Lieutenant-General Sir F S Roberts, Bart, VC, GCB, CIE

Mezzotint engraved by Richard Josey (1840-1906), 1883; after artist Walter William Ouless (RA) (1843-1933), 1882; published by Henry Graves and Co, 1 July 1883.

Frederick Sleigh Roberts (1832-1914) was commissioned into the Bengal Artillery in 1851. His subsequent career was spent almost entirely as a staff officer on the Indian subcontinent but he still saw a good deal of active service. Roberts won the Victoria Cross in the Indian Mutiny (1857-1859), but first came to widespread public notice during the Second Afghan War (1878-1880) when he commanded the Kurram Field Force, leading it to victory at Peiwar Kotal in December 1878, and later the Kabul Field Force which occupied the Afghan capital on 8 October 1879 following the murder of the British envoy and his escort. Roberts also led his troops on the legendary march from Kabul to Kandahar. Despite the difficult terrain and the high temperatures he covered 280 miles (400 km) in 20 days and hardly lost a man. On 1 September 1880 he defeated Ayub Khan outside Kandahar and relieved the besieged garrison.

In 1885 he succeeded to the post of Commander-in-Chief, India, a position he held until 1893. After the early reverses of the Boer War (1899-1902), Roberts took over command of the British forces in South Africa. From 18 December 1899, together with his Chief of Staff Major-General Horatio Herbert, Lord Kitchener, he revitalised the British military effort. Aged 68, he finally handed over command to the latter on 29 November 1900. Roberts then served as the last Commander-in-Chief of the British Army for three years before the post was abolished in 1904.