Houston initially commanded a brigade in the Peninsular War before becoming the first commander of 7th Division in 1811. He left his command later in the year because of illness, having commanded it at the battles of Sabugal and Fuentes de Oñoro and the siege of Badajoz. Houston saw no more active service in the Napoleonic Wars, with a series of staff positions culminating in him serving as acting Governor of Gibraltar in 1832. He died in 1842.
Towards the end of the year Viscount Wellington, commanding the British army in the Peninsular War, requested Houston as a replacement brigade commander, as so many of his had become casualties in the fighting.[3] He arrived in January 1811 and was given command of a brigade in the 4th Division.[3] When the 7th Division was formed in March he was made its first commander.[3] The division's first battle was the Battle of Sabugal on 3 April but with his troops being unseasoned in warfare they were kept in reserve. The division entered combat for the first time at the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro in May, where his men were crucial in halting a dangerous advance of French cavalry.[3] Houston and the division were also present at the Siege of Badajoz between May and June; he organised two failed forlorn hopes during the siege, one on 6 June and one on 9 June.[4][3]
His next active role came when on 8 April 1831 he was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Gibraltar, a post he held until 28 February 1835.[7][4] He set up the first official free school on Flat Bastion Road in Gibraltar whilst he was acting Governor of Gibraltar in 1832.[9] After his term at Gibraltar ended he was created a baronet on 19 July 1836 and was promoted to general on 10 January 1837.[10][11] He died at his home in Bromley Hill, Bromley, Kent on 8 April 1842 and was interred in the catacombs at West Norwood Cemetery.[12][7]
Personal life
On 5 November 1808 he married Lady Jane Long, the fourth daughter of James Maitland, 7th Earl of Lauderdale and widow of Samuel Long, who was the brother of Lord Farnborough.[3] William and Mary had two sons together, Sir George Augustus Frederick Houston (b.1809), an army officer and William, who became a captain in the 10th Hussars. William's wife was a prolific writer, Matilda Charlotte Houstoun.[13] Lady Jane died on 1 June 1833.[14]
References
^ abcdHeathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 73.
Heathcote, T.A. (2010). Wellington's Peninsular War Generals & Their Battles: A Biographical and Historical Dictionary. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword. ISBN978-1-84884-061-4
Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990.