead Hill occupied the command post in Scotland. After the Napoleonic wars, January 2, 1815, Lord Roland Hill became a knight of the great cross of the Order of the Bath ^[1] . After receiving news of the return of Napoleon to France, he left for Belgium. He arrived in Brussels on April 1, 1815, and until the arrival of Wellington ( April 4 ) he temporarily commanded the Anglo-German army.

After the start of the campaign, he headed the 2nd Corps (2nd and 4th British divisions, cavalry brigade of the Royal German Legion, the German-Indian contingent, the German-Belgian division), located near Ata. He participated in the Battle of Cartr Bra . In the Battle of Waterloo , when Napoleon put the Guard into action, Hill, at the head of his corps, rushed into battle and thus decided the outcome of the battle. Hill himself was severely contused. Together with the army he entered Paris, where in July 1815 he took the post of commander of the defense forces. On August 6, 1815, he was awarded the Russian Order of St. George, 2nd Class.

After the expulsion of Napoleon until November 1818, he remained in France as the 2nd commander of the occupying forces (the 1st was Wellington). In 1821 he served in the Wellington office. After Wellington formed the cabinet (February 16, 1828), he was appointed commander of the army with the title of “commander in chief” ( en: Commander-in-Chief of the Forces ) and held this post for more than 14 years. From 1830 honorary colonel of the Royal Horse Guards. In September 1842 he retired.

• Order of the Bath , large cross (02.01.1815)
• Order of the Bath , Knight (02.22.1812)
• Royal Guelph Order , Grand Cross
• Military Order of Maria Theresa , Commander (Austria, 08.21.1815) ^[2]
• Military Order of Wilhelm , Commander (Netherlands, 08.27.1815)
• Order of the Tower and the Sword , a large cross (Portugal, 04.05.1812)
• Order of St. George , 2nd degree (Russia, August ⁶ , 1815) ^[2]

• Gill, military leaders // Encyclopedic dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron : in 86 tons (82 tons and 4 extra). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Gill, Sir Rauland, Baron Almaratz and Haukeston // Military Encyclopedia : [in 18 t.] / Ed. VF Novitsky [et al.]. - SPb. ; [ M. ]: Type. t-islands I. D. Sytin , 1911-1915.