Lt Col. Jacob TONSON [9332]

  General Notes:

Royal Military Calendar or Army Service and Commission Book volume 5.
1347 Lt Col Jacob Tonson.
This officer purchased an Ensigncy in the 3rd Battalion 60th Regiment 9 February 1791, and joined the corps in Antigua in July following. In June, 1792, two companies being ordered to Tortola, to prevent an insurrection of the negroes, he accompanied them, and remained there until September 1792, and received (with the late Maj Lachenwtz, who commanded the detachment) the thanks of the Council and Assembly of the island. In March 1793 he was promoted Lieut, the latter end of the same year, the Reg being drafted into the 4th Battalion he accompanied it to Tobago, and was selected by Major Martin commanding to give over the drafted men. On his arriving at Barbados, in January 1794, the fleet and army destined for the reduction of Martinico, etc, under the command of Earls St Vincent and Gray had arrived. He made a tender of his services to the latter, and was accordingly appointed to do duty with the 73 Regiment in which corps he served at the reduction of Martinico. In May, 1794, he returned to England with his Regiment; shortly after they were ordered to Guernsey for the purpose of being completed, where they remained until the spring of 1795, when it was ordered to proceed to Demerara to take possession of that colony in the name of the Prince of Orange; but the Governor notified to Lt Col Ritchie commanding that having a few days before received an official dispatch, that peace was concluded between Holland and the French Republic, he could not surrender the colony unless forced to do so. Not being authorised to commence hostilities, the regiment sailed for Barbados and disembarked. Three days after they re-embarked, and sailed for St Vincent's; on arriving there the enemy was in possession of the whole island, with the exception of the posts of Dorsetshire and Berkshire Hills. Three days after the arrival of the regiment, in a general assault upon the principal work of the enemy, the Vigie, this officer was shot through the right thigh at the head of the Grenadiers of the 3rd Battalion 60th Regiment. From the unfavourable state of his wound he was ordered to England. Ten days after he took his departure, the ship he was on board of was taken by a French corvette; the captain, mate, and crew were transferred to the French vessel, and a prize master, and nineteen of the French crew sent on board the ship for the purpose of taking her to New York in America. On arriving off the coast, when the French men were below bending the cable, this officer gave directions to the invalids to seize and break open the arms chest and thus recovered his liberty and a considerable quantity of British property without the least accident on either side. In December 1796, when Hoche attempted the invasion of Ireland, this officer volunteered his services to Sir E Coote, who detached him to Bantry with three companies of militia (having got a company in September, the preceding year in the 60th Regiment) where he remained until the French fleet left the coast. In June, 1798, with a number of other officers of the line, he offered his services in a militia regiment during the rebellion in Ireland, and was appointed to the Meath, the day preceding the battle of Vinegar Hill, which corps being in General Johnson's division, bore a conspicuous part on the occasion. In August 1799, he was appointed to a company in the 5th Regiment and went with it to North Holland, where it was actively employed in the operations during that campaign. The year following he accompanied it to Gibraltar, and remained there until it was reduced at the peace of Amiens, when he was placed upon half pay. In consequence of his health being impaired by the diversity of climates in which he had served and his wound troublesome, he was under the necessity of retiring for a short time from the more active scenes of service for recovery. In 1808 he was appointed to the 84th Regiment and got the Brevet of major with which core he served the campaign in Walcheren in 1809. In July 1813 he sailed with the 84th from Cork to Spain, when it was brigaded with the 76th and 85th Regiment's under Major General Lord Aylmer. Marshall Soult past the Bidassoa 31 August the day St Sebastien was stormed, when the brigade was ordered to march to support the Spaniards, who, animated by the presence of the Duke of Wellington, repulsed Marshall Soults attack on the position without the assistance of the British brigade, and force him to repass the river. On the 9th, 10th and 11th, the 84th (who removed a short time before the Major General Robinson's brigade) were engaged with the enemy at the passage of the Nive; and Major General Robinson being wounded, Lieutenant-Colonel Lloyd killed, and Lieutenant-Colonel Piper wounded, Major Tonson was the senior officer of the brigade at the close of the action on 11 December; in consequence of which he got the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He has received a medal for the battle of the Nive, and the freedom of the metropolis of his native country Ireland.

A further report contains the following:
. . . . .upon his promotion being notified he received the following flattering letter of congratulation from Sir Philip Robinson:
St Jean de Luz. Feb 7 1814.
My dear Col, I have but this moment heard of your promotion, and I beg leave to offer you my sincere congratulations upon it; it was well earned, and has been most properly bestowed.
Signed P Robinson


Death: Dec Qtr 1849 Kensington 3 216 Tonson Jacob

Burial: Tonson Jacob, 27 Dec 1849, aged 77, Brighton St Nicholas/Hanover Chapel.

Will of Jacob Tonson, Major General in Her Majesty's Service of Southend, Essex 22 Jan 1850. PROB 11/2108 on this file

Death Duty Register 1850: Tonson Jacob (Major Gen) of . . . . . Place Brompton?; executor Marian Vanderzee & others; PCC Reg1 Fol 39

Rosie Flower notes Tonson with and without his wife, is mentioned in the Court Circular in the 1830's, she has found no record of issue.

Jacob married Anne Acklom VANDERZEE [9338] [MRIN: 3227], daughter of James VANDERZEE [1258] and Anne ACKLOM [6703], on 11 Oct 1819 in Prittlewell ESS. (Anne Acklom VANDERZEE [9338] was born about 1789, died on 19 Apr 1842 in 46 Russell Sq Brighton and was buried on 22 Apr 1842 in St Nicholas Brighton.)