Although the lives of most enlisted men who served in the King’s Own were not well documented, we have more information on the officers. Most came from wealthy families, and their lives before, during and after their military service often spanned the British Empire and the world. These brief biographies are compiled from various sources within the museum’s collection, including letters published in the book ‘My Dear Annie: The Letters of Lieutenant Herbert Borrett: The King’s Own Royal Regiment. Written to His Wife, Annie, During the Abyssinian Campaign of 1868’, which is available for sale in the City Museum shop.

Charles Edward Honghton Billing (1839-1875)

Born in Dublin on 10 April 1839 and baptized in the same year at St Stephen’s Church, Charles Edward was the son of Theobald Billing, a solicitor, and Diana Ball. He spent his childhood in Dublin, residing at 41 Upper Mount Street, growing up alongside one brother and two sisters. When he reached the age of 18 Charles embarked on military service, enrolling as an Ensign in the 4th King’s Own Regiment on 15 March 1857 and serving, the year after, as a Lieutenant in the fight against the rebellion of the Indian Mutiny campaign (1857-1858). After six years of military experience, on 8 August 1864, Charles gained the rank of Captain and, in the same position, fought in Abyssinia.

The 1870s were marked by personal tragedies for Charles: his father died on 24 March 1873 at the age of 85, and his brother Theobald on 3 October of the same year. Charles himself left the service in 1874 and died the year after, aged only 36.

Thomas Burridge

Thomas Burridge entered the British Army as an Ensign on 5 November 1854. Within months, on 9 March 1855, he was promoted to Lieutenant from the rank of Quartermaster. During this early phase of his career, Burridge saw active service in the eastern campaign of 1854–1855, including operations in the Crimea and the Siege of Sevastopol. For his service, he was awarded the Crimea Medal with three clasps, as well as the Turkish Medal. He later rose to the rank of Captain on 7 May 1866.

Thomas took part in the British Expedition to Abyssinia. Shortly after the expedition’s victory, and only days after the death of Empress Tiruwork Wube, Burridge fell ill and spent several days in hospital. Upon returning to camp, he tragically took his own life. Described in Lieutenant Borrett’s letters as a man of notably gentle disposition, “good-tempered and excessively good-natured, never speaking unkindly of anyone behind his back”, who “proved himself – especially during the Abyssinian War”, his suicide reflected the ultimate and tragic effect of the psychological trauma that soldiers often experience in war. Thomas was buried the following evening at five o’clock, without military display or funeral honours. In a detail noted with sadness by his comrades, he was carried to his grave by dooly bearers rather than by members of his own company. A Court of Inquest returned a verdict of temporary insanity; however, some officers believed that alcohol may have been an underlying factor in his death.

John Thomas Carruthers (1845–1896)

John Thomas Carruthers was born on 17 July 1845 in Taganrog, Rostov, Russia, and was baptised at the British Chaplaincy in St Petersburg. Son of John Patrick Carruthers and Caroline Jane Frederika Lusitana Wiederhold, he belonged to a British expatriate family. John grew up in Russia alongside several siblings including Amelia Laura (born on 20 September 1846) and Ann Sophia Carruthers (born on 11 November 1848). A brother, William Henry Carruthers, was born in 1851, but the child died the following year in Grunau, Aleksandrovsk, Ekaterinoslav. Another brother, William Ernest Carruthers, was born in 1854 in Taganrog.

As a 19-year-old man, John began his military service as an Ensign on 2 February 1864. By 1869 he was fighting in the Indian Army. While serving in Bombay he was promoted to Lieutenant, then rose to the rank of Captain. He fought in Abyssinia. In 1878 John experienced the loss of his father, who died at the age of 76 in Taganrog. On 9 April 1879, John married Isabel Smith in Nuseerabad, Bombay, India. They had one child, John Harvey De Wiederhold, born on 2 October 1882.

By 1881, John was recorded living in St Peter Port, Guernsey. He died suddenly in Cheltenham at the age of only 51, on 21 December 1896, after a fall from a bicycle caused by syncope.

Christopher Middlemass Davidson (1843–1922)

Born in Haddington, Scotland, on 6 May 1843, Christopher Davidson was the son of Henry Marshall Davidson and Mary Middlemass. He joined the King’s Own Regiment as an Ensign in 1862 and was promoted to Lieutenant in 1866. Davidson served in the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68). During the campaign he experienced the harsh conditions faced by many soldiers, falling ill and being treated at the camp at Senafe before returning to duty in March 1868. His service in Abyssinia contributed to his later promotion to Captain and transfer to the 104th Bengal Fusiliers in 1875, continuing a long military career in the British Empire.

Christopher Rawes Durrant (1840–1920)

Born in Ipswich, Suffolk, on 23 September 1840, Christopher Rawes Durrant was the eldest son of Christopher Mercer Durrant and Susannah Sophia Rawes. He entered the British Army at just 17, receiving a commission as Ensign in 1857 and promotion to Lieutenant in 1859. Durrant served in the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68). Like many young officers, he was part of the force that advanced inland from the Red Sea through demanding terrain toward the fortress of Magdala, where the campaign reached its decisive conclusion. He left the army in 1868 as Senior Subaltern and later became Rector of Freston, serving his parish for many years. He died in London in 1920, aged 80.

Edward Harrison (1845–1875)

Born in Dublin on 19 May 1845, Edward Harrison was the son of James Harrison and Ellen Margaret Baker. After his mother’s death in 1857, he emigrated with his family from Liverpool to Hobart, Tasmania, where he spent his formative years in colonial Australia. Harrison later pursued a military career in the British Army. Promoted to Captain in the 76^th Regiment of Foot on 5 March 1867, he soon took part in the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68). Following his service, Harrison settled in Victoria, Australia. He died prematurely in Sale in 1875, aged only 30, after a nighttime road accident involving his horse and a carriage.

John Beaufin Irving (1844–1925)

John Beaufin Irving was born on 14 February 1844 in Cheltenham, where he was baptised on 20 March. Son of John Beaufin Irving and Diana Charlotte Williamson, he grew up alongside several siblings, Henrietta, Paulus Aemilius, Diana Charlotte and Mary Lucy. At the age of six he experienced the loss of his mother, who died in December 1850. His father’s subsequent remarriage brought him half-siblings, Susannah Frances and Thomas Edmund.

John Beaufin began his military career at age 19, joining the King's Own Royal Regiment as an Ensign on 8 January 1864. He served in Abyssinia, and according to The Scotsman of 3 August 1935, he was reputed to have been the hero of a daring exploit in which he saved a manuscript of the Gospel from the bombardment of Magdala. Like many soldiers he also fell ill during the campaign. John was promoted to Lieutenant on 27 February 1869. He transferred to the Army Service Corps and became Honorary Colonel of the 3rd Battalion, Manchester Regiment, around 1880.

In 1865, at age 21, John married Sarah Agnes Corke, who gave birth to eight children over eleven years, including Ellen Beatrice, Agnes Diana, Rose Lilian, Ada Constance, May Lucy, John Beaufin Jr., Evelyn Isabella and Sir Robert Beaufin Irving. John experienced the deaths of several close family members, including his daughters Evelyn Isabella and May Lucy, his half-brother Thomas Edmund, and his full siblings Diana Charlotte, Mary Lucy, Henrietta and Paulus Aemilius. He inherited Bonshaw Tower in 1895, establishing his residence in Dumfriesshire, Scotland and remaining actively involved in the local culture and heritage, attending events like the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition for a Clan Irving gathering in San Francisco. In 1906 he represented Wallace in the Edinburgh Pageant as the national hero of Scotland, being 6 feet 6 inches in height. He died on 8 April 1925 at the age of 81 at Bonshaw Tower and was buried in Annan on 11 April 1925.

George Kittoe (1828–1876)

George Kittoe was born in 1828 in Downton, England, and was baptised there on 7 November 1828. As the son of William Hugh Edward Hamilton Kittoe and Martha Knight, George belonged to a professional family, his father being a medical doctor. His early years were spent in southern England.

In 1846, as an 18-year-old, George experienced the loss of his father, who died in Marylebone. Nine years later, he joined the army as an Ensign on 7 September 1855. He served and fought in Abyssinia, commanding a company which served as artillery escort. As many soldiers did, he became sick during the march. These details are recorded in the letters of Kittoe’s fellow officer, Lieutenant Herbert Borrett, who also describes Kittoe in scathing terms as “not a gentleman” and “not a good specimen of the King’s Own”, showing a difficult relationship between the two soldiers.*

On 19 January 1860, at the age of 32, George married Augusta Hart Shawe in Havant, and they had two daughters: Emeline Isabel Hart (born around 1865 in India) and Marian Ada Ed Shaw (born about 1866 in Kent). George experienced further family loss in 1867 when his mother died in Marylebone. By 1871, he was living with his family in Ealing, a growing suburban area of Middlesex. George died there on 14 January 1876 at the age of 48.

* “Your description of Mrs. Kittoes is most amusing and made me laugh heartily, is she not fearfully vulgar? By no means a good specimen of the King’s Own. It is true that we were on a short allowance of water at Aden, and that I have caught 23 rats in one night in a cage under my head, and once killed one on the dinner table; Mrs Kittoes’s other stories about Aden are preposterous, but I must say the heat there is far, far greater than in India. The story of the ship on fire was to use a mild expression, highly coloured. Do not repeat this, but I utterly detest Cpt. K.tt., he is not a gentleman and drops his “hs” about to a fearful extent. I wrote a parody on Campbell’s “Lochiel’s Warning” about Cpt. K. and his wife at Aden which nearly got me into a serious scrape, and I do not think Cpt. K. has ever forgotten it; this must not of course reach Mrs. Kittoes’s ears….” - from Borrett, “My Dear Annie: The Letters of Lieutenant Herbert Borrett: The King’s Own Royal Regiment. Written to His Wife, Annie, During the Abyssinian Campaign of 1868.”, p. 54.

Joseph Vavasour Lane (1836–1873)

Joseph Vavasour Lane was born on 31 August 1836 in Dublin. Son of Richard Crowther Lane and Jane, he grew up alongside the younger brother, Peter William Lane, born on 11 January 1839 in Harold’s Cross, Dublin. Joseph spent his early years in Dublin, experiencing the loss of his mother in November 1864 at Clonmel, Tipperary, when he was 28 years old.

Joseph became Assistant Surgeon on 18 February 1859 and served as a doctor in Abyssinia. During the campaign, he was described in the letters of Lieutenant Borrett as “kind and attentive” in tending Borrett during an illness; “doing all his power to make me comfortable”.

Joseph died at the young age of 36, on 4 April 1873 in Kensington. His probate was recorded on 8 October 1873 at the Principal Registry.

Edward John Lugard (1845–1911)

Born in Limerick on 2 January 1845, Edward Williamson Lugard was the son of Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Williamson Lugard and Margaret Anna MacHenry. His father died on active service in China in 1857, an event that may have influenced Edward’s decision to pursue a military career.

He joined the King’s Own Royal Regiment as an Ensign in 1863 and, as a Lieutenant, served in the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68). For his service he received the Abyssinia Medal.

Lugard later rose through the ranks, serving in Egypt and India and eventually became a Brigadier-General in the British Army. He died in London in 1911.

John Macleod

John Macleod was commissioned as an Ensign on 6 February 1863 and promoted to Lieutenant in 1867. He served in the British Expedition to Abyssinia. Like many other soldiers experiencing the hard atmospheric and supply conditions, Macleod became ill during the inland march and was admitted to hospital, together with about forty other men. He left the service in 1870, one year after the expedition.

Robert Simpson

Robert Simpson was commissioned as an Ensign on 15 November 1861 and, after promotion to Lieutenant on 5 February 1866, participated in the Expedition to Abyssinia. The African campaign gave him the experience to rise in rank, achieving the role of Captain in 1874. In 1878 Robert was transferred to the Pay Department. After a few years in this administrative position he returned to active regimental duty, serving once more with his unit between 1881 and 1884. During these years, he was granted the honorary rank of Major in December 1883. Simpson also took part in the Mahdist War of 1881-99, including service in the Suakin Expedition (1884-85), gaining the campaign medal with the clasp “Suakin”, as well as the Khedive’s Star.

Simpson retired from the army in 1887 with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. He spent his later years in London, where he died on 2 March 1908 at the age of 66.

George Augustus Sweny (1837–1918)

George Augustus Sweny was a career officer whose service in the Abyssinian Campaign defined his military reputation. Commissioned as an Ensign in 1858 and promoted to Lieutenant in 1862, he served as Aide-de-Camp to General Wilby during the expedition. At the Battle of Arogie, Sweny acted as Baggage-Master, organizing and securing vital supplies under threat as enemy forces advanced through the ravine. Promoted to unattached Captain in 1867, he later served with the 7^th Fusiliers. His subsequent life spanned England and Canada.

Frederick Cooper Turner (1843–1921)

Frederick Cooper Turner was born on 21 June 1843 in Exeter, Devon, as the son of John Fisher Lester Turner and Emily Arthur. Baptised on 2 August 1843 at St Mary Major, he was raised between Exeter and the vicarage at Winkleigh, alongside several brothers and sisters, including Mary Katherine, Margaret Isabella and Montagu Cornish Fisher. His brother Arthur died in India in 1864. Before joining the Regiment, he served as a Midshipman in the Indian Navy from 1858 to 1863. He was present at the assault on Fort Beyt and served with the Naval Brigade in the Okamundel Field Force at the capture of Dwarka in 1859. He later took part in the China Campaign, including the capture of the Taku Forts in 1860.

After these early years in the navy, Frederick joined the Regiment as an Ensign, serving in the Abyssinia campaign. His experience helped him rise to Lieutenant in 1870 and Captain in 1878. In June 1883 he became a Major, and later Lieutenant-Colonel. As his career developed, so did his personal life: by 1871 he was living in Aldershot and later for periods in Surrey and Devon, including residences in Kingston-upon-Thames and Surbiton. At the age of 38, Frederick married Emma Storey on 17 August 1881 in Surbiton.

Frederick suffered several personal losses during his lifetime, including the death of his father in 1871 and his wife, who died on 6 June 1910 in Galgate, Lancashire, after 28 years of marriage. The following year he settled in Ellel, Lancashire. On 5 December 1912, at the age of 69, Frederick married Grace Samuel in Hove. Even in old age, he remained militarily active, being recorded as late as 1917 during the First World War, at the age of 74. He died on 25 June 1921 at Westcroft, Kingston Hill, in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, just four days after his 78th birthday, and was buried locally in Kingston.

Augustus Charles Twentyman (1836–1913)

Born in London on 27 April 1836, Augustus Charles Twentyman was the eldest son of William Holme Twentyman and Lelian Twentyman. Commissioned as an Ensign in the British Army in 1855, he rose to Lieutenant in 1858 and Captain by 1863. Twentyman served during the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68), as a key figure for the logistic success. Indeed, rather than marching with the fighting columns, Twentyman was stationed at the Red Sea port of Zoulla as part of the Land Transport Train. This unit organised the movement of thousands of mules and camels that carried food, ammunition and equipment from the coast across difficult mountain routes to the advancing army. Indeed, the expedition’s success depended heavily on this vast logistical network. The static role was frustrating for Twentyman, who regretted missing the combat alongside his regiment. His experience highlights the importance and sacrifice of the logistical systems that made the campaign possible.

Beaufort Henry Vidal (1842–1908)

Born in Chatham, Kent, on 16 May 1842, Beaufort Henry Vidal was the son of Vice Admiral Alexander Thomas Emeric Vidal of the Royal Navy and Sarah Antoinette Veitch. He grew up within a strong naval and military tradition, though his early life was marked by loss: his mother died when he was just 1 year old, and in 1863 he lost both his father and his brother. In the same year, Vidal began his military career, receiving a commission as Ensign on 23 May 1863 and becoming a Lieutenant in the Second West India Regiment the following year. At the age of 26 he took part in the Abyssinian Campaign (1867–68). After leaving the British Army in 1870, Vidal settled in Canada. He later continued his military career with the Royal Canadian Regiment, serving from 1883 to 1899 and eventually retiring with the rank of Brigadier General. He died in Ottawa, Ontario, on 2 March 1908, aged 65.

William Wilby

William Wilby began his military career at a remarkably young age, entering the British Army as an Ensign on 27 May 1836, at just 16 years old. In the same year, on 14 November, he embarked for Australia aboard the Francis Charlotte. He then rose through the ranks, being promoted to Lieutenant in 1837, Captain in 1847, Major in 1855 and Lieutenant-Colonel in 1859. He served in the Crimean War, where he earned an appointment as a Companion of the Order of the Bath, a notable recognition of distinguished service. During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Wilby played a key operational role, commanding the right wing of his regiment in the regions of Gujrat and Sindh.

After these years of valuable experience, William participated in the British Expedition to Abyssinia (1867-68). On 13 December, he was appointed Brigadier within the Abyssinian field force. Following the capture of Magdala, he was entrusted with command of the fortress, serving as its commandant until it was ultimately destroyed. His experience and service had been recognized in 1864 as he was granted the brevet rank of Colonel. Wilby retired from service in 1873 but the long commitment to the army continued to be acknowledged: in 1892 he was appointed Colonel of his regiment and promoted to honorary Lieutenant-General. William died in London on 15 December 1893 after an attack of influenza. At the time of his death, he was receiving a Distinguished Service pension of £100 per annum.

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