Major-General Sir Henry Lindsay Bethune, 1st Baronet, de jure 9th Earl of Lindsay (born Lindsay; 12 April 1787 – 19 February 1851) was a Scottish military officer. He was a member of a British diplomatic and military mission led by John Malcolm to the Persian Empire in 1810.[1] [2] [3]
Born Henry Lindsay in Fife, he was a male-line descendant of Patrick Lindsay, 4th Lord Lindsay of the Byres, ancestor of the Earls of Crawford and Earls of Lindsay. He was the son of Maj. Martin Eccles Lindsay and Margaret Augusta Tovey. In 1779, his paternal grandfather adopted the surname and arms of Bethune as part of the entail of inheriting the estate of Kilconquhar from his maternal uncle. Henry Lindsay also added Bethune for the same reason after his father's death in 1813.[3] [1]
Bethune was initially an artillery lieutenant in the Madras Horse Artillery.[4] With a height of 6 feet 8 inches, he is said to have impressed the Persians who compared him to the mythical hero Rustam.[5] His qualities of justice and his knowledge of the world also seem to have greatly impressed the Persians.[5]
Bethune was first put in charge of modernizing the corps of horse artillery.[6] In 1816, Bethune received the Persian decoration of the Order of the Lion and the Sun, specially reserved for meritous foreigners. After several years, he finally resigned from the Indian service, and retired to Kilconquhar.[4] According to the 19th century British diplomat Sir Justin Sheil:
In 1834, he was recalled for service in Persia in anticipation of troubles in the dynastic succession on the Persian throne. Following the death of Fath Ali Shah that same year, he commanded the advanced Divisions of the Persian Army between Tabriz and Teheran.[4] He supported the succession of the Shah's grandson Mohammad Shah Qajar, and eliminated a serious rebellion led by the Prince of Shiraz.[4] [7]
Henry Lindsay returned to Britain, where on 7 March 1836 he was created a 1st Baronet Bethune of Kilconquhar but was again sent to Persia in 1836 to become a major general in the Persian Army, until his retirement in 1839 following a disagreement with the Persian government over the Persian attacks on Herat in Afghanistan (a territory claimed by Great Britain).[4] [5]
In the wake of the Herat affair, Great Britain would remove its military and diplomatic missions from Persia, and occupy Kharg island and attack Bushehr.[8] Mohammad Shah Qajar would in turn resume diplomatic relations with France, and send a diplomatic mission to Louis-Philippe under Mirza Hossein Khan to obtain military help. In response, a group of French officers was sent to Persia with the returning ambassador.[8]
In 1822, Bethune married Coutts Trotter, daughter of John Trotter of Dyrham Park, Hertfordshire, who was named after her uncle Sir Coutts Trotter, 1st Baronet. They had three sons and five daughters.[3] [1]
Sir Henry died in Tabriz, Persia in 1851.[9] Relations between the two countries would soon worsen further with the Anglo-Persian War. He was buried at the Armenian Church of Saints Thaddeus and Bartholomew in Tehran.[10]
Their eldest son, Sir John Trotter Bethune, 2nd Baronet, claimed the title of Earl of Lindsay, which had fallen into abeyance after the death of the sixth earl. Having successfully proven his claim, John was recognised as the 10th Earl of Lindsay by the House of Lords on 5 April 1878, making his father the de jure 9th Earl of Lindsay. The baronetcy became extinct after the 10th Earl died without heirs.[1]