Early life Montgomery was born into an
Ulster-Scots family at the family seat at New Park in
Moville, a small town in
Inishowen in the north of
County Donegal in
Ulster, the northern
province in
Ireland. He was educated at
Foyle College,
Derry; Wraxall Hall School, Wiltshire; and, from 1823 to 1825, at
Addiscombe Military Seminary, Croydon, Surrey.
Career In 1826, he entered the civil service of the
East India Company. His first notable position was as a commissioner in
Cawnpore. In 1849, Montgomery was made a Commissioner at
Lahore. The following year he replaced
Charles Grenville Mansel on the
Board of Administration, the body responsible for governing the
Punjab. His two colleagues in the Board of Administration,
Henry Lawrence and
John Lawrence were both, like Montgomery, alumni of Foyle College. He immediately had the native garrison disarmed, which prevented them from taking any action in the rebellion. He was awarded with a knighthood for this action. During the period of 3 April 1858 to 15 February 1859, he was
Chief Commissioner of Oudh. He returned to the Punjab in 1859 to succeed John Lawrence as Lieutenant-Governor. He was made a
K.C.B. on 19 May 1859. On 1 March 1862 he opened the first section of the
Punjab Railway, connecting Lahore with
Amritsar, to much fanfare. His tenure as Lieutenant-Governor ended in 1865 and he was succeeded by his son-in-law
Donald Friell McLeod. On 20 February 1866 he was made a
G.C.S.I. After returning to England, he was appointed to the
Council of India in 1868, serving until his death in 1887.
Death He died on 28 December 1887 in London of bronchitis, aged 79, and was interred in the family vault in
St Columb's Cathedral,
Derry, on 3 January 1888. There is a memorial to him in
St Paul's Cathedral. ==Family==