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Charles, 1st Marquis Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis (Clare 1755), 1738–1796, was a military officer and statesman.
He entered the British Army just before his eighteenth birthday and fought in Germany during the Seven Years War. On the death of his father in 1762, he succeeded to the Earldom and left the army to serve in Parliament, where he sided with the American colonists. However, when the American Revolution began, he decided to serve king and country. In 1779, after a series of victories in the Carolinas, he led the advance into Virginia which resulted in defeat at Yorktown. However, his reputation as a warrior and able administrator emerged unscathed.
He was appointed Governor-General of India (1786-1793) where he introduced major reforms and personally led the campaigns that won British victory in the Third Mysore War. He was elevated to Marquess Cornwallis in 1792.
Returning from India, he was appointed to the cabinet and subsequently served for three years as Viceroy of Ireland and Commander-in-Chief (1798-1801), subduing the rebellion led by Wolfe Tone and crushing the French invasion force. He worked to achieve the 1801 Act of Union which united the Irish and British parliaments. He was reappointed Governor-General of India in 1805 but died of shortly after arriving. His tomb overlooking the River Ganges is maintained by the Indian Government.