page_title: Peter Lumsden
section_title: Second Opium War and Bhutan War
hierarchical_section_title: Peter Lumsden / Life and military career / Second Opium War and Bhutan War
caption_attribution_description: Caricature of Major-General Sir Peter Stark Lumsden GCB. CSI. (1829-1918). Caption read "Afghan frontier".
context_page_description: General Sir Peter Stark Lumsden GCB CSI DL was a British military officer who served in India. Born in Belhelvie, Aberdeenshire, he was the fourth son of Colonel Thomas Lumsden CB. He studied at Addiscombe Military Seminary, before officially joining military service as an ensign in the 60th Bengal Native Infantry in 1847. From 1852 to 1857 he served on the North-West Frontier, where, among other activities, he participated in the suppression of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the capture of Tantya Tope in 1859.
  Following his time on the North-West Frontier, Lumsden served as quartermaster general in 1860 during the Second Opium War, where he participated in the capture of both Tang-ku and the Taku Forts. He was promoted to brevet-lieutenant-colonel, before giving his final act of military service in the Bhutan War of 1865. He was promoted again to Adjutant-General of the Indian Army in 1874, and also acted as aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria for eleven years.
  In 1883, Lumsden was awarded a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath and was appointed as a commissioner on the Council of India for 10 years.
context_section_description: Lumsden's next period of active service was as quartermaster general on the staff of General Napier, who commanded the 2nd division of the expeditionary force to China during the Second Opium War, in 1860. Lumsden took part in the operations of the Anglo-French forces, including the action of Sin-ho, the capture of Tang-ku and the capture of the Taku Forts that led up to the advance on and occupation of Beijing. He was again mentioned in despatches and promoted to brevet-Major and then brevet-lieutenant-colonel.
  The final spell of active service in Lumsden's military career was in the Bhutan War of 1865: his later employment was on the staff and in political posts. He was deputy quartermaster general from 1864 to 1868, and quartermaster general of the Indian Army from 1868 to 1873. He was Acting Resident in Hyderabad, 1873, and Adjutant-General, India from 1874 to 1879, when he was appointed Chief of the Staff in India. He also served for eleven years as an aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria.
caption: Caricature of Lumsden by Leslie Ward, from Vanity Fair, 8 August 1885
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