William Mackesy

Lieutenant General William Henry Mackesy (1 May 1837 – 6 March 1914) was an Irish-born officer of the British, Bengal, and Indian armies who saw active duty in the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny of 1857.

Early life Mackesy was born on 1 May 1837, a son of John Mackesy MD of Waterford, Ireland. He was educated privately and then for two years at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, as a gentleman cadet, graduating in 1854.

His uncle Thomas Mackesy (1790–1869), a surgeon who served with the British Army, was Mayor of Waterford and President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Career From Sandhurst, in August 1854 Mackesy was commissioned as an Ensign into the 79th Cameron Highlanders, without purchase. in 1866 he was a Captain and transferred from the 79th Foot to the Bengal Staff Corps. Mackesy later served the Public Works and Military Works Departments as an engineer. in August 1874 (marking twenty years of service) to substantive Major, and in October 1877 to Lieutenant-Colonel. In March 1879, on his return to India from a home leave, Mackesy transferred to the Military Department as a temporary Colonel and in 1882 was back in the Bengal Staff Corps as a full Colonel. In July 1883, he took command of the 24th Punjab Infantry. In September 1883, he also took command of the Mooltan Brigade to cover for the leave of Brigadier-General William Gordon. In June 1890, he was granted a distinguished service pension of £100 a year.

After promotion to temporary Lieutenant General in 1890, Mackesy was made a substantive Major General on 10 December 1892. In 1897, he retired as a Lieutenant General onto the Unemployed Supernumerary List of the Indian Army. A daughter was born at Lahore on 13 January 1872. They also had three sons.

At the time of the 1911 United Kingdom census, Mackesy and his wife were living at 65, Albert Hall Mansions, Knightsbridge, with two servants, a cook and a parlourmaid. They stated their places of birth as Waterford and Dublin respectively, and Mrs Mackesy was aged sixty.

Mackesy died at Albert Hall Mansions on 6 March 1914, leaving an estate valued at £1,836, His son Piers Mackesy (1924–2014) was a military historian.