Sir William Payne-Gallwey, 1st Baronet


General Sir William Payne-Gallwey, 1st Baronet was a British soldier and Governor of the Leeward Islands.
He was the youngest son of Ralph Payne by his second spouse Margaret née Gallwey, of St. Kitts, West Indies. He served as a Lieutenant-general in India, and was at one point second-in-command of the British Army in Spain. Thereafter he was appointed Governor of the Leeward Islands. General Payne was the half-brother of Ralph Payne, 1st Baron Lavington, who had also served as Governor of the Leeward Islands.

Career

After joining the 1st Regiment of Dragoons as a lieutenant in 1777, he was promoted to captain in 1782 and saw action in Flanders. In 1796 he transferred to the 3rd Dragoon Guards, becoming a colonel in 1798. Thereafter, he spent three years on the army staff in Ireland before exchanging to the 10th Light Dragoons as a major-general. In 1807 he was appointed colonel in the 23rd Light Dragoons and fought in the Peninsular War, receiving the Army Gold Medal for his service at the Battle of Talavera. Promoted to lieutenant-general in 1811, he became Colonel of the 19th Light Dragoons in 1814 followed by periods in the 12th Royal Lancers and 3rd The King's Own Hussars. In 1825 he became a full general.
Payne was created a baronet in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 8 December 1812. On 7 March 1814 he assumed by Royal Sign Manual the additional surname of Gallwey, in compliance with the will of his maternal uncle Tobias Wall Gallwey of St. Christopher Island.
On 19 November 1804, William Payne married Lady Harriet Quinn, only daughter of Valentine Quin, 1st Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl. They had two sons and a daughter, Caroline. Their second son, Philip, had seven sons, two daughters, and many descendants. Sir William was succeeded by his eldest son and heir, Sir William Payne-Gallwey, 2nd Baronet.