Nicholson, John, 1821-1857

Brigadier-General John Nicholson, (11 December 1822 – 23 September 1857) was an Ulster-Scot officer who rose to prominence during his career in British India. Born in Ireland, Nicholson moved to the Indian subcontinent at a young age and obtained a commission in the Bengal Army where he spent the majority of his career helping to expand the East India Company's territories in numerous conflicts, including the First Anglo-Afghan War, the First Anglo-Sikh War, and the Second Anglo-Sikh War. Nicholson created a legend for himself as a political officer under Henry Lawrence in the frontier provinces of British India, especially in the Punjab, and he was instrumental in the establishment of the North-West Frontier. Nicholson's most defining moment in his military career was his crucial role in suppressing the Indian Rebellion of 1857, a conflict in which he died. A charismatic and authoritarian figure, Nicholson led a life whose controversial exploits have created a polarized legacy; contemporary descriptions of Nicholson presented him as the man who was crucial in suppressing the Indian Rebellion, while more recent historical accounts have described him as an "imperial psychopath" and "a violent, manic figure, a homosexual bully; an extreme egoist who was pleased to affect a laconic indifference to danger". His imposing physical appearance and noted deeds of valor and violence created an almost mythical status and even religious worship among the numerous tribes of the North-West Frontier whom Nicholson brought into the British Empire.