SMITH, HENRY GEORGE WAKELYN
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Sir Henry George Wakelyn (“Harry”) Smith (June, 1787-October 12, 1860), a British general and governor of the Cape Colony, was born in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, England, son of a surgeon. Smith distinguished himself in the Peninsula War (fought by the British against Napoleon). He also fought at Buenos Aires, Washington, D.C. and Waterloo, and subsequently received several appointments in the New World.
PHOTO CAPTION: Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith. SOURCE: EA Library.
In 1828 he was ordered to South Africa where in 1824 he had command of the Eastern frontier, and in 1835 took charge of the newly-named Province of Queen Adelaide, soon to be known as the Ciskei, where he stayed until the territory’s retrocession by Lord Glenelg.
In 1840 Smith, now knighted for his military services, was appointed adjutant-general to the British forces in India. He made a name for himself on numerous occasions, his most outstanding achievement being at the victory over the Sikhs in the battle of Aliwal (1846), which gained him a baronetcy.
In 1847 he returned to South Africa as governor of the Cape Colony and High Commissioner. He stood for a determined policy of British expansion, defeated the Boers in the Orange River Sovereignty at Boomplats (1848), supported the grant of responsible government for the Cape, and took a vigorous part in fighting along the Eastern frontier during the Eighth Frontier War (begun 1850).
During this period the Ciskei was annexed as “British Kaffraria.” He was recalled in 1852, before the British victory at the end of the war, apparently because of government consternation at his penchant for wholesale annexation. He subsequently commanded the northern military district in England, reaching the rank of lieutenant general. He died in London, survived by his Spanish-born wife.
His popularity among the European colonists in the Cape was reflected in the numerous towns named in his honor: Aliwal North, Harrismith, Ladysmith, and others.
L.H. GANN
