Arthur Wellesley Torrens

He was the second son of Major-general Sir Henry Torrens and his wife, Sarah, daughter of Robert Patton, governor of St. Helena, born on 18 August 1809; he was a godson of the Duke of Wellington.

[1] Torrens passed through the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, and obtained a commission as ensign in the Grenadier Guards, becoming lieutenant on 14 April 1825.

He continued to serve as adjutant of his battalion until 1838, when he was appointed brigade-major at Quebec on the staff of Major-general Sir James Macdonell, commanding a brigade in Canada.

The depot was moved from Carlisle to Chichester, where, with two new companies, it was organised for foreign service under Torrens, who embarked with it at Portsmouth for Canada on 13 May, arriving at Montreal on 30 June.

The sanitary measures adopted by Torrens for the preservation of the health of the troops were considered exemplary, and correspondence on the subject was published in November 1847 by order of the Duke of Wellington, as commander-in-chief.

On 1 January 1853 he was appointed an assistant quartermaster-general at the Horse Guards, and became a member of a commission researching the military of France, Austria, and Prussia.

He received the Crimea Medal and clasp, the thanks of Parliament, was promoted to be a major-general for distinguished service in the field on 12 December 1854, and was made a knight commander of the Bath, military division.