Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 40.djvu/86

 able to take part in the entry to Pekin on 24 Oct. Napier and his staff embarked for Hong Kong on 19 Nov. for India. Napier received for his services in the expedition the medal and two clasps. He was thanked by parliament, and promoted major-general on 15 Feb. 1861 for distinguished service in the field.

In January 1861 Napier was appointed military member of the council of the governor-general of India. For four years he did a great deal of valuable work. With the aid of a committee he arranged the details of the amalgamation of the army of the East India Company with that of the queen. On the sudden death of Lord Elgin, Napier for a short time acted as governor-general until the arrival of Sir William Thomas Denison [q. v.] from Madras. In January 1865 Napier was appointed commander-in-chief of the Bombay army. In March 1867 he was promoted lieutenant-general.

Meanwhile the English government was arriving at the conclusion that a military expedition to Abyssinia would be needful to compel Theodore, king of that country, to release certain Englishmen who were confined in Abyssinian prisons. In July 1867 Napier was asked by telegram how soon a corps could be equipped and provisioned to sail from Bombay to Abyssinia in case an expedition were decided upon. Long before Napier had carefully considered the question, and amassed information on the subject, which enabled him to reply promptly and satisfactorily. It was, however, some months before his advice was acted upon. It was due to the personal influence of the Duke of Cambridge, warmly supported by Sir Stafford Northcote (afterwards Lord Iddesleigh), that Napier was appointed to command the expedition. He was allowed to choose his own troops, and he naturally selected those with whom he had had most to do; for, as he put it in an official minute, in an expedition in which hardship, fatigue, and privation of no ordinary kind may be expected, it is important that the troops should know each other and their commander.

The equipment of the troops occupied Napier till December, and on 2 Jan. 1868 the expedition to Abyssinia landed at Zoulah in Annesley Bay. Napier worked indefatigably on the hot sea coast until all was ready for the march, and he instilled activity and zeal into everyone. Two piers, nine hundred feet long, were constructed, and a railway laid, involving eight bridges, to the camp inland some twelve miles. Reservoirs were constructed and steamers kept condensing water to fill them at the rate of two hundred tons daily. The march to Magdala commenced on 25 Jan.; 420 miles had to be traversed and an elevation of 7,400 feet crossed. On 10 April the plateau of Magdala was reached, and the troops of Theodore were defeated. On the 13th Magdala was stormed, and Theodore found dead in his stronghold. The English captives were set at liberty, Magdala razed, and the campaign was over. On 18 June, in perfect order, the last man of the expedition had left Africa. In this wonderful campaign Napier displayed all the qualities of a great commander. He organised his base, provided for his communications, and then, launching his army over four hundred miles into an unknown and hostile country, defeated his enemy, attained the object of his mission, and returned.

Napier went to England, where honours and festivities awaited him. A new government had just come into power, and both parties competed to do him honour. He received the war medal. Parliament voted him its thanks and a pension. The queen created him a peer on 17 July 1868, with the title of Baron Napier of Magdala, and made him a G.C.S.I. and G.C.B. The freedom of the city of London was conferred upon him and a sword of honour presented to him. The city of Edinburgh also made him a citizen. He was appointed hon. colonel of the 3rd London rifle corps. Subsequently, on 26 June 1878, he was created D.C.L. of Oxford University.

In December 1869 Napier was elected a fellow of the Royal Society. In January 1870 he was appointed commander-in-chief in India, and in May he was made, in addition, fifth ordinary member of the council of the governor-general. During the six years he was commander-in-chief he endeavoured to raise the moral tone and to improve the physique of the soldier, both European and native. He bestowed much personal attention on the new regulations issued in 1873 for the Bengal army. He encouraged rifle practice, and gave annually three prizes to be shot for. He advocated the provision of reasonable pleasures for all ranks, and instituted a weekly holiday on Thursday, known in some parts of India as St. Napier's Day. On 1 April 1874 Napier was promoted general and appointed a colonel-commandant of the corps of royal engineers.

Early in 1876 Napier was nominated to the government of Gibraltar, and on 10 April he finally left India, to the regret of all classes. He was present in 1876 at the German military manœuvres, when he was the guest of the crown prince, and was entertained by the Emperor William. In