[1][2] He joined the 1st Regiment of Foot in 1735, rising to the rank of captain in 1739.
He became a lieutenant-colonel in the 3rd Regiment of Foot in 1743 and fought in 1745 at the Battle of Fontenoy, where he was wounded, during the War of the Austrian Succession.
[1] He became a member of parliament (MP) for Orford in 1747 and for Newcastle-under-Lyme in 1754.
[1] Promoted to major-general in 1757, he took part in the raid on St Malo in June 1758 and the Battle of Minden in August 1759 during the Seven Years' War.
[1] On 7 May 1751, he had married Lady Elizabeth Leveson-Gower, a younger daughter of the 1st Earl Gower and they had four children:[1]