Brigadier-General John Nicholson led a storming column during the British assault on Delhi in September 1857 and was mortally wounded. The recapture was a wider military operation, so crediting the entire action to one man would be misleading. Here General John Nicholson fits the complete historical coordinates supplied by “Which British officer was mortally wounded while leading an assault during the recapture of Delhi in September 1857?”—the relevant actor, moment and outcome must all agree. The uprising developed through connected military and civilian centres rather than through a single centrally directed command; Contemporary proclamations, military records and later historical writing must therefore be read with attention to place, date and the role assigned to each participant, a distinction applied here to General John Nicholson. A comparison with General Hugh Rose, General Neill and General Outram shows why period familiarity alone is insufficient; the exact function or outcome determines the choice. Consulting the cited chapter around this episode clarifies the sequence before and after General John Nicholson; that surrounding sequence is also the best defence against attractive distractors. On that evidence, the supported choice is General John Nicholson.