Francis Rawdon-Hastings Marguess of Hastings Soldier, Peer of the Realm, Governor-General of India

Considering the importance of Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings and 2nd Earl of Moira, it is surprising that no full-length biography has been written about him. The only significant studies of his career have been analysis of his role as governor-general of India in the early nineteenth century. Paul David Nelson's study rectifies this situation by providing a well-crafted scholarly analysis of the life of Lord Hastings. He covers in depth all aspects of the man's multifaceted career as a professional soldier, peer in the House of Lords, and governor-general of India. He also provides a character study of this intelligent, affable man, pointing out his strengths as a father, husband, and friend. In the process, Nelson does not lose sight of Hastings's personal ineptitude. He shows how the marquess ran up debts of nearly 1,000,000 by the time of his death and left his family almost penniless. The most important role that Hastings played was as a soldier in the British army. He was a young officer during the American war, fighting at Bunker Hill in 1775 as a lieutenant in the grenadier company of the 5th Regiment. Distinguishing himself, he was promoted captain and appointed aide-de-camp to General Henry Clinton. He went on to lead the Volunteers of Ireland, serve as adjutant general under Clinton, and to command an independent army in South Carolina in 1780-81. As governor-general of India from 1813 to 1823, he successfully led campaigns against the Nepalese, Pindaris, and Marathas. Hastings's second most important role was as an administrator in India. Although supported by able civilian subordinates, he sometimes made poor choices in his own appointments and became mired in the cloudy dealings of the Palmer Company. He was not guilty of any chicanery, but his reputation was marred by his defense of some questionable company activities. Hastings's third role was as a politician in the House of Lords. Here he was least successful, partly because he was not ruthless enough to rise to the heights of political power in Britain. But his major impediment was his friendship with the Prince of Wales, King George III's profligate son ad the future King George IV. Both he and his colleagues recognized that his major role int he Lords was as mouthpiece for the Prince. Although this recognition was in some ways an asset, Hastings nevertheless was marked as being not his own man. Hence, while he served in one ministerial cabinet, and on one occasion almost became prime minister, he never lived up to his potential as a politician. Nelson's biography of Hastings is based upon extensive research in the Hastings Collection of the Huntington Library, San Marino, California; the Oriental and India Office Collections of the British Library; the Public Record Office; and a large array of other archives. It also utilizes many published primary and secondary sources. This work is the standard biography of Francis Rawdon-Hastings.