William Warre

Lieutenant-General Sir William Warre, (15 April 1784 – 26 July 1853) was an English officer of the British Army. He saw service in the Peninsular War and was colonel of the 94th Foot.

Early life and education

Warre was born in Porto, Portugal, the eldest son of wine merchant James Warre, a partner in Warre & Co., and his wife, Eleanor Greg, daughter of Thomas Greg of Belfast. The Warres had been settled in Porto for generations as exporters of the region's famed Port wine. The company is still operating as Warre's, and Sir William's portrait hangs in the city's famed Factory House.

He was educated at Harrow School, but apparently left early to return to Portugal and join the family business. The boy was placed in the office of his uncle, also named William Warre, to learn the trade. However, a mischievous prank, in which he used sealing wax to affix the ponytail of the Portuguese member of the firm to his desk, ended his career as a merchant. He was sent to Bonn to study with a private tutor.

His nephew Edmond Warre, who later published a collection of his letters, Letters from the Peninsula, 1808–1812, shared a story in the preface about his uncle's adventures in Bonn. He and another student decided to join the Austrians in their war against France and were promptly taken prisoner. They were brought before a French general who realised they were mere boys and English to boot. The French General told them they were lucky they were not brought before "The Iron Marshal" Louis-Nicolas Davout, "for he would have hanged you without mercy on the nearest tree. Now go back to your books and your tutor and don't meddle with affairs which do not concern you." Edmond places the story shortly before 1803 but identifies the French general as General Custine, who was briefly the commander of the Army of the North (28 May – 16 July 1793) before he was executed by guillotine, when William was not yet 10 years old.

However, he fell ill with rheumatic fever during the retreat to the lines of Torres Vedras in September 1810, forcing him to return to England to recuperate. He rejoined Beresford in May 1811 after the Battle of Albuera, and took part in the Second Siege of Badajoz in May and June.

He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 1838 Coronation Honours of Queen Victoria, and was knighted the following year.

Personal life On 19 November 1812, he married Selina Anna Maling, the youngest daughter of Christopher Thompson Maling. They had two daughters and four sons:

William James Warre (October 1813 – 11 January 1815), died in childhood Capt. Thomas Maling Warre (20 October 1814 – 15 September 1851) of the East India Company Lieut. John Frederick Warre (27 November 1815 – 3 July 1847) of the Royal Navy, died while serving in China Selina Eleanor Warre (January – 3 September 1817), died in childhood Sir Henry James Warre (1819–1898) Julia Sophia Warre (1820–1873), died unmarried

His wife's elder sister Sophia married Henry Phipps, 1st Earl of Mulgrave, and was the mother of Constantine Phipps, 1st Marquess of Normanby.

He died in York in 1853 and was buried at Bishopthorpe.