Explore the Background of this artwork, Statue of Charles James Napier, Trafalgar Square.
General Sir Charles James Napier GCB (not to be confused with his cousin and close contemporary, the Admiral Charles John Napier) was born in 1782 and died in 1853, 19 days after his 71st birthday.  He was an officer in the British Army, and served in the Peninsular War, the War of 1812, and later in India.  In 1843 he captured Sindh and was made its first Governor, holding the post until his first return to England in October 1847.  In 1849 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief in India and held the post until February 1851, when he returned again to England and retired.Napier was chief of troops in the north of England between 1839 and 1841, during the early Chartist protests against low wages and poor conditions in Britain's factories. Although Napier's diaries show some sympathy with the Chartists' demands, he was responsible for using his troops to suppress the protests.
Charles John Napier War of 1812 Sindh Chartist British Army Charles James Napier Peninsular War