Description | Copy Letters Relating to military career, 1802-1807; Financial letters and Accounts from Angus Macdonald, army agent, 1802-1821; Accounts with other army agents, 1816-1821; Letters and Minutes relating to Sir James McGrigor, Executor for Lieutenant Colonel James Chisholm, 1821-1839; Bills from Peter Harris, tailor, for clothing for Lieutenant Colonel James Chisholm, 1818-1821; General letters and bills accumulated by Lieutenant Colonel James Chisholm during his lifetime, 1814-1821; Papers relating to the estate of Lieutenant Colonel James Chisholm, 1821-1839; Letters from Herries Farquhar and Company, and from Messrs Majoribanks, Cassel and Company to the Executors, 1822-1838; Accounts with Angus Macdonald Esquire, 1809-1817 |
Administrative History | These papers relate to the military career of Lieutenant Colonel James Chisholm of Strathglass (d.1821), as well as to the process of probate and the execution of his will following his death in 1821. James Chisholm served in the 58th Regiment of Foot from about June 1779 to August 1796, during which he was present at the Siege of Gibraltar (1780-82) and the captures of Martinique, Guadeloupe and St Lucia (1794-95). He was promoted to Ensign in the 88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers) on 2 September 1796, and was promoted further within that regiment, to Lieutenant on the 10 January 1798 and to Captain on the 27 May 1801. During this period he served in Jersey (1796) and the Far East. Chisholm sailed for India at the end of 1798, and following orders to travel to Ceylon in 1800 on an expedition to Egypt, he returned to Bombay in April 1801. The period which followed was one in which Chisholm saw much fighting, and he was wounded on more than one occasion between the Battle of Kieury (17 March 1802) and the siege of Bhurtpoore (February 1805). Following his arrival back in England in August 1806, Chisholm sailed immediately for Buenos Aires in order to attack guns there (2 July 1807) and to participate in the storming of the town (5 July 1807). He once again returned to London in November 1807. Chisholm was promoted to the rank of Major, this time with the Royal African Corps, on 16 June 1808. By this time, however, he had been wounded nine times, and as a result was granted six months leave between June and December 1808. He joined the Corps at Guernsey in January 1809, and in January 1810 sailed for Gorée Island off the coast of Dakar, Senegal, where he took up his post as Commanding Officer. (Senegal was in British hands between 1809 and 1817). He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel during his time on Gorée Island, on the 4 June 1814. Chisholm was invalided home to England in 1816, and after this time was involved extensively in helping his poor relations in Scotland, many of whom entered military careers. He was also involved with the African Institution in supporting the anti-slavery legislation. The will of Lieutenant Colonel Chisholm, dated 25-26 October 1821 at Fasnakyle, survives in the National Archives, Kew (PROB 11/1655, ff.310-311), and names Sir James McGrigor as one of his executors. He died on 19 November 1821, having concluded a marriage contract with Mary Chisholm on 15 November 1821. The papers include copy letters regarding the military career of Lieutenant Colonel Chisholm (HCA/D209/1), as well other letters and accounts accumulated during his lifetime. The archive also includes a large quantity of papers and letters referring to the estate of Lieutenant Colonel Chisholm. |