Comments by "John Brereton" (@johnbrereton5229) on "Learning from the past" video.

  1. My ancestor Lt Colonel Thomas Brereton was the commander of troops in Bristol in 1831. He was blamed for the escalation of violence after he ordered the 14th dragons back to their stables after they shot and killed an innocent man the night before. However the mob chased the troops back to their stables and threatened to burn it down. Therefore, he ordered them out of town until the reinforcements he had requested arrived. Nevertheless, he restored order with just the remaining troops before they arrived. However, he was still court martialed and after realising he had been set up, committed suicide. I have written his biography: 'The Readeption of Colonel Brereton' which goes into detail and completely exonerates him. Previously, he was blamed for sending the troops away, but he had no choice as he wasn't provided with enough troops. A large section of the 14th dragoons disobeyed his orders making a difficult situation impossible and he was made a scapegoat.
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