John Waldegrave, 6th Earl Waldegrave

Who was John Waldegrave, 6th Earl Waldegrave?

Lieutenant-Colonel John James Waldegrave, 6th Earl Waldegrave was a British peer and soldier.

Waldegrave was the second son of the 4th Earl Waldegrave and was educated at Eton. Upon his father's death in 1789, Waldegrave's elder brother George inherited the former's titles, but Waldegrave soon inherited them, when his brother drowned in the Thames five years later.

On leaving Eton in 1801, Lord Waldegrave purchased a commission in the 55th Foot. He later transferred to the 3rd Foot Guards and in 1804 transferred to the 39th Foot as a Lieutenant without purchase. He later transferred to the 36th Foot and exchanged into the 7th Light Dragoons in 1805. He saw action during the Peninsular War. In 1808 he transferred to the 8th Garrison Battalion as a Major and a few months later exchanged into the 72nd Foot. He exchanged into the 15th Light Dragoons in 1809 and into the 12th Light Dragoons in 1812. Eight months later he purchased the Lieutenant-Colonelcy of the 54th Foot, which he commanded at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

On his return home, he married his longtime lover, Anne King on 30 October 1815; they had had several children before their marriage and later had a further four.