thumb|Grave of General James Hope Grant
thumb|Captain C Scott of the Gen. Sir. Hope Grant's Column, Sepoy Mutiny, 1857. Memorial at the [[St. Mary's Church, Chennai|St. Mary's Church, Madras]]
General Sir James Hope Grant, GCB (22 July 1808 – 7 March 1875) was a British Army officer. He served in the First Opium War, First Anglo-Sikh War, Indian Rebellion of 1857, and Second Opium War.
Early life
Grant was the fifth and youngest son of Francis Grant of Kilgraston, Perthshire.
Military career
He entered the British Army in 1826 as cornet in the 9th Lancers, and became lieutenant in 1828 and captain in 1835. In 1842 he was brigade-major to Lord Saltoun in the First Opium War, and distinguished himself at the capture of Chinkiang, after which he received the rank of major and the CB. There is a popular, possibly apocryphal, story that he was selected by Saltoun (a keen violinist) because he wanted a cellist to accompany him and Hope Grant was the only officer he could find who played the cello. In the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845–1846 he took part in the battle of Sobraon; and in the Punjab campaign of 1848–1849 he commanded the 9th Lancers, and won high reputation in the Battles of Chillianwalla and Gujarat.
He was promoted brevet lieutenant-colonel and shortly afterwards to the same substantive rank. In 1854 he became brevet-colonel, and in 1856 brigadier of cavalry. He took a leading part in the suppression of the Indian Mutiny of 1857, holding for some time the command of the cavalry division, and afterwards of a movable column of horse and foot.
In 1861, he was made lieutenant-general and appointed commander-in-chief of the Madras Army; on this appointment he was automatically made a member of the Madras Legislative Council and held a seat from 1861 to 1864.
On his return to England in 1865 he was made Quartermaster-General to the Forces at headquarters; and in 1870 he was transferred to the command of Aldershot Division, where he took a leading part in the reform of the educational and training systems of the forces, which followed the Franco-German War. The introduction of annual army manoeuvres was largely due to Grant. In 1872 he was promoted to full general.
He died in London on 7 March 1875.