Lord Roberts Dead

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 147, 16 November 1914, Page 4

Lord Roberts Dead

4ii»-~ j£l DIED IN HARNESS. FATAL ILLNESS CONTRACTS]) ON ACTIVE SBRVICB,, ' \~ Received 15, 4.18 p.m. London, November 14. Obituary: Lord 'Huberts, in Fr&ace, the result of a chill.

Wellington, Last Night. The Prime Minister received the following from the High Commissioner:— Jim

London, November lord Kitchener received this ovenbjg * telegram from General French as follows:—"Deeply regret to tell you that Lord Roberts died at 8 o'clock this eVening."

Lord Roberts was on a visit to F&nes to greet the Indian troops. Ho contrasted a chill on Thursday, and sucoumbeo to an attack of pneumonia.

ONE OF BRITAIN'S GREATEST SOLDIERS.

A BRILLIANT CAREER, . Field Mar-slul Earl Roberts, who $« born at Cawnpur, in India, in 1832, had a most distinguished military cateer which began in 1857 with the laSanv Mutiny, when he fought at the siege of Delhi, the relief of Lucknow, and the fight at Cawnpur. At Khudagani '.he won the much-coveted distinction of the Victoria Cross. After serving in the expedition against the tribes on the northwest frontier in 1883, he served in £h« Abyssinian campaign in 1808, and was selected by Sir R. Napier as the beirer of his final despatches. In the Lusbai expedition of 1871-72 he was senior Staff officer with the Cashar column. He cpmj manded the Kuram field force from 'the | commencement of tho Afghan war in IJ&78, and after the murder of Sir Louis Eavagnari, the British representative at the Afghan Court, Sir P. Roberts marehed rapidly on Cabul, which ho oeeupied, after some heavy fighting, in Of tobcr, 1870. While there he had news' of the defeat of General Burrowa at iMaiwand "by an Afghan force, and at once organised a-force of 10,000, with which he set off for Kandahar on August f>. On the 31st he entered that town, having traversed 300 miles over moontainous and most difficult country, and completely routed tho enemy. Por 'this work he was created a baronet, and appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Madras army. Five years later he was made Commander-in-Chief in India, and. in 18S8 I the following year) he commanded the army in Burma. In 1802 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Roberts, and three years later obtained the jftnk ( of Field-Marshal. After the defeat of i General Buller at Colenso, in December, , 1899, in the Boer war, Lord Roberts was , appointed Commander-in-Chief in South' | Africa, where he defeated the Boers and' , brought the war to a close. On his re- : turn to England he was appointed Qom-mander-in-Chicf of the British Army, ja I succession to Viscount Wolseley, created Fnrl of Kandahar, Pretoria, and Waterford, and voted by Parliament a grant of £IOO,OOO. In 1904, when he retired from the office of Commander-in-Chief, his long and eminent services were specially | recognised in an Army Order issued by .King Edward. Thereafter Earl Roberts devoted himself to advocating universal military training, and on the outbreak ■of the present war he was appointed I Commander-in-Chief of the Overseas Forces. In that capacity he was visiting France, when his end came, not by | wounds, but by an attack of pneumonia, , winch, at his very advanced age, he was .unable to withstand. The deceased soljUiit was the author of several books.