William was born in Waterford, County Munster, Ireland in 1790.  He was appointed an Ensign with the 45th Regiment on the 20th of July 1809 when aged 19 years.  He became a Lieutenant on the 28th of February 1811. 

William served with the 45th in the Peninsular War. The Peninsular War (1808-14) was fought on the Iberian Peninsula by Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom against the forces of Napoleonic France. William served in the war from November 1812 to August 1813. 

He was severely wounded at Vittoria on the 21st of June 1813 but did not receive a pension.  He returned home to Waterford.  By 1864, William was a widower having buried his wife and seven children all due to consumption.  He sadly died in Waterford in January 1866.