John Scott Lillie was born in 1790 at Drumdoe Castle in Co Roscommon. Little Lillie grew up to be a great man.
He joined the 6th Warwickshire Regiment of Foot in 1807 as an Ensign, a rank from which I never advanced. In fact I went from Ensign to Trooper, a demotion and a digression. John Lillie fought with Wellington in Portugal, Spain and ultimately France (Battle of Toulouse, 1814). He was wounded three times, once being left on the battlefield for dead for forty-eight hours – a tough old bird and as you see, much decorated , a veritable Christmas tree.
- The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, CB (Great Britain)
- Army Gold Cross, (Great Britain), for Pyrenees, three clasps, Nivelle, Orthez, Toulouse
- Military General Service, (Great Britain) seven clasps, for Battle of Roliça, Battle of Vimeiro, Bussaco, Battle of Badajoz (1812), Battle of Salamanca, Battle of Vitoria and Battle of Nive
- Order of the Tower and Sword, Knight’s breast Badge (Portugal)
- Commander’s Cross for Five Actions (Portugal): Pyrenees, Nivelle, Nive, Orthez and Toulouse
- Campaign Cross for 4 Years, (Portugal)
- Decoration of the Lily, (France)
In those days there was an agreeable dispensation for severely wounded soldiers. They continued to serve in absentia on half pay. John Lillie remained in the army until 1855, when he retired as a Lieutenant-Colonel. So he was on half pay for about thirty-five years and then started drawing his army pension; jammy.
How did he fill up his days? He did not go back to Ireland, although he was a friend and supporter of Daniel O’Connell. He bought The Hermitage, a villa set in fourteen acres in North End, Fulham and lived there with his wife until 1837. He became an energetic entrepreneur, inventor and activist for good causes. One of his business projects was to build the Kensington Canal, opened in 1828, that ran from the Thames to Warwick Road; some two miles. It lost money, was bought by a railway company, filled in and now is the overground line that runs between Kensington Olympia and Imperial Wharf.
“During his lifetime, Sir John Scott Lillie took out upwards of 30 patents for all manner of improvements ranging from mechanisms for kneading dough, tilling fields, the chemical composition of stucco to propulsion engines on land and in the water. In 1836, he designed a power unit intended for propelling carriages and barges for which he was granted a patent. His military background influenced his design of the ‘Lillie Rifle battery’ an early form of machine gun. Aware of the challenges for transport caused by the transformation of open fields into industrialised areas, Lillie applied himself to the creation of durable street paving. He designed a system using layers of wood and asphalt to make it weather-proof and was granted a patent. In 1863, he was a founding member of the ‘Institute of Inventors’ and took the chair at the first annual general meeting.” (Wikipedia)
A remarkable man not forgotten in these parts. The Lillie Road and the Sir John Lillie Primary School remember him, even if the Lillie Arms, which he built, has changed its name to The Lillie Langtry. Sir John must be spinning in his grave in Brompton Cemetery.