Lord Cardigan

Biography

James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, was born on October 16, 1797, into one of England's wealthiest aristocratic families. He purchased his way to command through the purchase system that allowed wealthy men to buy military commissions without regard to ability — a system the Crimean War would help discredit. By 1854 he had effectively bought the command of the Light Brigade, the elite cavalry force of the British Army, despite a record marked by duels, court martials, controversy, and the near-mutiny of his own regiment over his tyrannical management. Cardigan was personally brave to the point of recklessness — a genuine cavalry officer who lived for the pageantry and physical courage of his arm of service. He maintained his headquarters on his private yacht in Balaclava harbour, living in considerable luxury while his troopers endured appalling conditions in camp. He was cold, arrogant, and deeply disliked by most of his officers, but he could ride and he could fight. On October 25, 1854, Cardigan led the Light Brigade down the North Valley at Balaclava in what became the most famous cavalry charge in British history. He rode at the head of 673 men toward a Russian artillery position that should have been impregnable, through fire from guns on both flanks and directly ahead. He reached the Russian guns, turned, and rode back — one of the few to return uninjured. He apparently did not notice that his men were being destroyed around him, focused entirely on the physical act of riding forward as ordered. Cardigan subsequently became a hero in Britain, celebrated in Tennyson's 'Charge of the Light Brigade' as part of a noble sacrifice. He gave lectures, attended society events, and traded on his fame for the rest of his life. The knitted woolen jacket he wore during the Crimean winter became fashionable, and cardigans bear his name today. He died in 1868 after falling from his horse — perhaps a fitting end — and is buried in Northamptonshire. The gap between his heroic public image and his actual qualities as a commander remained vast.

Key Battles