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Lieutenant Colonel Baker was resident in East Terrace for about 20 years in the early part of the 20th century. He was the eldest son of Colonel James Baker a soldier who, served in the Crimea War, was then the Private Secretary to the Marquess of Westminster, and later became Minister of Education & the Provincial Secretary in the British Columbia Legislative Assembly. Louis was born in Cambridge in 1858 where his father had graduated with first class honours at Magdalene College after the Crimea War and became the Lieutenant Colonel and founder of the Cambridge University Rifle Volunteers. Louis went to Cheam School in Surrey and joined the 1st Regiment of Foot in 1876 transferring to the 83rd Foot in 1878. The 83rd was in India on garrison duty and was due to return to England in 1880 but officers who wished to stay in India were transferred to other units. Louis was attached as a sub-lieutenant on probation to the 15th Bombay Native Infantry and while there undertook an extraordinary feat of horsemanship in 1878 according to Vanity Fair magazine. They record that “he made a wager that he would ride from Ahmednuggar to Dhend and back – a distance of 96 miles – in 10 hours using 8 ponies”. He actually did the journey in 7 hours but could have been quicker if some of the ponies had been ready to meet him.

His horsemanship came in useful as he moved as a Lieutenant to the 3rd Punjab Cavalry stationed on the Northwest Frontier at Edwardesbad and he was soon in action in the 2nd Afghan War (1879-80). He was present at the engagement at Charasiah on 25th April 1880 where he was mentioned in despatches. He then commanded a troop of the 3rd Punjabis that joined the Kabul Field Force in July 1880 on Lord Roberts’ famous march from Kabul to Kandahar and fought in the battle of Kandahar on 1st September which defeated Ayub Khan; he was slightly wounded in the hand during the pursuit of the retreating enemy force (1). He may have been more seriously injured later in the campaign according to a newspaper account recording his wedding in 1901 (2) although this is not mentioned in the notes on War Service added to Hart’s Army List and may be newspaper hype. He received a Medal with Clasp for the campaign and a bronze decoration (4). Hart records that his next action was in November 1880 against the Marris, and he then served in the Zhob Valley expedition in 1890, and with the Kajuri Koch Field Force in 1892 as Staff Officer to the Commander of that Force. He received a further medal with clasp serving with the 3rd Punjab Cavalry in Waziristan 1894-5. In 1895 he was involved in operations in the Tochi Valley.

He had been promoted, to Captain in 1888, was Second in Command of the Regiment in 1897 (promoted to Major), and progressed to Acting Lieutenant Colonel in Command in 1900. The same year he became Commander of the 23rd Punjab Cavalry which consisted of several regiments including the 3rd Punjab Cavalry.

Louis returned to England on furlough and can be found in the 1901 census living at his father’s house in Parkstone in Dorset. Later, in October, he married Florence Jane Alison the youngest daughter of General Sir Archibald Alison at St. Michaels Church, Chester Square, London (3). The couple had a short honeymoon and then returned to India.

Louis received his final promotion to substantive Lieutenant Colonel in 1903 and retired from the Indian Army in 1905. Louis and Florence where living with his parents at Parkstone in Dorset when his father died in August 1906 but may also have had a residence in or near London because they had two sons, Frank and James both born in Middlesex. 

By 1908 it would appear that they may have been living in Budleigh Salterton because they were present at the opening of the new rifle range in Little Knowle in October (5). He entered a competition for married members of the club and did not shoot particularly well, being beaten by 3 ladies; however in his defence, he was a cavalry man!

The family were living in Budleigh Salterton at 6 East Terrace (Caughley) in 1911 and Frank was 6 and James 3 years old. Kelly’s Directory has them at 6 East Terrace from 1911 up to 1919 but they may have lived there earlier. ( Note:  Caughley is not to be confused with the house designed by Hatchard Smith at 10 Upper Stoneborough Lane which wasn’t built until the late 1920s (6)). 

On the outbreak of WW1 Colonel Baker volunteered to work without pay and was given a clerical post in Exeter in the records section of the Royal Naval Division which was presumably all that was available for a man of his age (7). It did mean that the family could stay in Budleigh. Mrs Baker was one of the many contributors to the “Christmas Puddings and Cakes for the Fleet” appeal in 1915 (8). The family remained in East Terrace until after the war when (circa 1920) they moved back to his late father’s house in Parkstone Dorset.
He died in July 1931 in Bournemouth.

Researched and written by Roger Lendon, © October 2014

(1)  The Afghan War of 1879-80  By Howard Hensman   
(2)  London Mid Surrey Times And General Advertiser, October 25, 1901
(3)  17 October 1901,  Dundee Evening Post
(4)  Hart’s Army List 1908
(5)  31 October 1908, Exeter and Plymouth Gazette
(6)  See OVApedia  Hatchard Smith, William Hornby (1887-1987)  2010
(7)  British Medals Index Cards 1914-20
(8) 17 December1915, Exeter and Plymouth Gazette

BS-B-00069 Biography