Hill, ROWLAND, VISCOUNT HILL

Hill, ROWLAND, VISCOUNT HILL, was son of Sir John Hill of Hawkeston and nephew of the preceding, and was born at Prees Hall, in Shropshire, August 11, 1772. Entering the army at fifteen, he became captain at twenty, commanded the 90th regiment in Sir Ralph Abercromby's Egyptian expedition, and was gazetted brigadier-general in 1803. He accompanied Sir Arthur Wellesley to Spain in 1808, and was his right arm throughout the whole Peninsular war. His conduct and courage earned him a C.B. in 1811, and three years later he was made Baron Hill of Almaz for his capture of the forts of Alnarez. At Waterloo he led the brigade which swept the Old Guard from the field, and he remained with the army of occupation as second in command until it evacuated the French territory. He succeeded Wellington as commander-in-chief of the army in 1828, but resigned in 1842, when he was made Viscount Hill. He died unmarried at Hardwicke Grange, Shropshire, December 10, 1842, and was succeeded in his titles and estates by his nephew Sir Rowland Hill, Bart. See his Life by the Rev. Edwin Sidney (1845).