Lord Frederick Roberts VC

Summary

Name:	Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts
Born:	30 Sep 1832
Place:	Cawnpore, India
Died:	14 Nov 1914
Profession:	Army Military Commander
Educated:	Eton, Sandhurst, and Addiscombe Military Seminary
Famous for:	Commonly known as “Bobs,” was one of the most prominent British soldiers of the Victorian era. Born in Cawnpore (now Kanpur), the son of an East India Company general, he was educated in Britain and entered the British East India Company army before transferring to the British Army. Roberts first gained distinction during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, where his bravery earned him the Victoria Cross. Over the following decades he built a reputation as an energetic and capable commander during Britain’s imperial campaigns in Asia. Roberts achieved particular fame during the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878–1880). His most celebrated achievement was the dramatic march from Kabul to Kandahar in 1880, when he led around 10,000 troops over 300 miles in just over three weeks to relieve the besieged city and defeat Afghan forces at the Battle of Kandahar. This success made him a national hero in Britain and led to his ennoblement as Baron Roberts of Kandahar. He later served as Commander-in-Chief in India and became one of the most influential figures in shaping the late-Victorian British Army. During the Second Boer War (1899–1902), Roberts was appointed Commander-in-Chief of British forces in South Africa after early setbacks. Working with his chief of staff, Herbert Kitchener, he captured the Boer capitals of Bloemfontein and Pretoria, helping turn the tide of the war. Elevated to Field Marshal and created Earl Roberts in 1901, he later became an influential public advocate for military preparedness before World War I. Roberts died in 1914 while visiting Indian troops in France, and his death was widely mourned across the British Empire.
Windlesora:	“Lord Roberts’ Windsor Veterans: Private John Statham” by Carole Dixon-Smith in Windlesora 34 “Lord Roberts and the Windsor Veterans” in Windlesora 33 (2016) Victoria Cross Recipient

Images

Left: Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts by John Singer Sargent, oil on canvas, 1906 NPG 3927© NPG Centre. Centre: Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts by Unknown photographer, albumen print, 1897 or before NPG P1700(31c) © NPG. Right: Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts by ‘GWR’ Watercolour, published in Vanity Fair 10 April 1880 NPG 1996 © NPG

Curator's Notes

A statue of Earl Roberts by Harry Bates is in Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow. Another copy can be found in Horse Guards Parade, London.

“Frederick Roberts: Bobs” on the National Army Museum website.

Curator's References

Commemorative plaques on the RBWM website.

General Lord Roberts by A. H. Poole Studio Photographer, POOLEWP 0311, National Library of Ireland.

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