Henry Atwell Lake facts for kids

Sir Henry Atwell Lake (born December 25, 1808 – died August 17, 1881) was an important British Army officer. He was a colonel in the Royal Engineers, a special group of soldiers who are also engineers. He was known for his work in India and for his bravery during the Crimean War.

Early Life and Education

Henry Atwell Lake was born in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England, in 1808. He was the third son of Sir James Samuel William Lake, who was a baronet (a special title of honor). His older brother, James, later inherited this title.

Henry went to school at Harrow, a famous school in England. After that, he studied at the Addiscombe Military Seminary, which was a military college. This college trained officers for the East India Company, a powerful British trading company that also governed parts of India.

Career in India

In 1826, when he was 18, Henry Lake became a second lieutenant in the Madras engineers. This meant he was an engineer officer working for the British in India. He spent many years there, until 1854.

During his time in India, he worked on important "public works." This means he helped build things that benefited everyone. He mostly worked on irrigation projects, which are systems to bring water to farms. This was very important for growing food in India. Over the years, he was promoted several times, becoming a captain and then a major.

Hero of Kars

In 1854, while he was visiting England, Henry Lake volunteered to help in the Crimean War. This was a big war fought between Russia and an alliance of countries including Britain, France, and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey).

Lake was sent to a city called Kars in what is now Turkey. He became the chief engineer there and was second-in-command to Colonel William Fenwick Williams. His main job was to make the city's defenses stronger. He worked hard to improve the walls and forts around Kars.

In September 1855, Russian forces attacked Kars. Thanks to the strong defenses Lake had helped build, the defenders were able to fight off the attack. However, Kars was later surrounded, and the defenders eventually had to surrender. Lake and other British officers were taken as prisoners of war to Russia. They stayed there until the war ended in 1856.

Awards and Recognition

For his brave actions at Kars, Henry Lake received many honors. The British parliament thanked him for his service. He was also transferred to the main British Army and promoted to colonel.

He received the Order of the Bath, a very important award. He was also made an aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria, which meant he was a personal assistant to the Queen. He got a special medal for Kars and was honored by the Turkish army with the rank of major-general. The French also gave him an award called the Legion of Honour. When he returned to England, people in Ramsgate, where his family lived, gave him a special sword and a silver tray to show their appreciation.

Later Life and Family

After the war, Henry Lake continued to serve his country. In 1857, he became a principal aide-de-camp to the Earl of Eglinton, who was the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (the Queen's representative in Ireland).

Later, he became a commissioner for the Dublin Metropolitan Police in Ireland, and then the chief commissioner. This meant he was in charge of the police force in Dublin. In 1875, he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath for his excellent work in these civilian roles. He retired in 1877 and passed away in Brighton in 1881.

Henry Lake was married twice. He had five sons. Many of his sons also became officers in the military, following in their father's footsteps. One of his sons, Atwell Peregrine Macleod, became an admiral in the Royal Navy. His grandson, Atwell Henry Lake, later became the 9th Lake baronet.