The family moved to India in 1844, where his father commanded the 14th Light Dragoons but was killed in action at the Battle of Ramnagar on 22 November 1848.

[1] In 1860, Havelock entered the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and on 14 January 1862 was gazetted an ensign in the 32nd (Cornwall) Light Infantry.

The border between Sierra Leone and Liberia had been unsettled for years, the disputed area – lying between the Sewa and the Mano rivers – known as the Gallinas territory.

Despite the support of the United States, Liberia realised that resisting the British claim was futile, and signed the treaty in London on 22 November 1885.

[1] In 1886, Havelock became Governor of Natal, where he dealt with the annexation of Zululand in 1887, and an unsuccessful rebellion led by Dinuzulu kaCetshwayo in 1888.

[1] In March 1890, Havelock was appointed Governor of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka),[3] where his actions included extending the country's railways to Kurunegala and Bandarawela, and abolishing the 'paddy tax', a levy on rice cultivation.

[1] Havelock left Madras in 1901, and was offered the governorships of the Straits Settlements in Malaya and Victoria in Australia, which he declined due to ill health caused by many stressful years in tropical climates.