Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Love, James Frederick
LOVE, Sir JAMES FREDERICK (1789–1866), general, son of John Love and his wife Mary Wyse, was born in London in 1789, and on 26 Oct. 1804 was appointed ensign in the 52nd light infantry (now 2nd Oxfordshire), then training at Shorncliffe under Sir John Moore. The dates of his subsequent commissions were lieutenant 1805, captain 1811, brevet-major 16 March 1815, brevet-lieutenant-colonel 1825, regimental major 1830, lieutenant-colonel 2 Sept. 1834, colonel 1838, major-general 1851, lieutenant-general 1857, general 1864. He served with the 52nd in Sweden and Portugal in 1808, and in the Corunna retreat in 1809. Returning to Portugal with the first battalion of his regiment later in the same year, he was present in every affair in which the light division was engaged up to 1812, including the siege and capture of Ciudad Rodrigo, where he was one of the stormers. He served with the second battalion of his regiment in the operations in North Holland in 1813-14, was aide-de-camp to Sir John Lambert, in the attack on New Orleans in 1815, where he was wounded and had two horses killed under him, and rejoined his regiment in time for the battle of Waterloo, where he received four severe wounds in the famous charge of the 52nd on the imperial guard [cf. Colborne, Sir John, first Baron Seaton]. Love's services after the peace were no less varied and important. He was with the 52nd in North America for some time (cf. Leake). His timely arrival from Cardiff with the depot companies of the 11th foot saved Bristol during the terrible reform riots of 1831. He commanded the 73rd foot several years in the Mediterranean, at Gibraltar, and in North America; was British resident at Zante 1835-8; commanded a moveable column in Lower Canada during the insurrection of 1888-9; was in command in South Wales during the Rebecca and chartist riots [cf. Frost, John, chartist]; was governor of Jersey 1852-6; commanded at Shorncliffe camp in 1856, and having been created inspector-general of infantry in 1857, retained that post until April 1862.
Love was a G.C.B. and K.H., and had the Peninsular medal with clasps for Corunna, Busaco, Fuentes d'Onoro, and Ciudad Rodrigo, and the Waterloo-medal. He was colonel in succession of the 57th foot and the 43rd light infantry. He married in 1825 Mary, daughter of J. Heaviside of Halifax, Nova Scotia, by whom he had no issue. He died on 13 Jan. 1866, aged 77.
[Dod's Knightage, 1865; Hart's Army Lists; Leake's Lord Seaton's Regiment at Waterloo; Ann. Registers under dates.]