Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 41.djvu/241

 afterwards at the grammar school at Cowbridge, Nott received an indifferent elementary education. In 1794 his father removed to the town of Carmarthen, became the proprietor of the Ivy Bush inn, and entered on the business of a mail contractor. He also retained a large farm, in the working of which he was assisted by his sons.

In 1798 Nott was enrolled in a volunteer corps formed in Carmarthen, and this led him to aspire to a commission in the army. A Bengal cadetship was obtained for him, and he embarked in 1800 for Calcutta in the East Indiaman Kent. After much hardship, consequent upon the capture of the Kent by a French privateer and the transference of the passengers to a small Arab vessel, Nott finally reached Calcutta; and on 28 Aug. 1800 he was appointed an ensign, and posted to the Bengal European regiment at Barhampúr. He was soon afterwards transferred to the 20th native infantry, and on 21 Feb. 1801 he was promoted lieutenant.

In 1804 Nott was selected to command a detachment forming part of an expedition under Captain Hayes of the Bombay marine against the tribes on the west coast of Sumatra. He distinguished himself in the capture of Moko. For a supposed breach of discipline, Captain Robertson, who commanded the Lord Castlereagh, in which Nott sailed, placed him under arrest and in strict confinement for four months. Robertson was a merchant captain who had been raised to the command of a 50-gun ship, and was quite unacquainted with military duty. On reaching Calcutta Nott demanded a court-martial, which was granted, and he was honourably acquitted; while Captain Robertson, by the orders of the Marquis Wellesley, was censured and admonished.

On 5 Oct. 1805 Nott married, and for some years led the quiet life of a soldier in cantonments. On 1 March 1811 he was appointed superintendent of native pensions and paymaster of family pensions at Barrackpúr. He was promoted captain-lieutenant on 15 June 1814, and captain on 16 Dec. following.

In December 1822 Nott visited England with his wife and daughters, his sons having already gone home for their education. He stayed during his furlough at Job's Well, Carmarthen. He was promoted major in 1823, and regimental lieutenant-colonel on 2 Oct. 1824, upon the augmentation of the army. On 25 Nov. 1825 he returned to Calcutta and took command of his regiment, the 20th native infantry, at Barrackpúr. Nott was every inch a soldier, and, although he had been so long employed in a merely semi-military berth, he brought his regiment into so complete a state of efficiency and discipline that demand was made for his services to effect similar results in other regiments. He was first transferred to the command of the 43rd native infantry, and afterwards to that of the 16th grenadiers, from which he was again transferred to the 71st native infantry at Mhow in Malwa. He then exchanged into the 38th native infantry at Benares, and on 1 Dec. 1829 he was promoted to be colonel in the army.

Upon the outbreak of the first Afghan war in 1838, Nott was transferred to the command of the 42nd native infantry, with a view to being placed in command of a brigade on active service. On 28 June 1838 he was promoted major-general, and in September was appointed a brigadier-general of the second class, to command the second brigade first division of the army of the Indus. The following month his wife died suddenly at Delhi. Nott was overwhelmed with grief. He sent his family to England, and proceeded to the rendezvous at Karnál in a state of the greatest depression.

After the arrival of the troops at Ferozpúr Nott was, on 4 Dec., appointed temporarily to command the division of Sir Willoughby Cotton, who had succeeded Sir Henry Fane in the command of the Bengal troops. The Bengal column moved on 12 Dec. along the Satlaj towards the Indus, and thence by the Bolan Pass to Quetta. On 5 April 1839 Sir John Keane [see, first ] and the Bombay column joined the Bengal force at Quetta, and Keane took command of the army. Nott resumed his brigade command, and, much to his regret and in spite of his protestations, he was left with his brigade at Quetta in order to allow queen's officers, although junior to himself as generals, to go on to Kabul. He was ordered to exercise general superintendence and military control within the province of Shál. The force at Quetta was gradually strengthened, and by the beginning of July 1839 Nott had with him four regiments of infantry, a few troops of cavalry and horse artillery, and a company of European artillery, with a complement of engineers and sappers and miners.

On 15 Oct. Nott was ordered to command the troops at Quetta and Kandahar. Under instructions from Keane, he advanced with half his brigade to Kandahar, where he arrived on 13 Nov. In April 1840, under orders from Cotton, who had now succeeded Keane in chief command, Nott sent an expedition, under Captain W. Anderson, against the Ghilzais, who had assembled in consider-