Sir George Murray | |
|---|---|
%2c_by_John_Hoppner.jpg) George Murray, portrait byJohn Hoppner | |
| Secretary of State for War and the Colonies | |
| In office 30 May 1828 – 22 November 1830 | |
| Monarchs | George IV William IV |
| Prime Minister | The Duke of Wellington |
| Preceded by | William Huskisson |
| Succeeded by | The Viscount Goderich |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1772-02-06)6 February 1772 Ochtertyre, Perthshire |
| Died | 28 July 1846(1846-07-28) (aged 74) Belgrave Square, London |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Tory |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Louise Georgiana (illegitimate) |
Sir George MurrayGCB GCH FRS (6 February 1772 – 28 July 1846) was a British soldier and politician fromScotland.
Murray was born inOchtertyre, nearCrieff inPerthshire, the second son of Sir William Murray, of Ochtertyre, 5th Baronet (seeMurray Baronets), and was educated at theRoyal High School, Edinburgh and theUniversity of Edinburgh.[1] His mother was Lady Augusta Mackenzie, youngest daughter of the JacobiteGeorge, 3rd Earl of Cromartie. His elder brother wasSir Patrick Murray, 6th Baronet.
An army surgeon, who knew Murray in Dublin in 1825 described his appearance as 'never saw a finer face than his. Indeed, such a pleasing and happy combination of intelligence, sweetness and spirit, with regularity, beauty and a noble cast of features, is rarely to be found in human physiognomies.'[2]
In 1789, Murray obtained acommission into the71st Foot[1] reaching the rank ofcaptain in 1794, and saw service inFlanders (1794–95),[1] theWest Indies, England and Ireland. In 1799, he was made alieutenant-colonel, entering the Quartermaster General's Department and making his considerable reputation asQuartermaster General (1808–11) during thePeninsular War, under theDuke of Wellington, and receiving promotion toColonel in 1809.[1] After a brief period as Quartermaster General in Ireland, Murray returned to the Peninsular Campaign asMajor-General (1813–14), and was invested with theOrder of the Bath in 1813.[1] During the Peninsular War he was present at the battles ofA Coruña,Talavera,Busaco,Fuentes de Oñoro,Vittoria,Nivelle,Nive,Orthez andToulouse. HisPeninsular Gold Medal had six clasps – only the Duke of Wellington, with nine clasps, SirDennis Pack andLord Beresford, with seven each, had more clasps to their medal.[3]
He was briefly in Canada from December 1814 to May 1815 where he was appointed provisionalLieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada and reviewed the country's defences.[1] He quickly returned to Europe followingNapoleon's escape fromElba, but arrived too late to take part in theBattle of Waterloo.
After the cessation of hostilities, Murray was based in France as Chief of Staff to the Army of Occupation and, thereafter, he was appointedGovernor of theRoyal Military College, Sandhurst in 1819.[1] He was awarded an honorary degree by theUniversity of Oxford in 1820 and was elected aFellow of the Royal Society in 1824. In 1825, he married Lady Louisa Erskine, widow of Sir JamesErskine of Torrie (1772–1825). Subsequently, he was madeLieutenant-General of the Ordnance and thenCommander-in-Chief, Ireland, but in 1828 he resigned the position and becameColonial Secretary.[1] He was laterMaster-General of the Ordnance from 1834[4] to 1835 and again between 1841 and 1846.[1]
Murray was aTory and laterConservative in politics. He was Member of Parliament forPerthshire from 1824 to 1832 and from 1834 until he retired in 1835. He served asSecretary of State for War and the Colonies from 1828 to 1830.[1] He also contestedWestminster in 1837 andManchester in both 1839 and 1841, without success.
Murray was also President of theRoyal Geographical Society (1833–35) and Governor ofEdinburgh Castle. On 7 September 1829 he was appointed Governor ofFort George.[5]
Murray was married to Lady Louisa Erskine (née Paget) (1777–1842) in 1825, widow of Lieutenant GeneralSir James Erskine (1772–1825), and sister of his fellow general,Henry, Lord Anglesey after much scandals; which resulted in the couple having one illegitimate daughter born in 1822 when Lady Louisa was still married to Sir James, the daughter was named Louise Georgina (1822-1891).[2]
Murray later brought his daughter to be presented in 1830 and it was reported that the newQueen Adelaide, was ‘very rude to Murray and his daughter, who said afterwards that it was very painful but necessary’. Louise married Lieutenant Henry Boyce of the 2nd Life Guards on 14 Sep 1843, but he died in 1848 and she lived childless, until she died at Bordighera on 25 Feb 1891.[2][6]
Murray died in July 1846, aged 74, at his house in 5 Belgrave Square and was buried inKensal Green Cemetery, London. His substantial papers and maps were given to theNational Library of Scotland by a great-niece in 1913.[2]
The Memorials to Governors in the Chapel of the present-dayRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst include:In Memory of General the Right Hon. Sir George Murray, G.C.B., G.C H., Colonel 1st Royal Regiment of Foot. Died 28 July 1846, aged 74. He served in Holland, Egypt, Syria, the West Indies, Denmark, and Sweden ; wsLS Q.M.G. in the Peninsula; Commander-in-Chief in Canada; Chief of the Staff of the Army of Occupation in France ; Commander of the Forces in Ireland, and twice Master-General of the Ordnance. He was Governor of this College from 1819 to 1824.[7]
TheMurray River andMount Murray in eastern Australia, theMurray River andMurray County in Western Australia, were named after him. Places inHong Kong named after him include:Murray House, one of the oldest surviving public buildings in Hong Kong,Murray Building,Murray Road and the formerMurray Barracks. The city ofPerth, Western Australia was named in his honour after his parliamentary constituencyPerthshire.[8]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forPerthshire 1824–1832 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forPerthshire 1834–1835 | Succeeded by |
| Military offices | ||
| New regiment | Colonel of the 7th Battalion,60th Regiment of Foot 1817–1823 | Battalion disbanded |
| Preceded by | Colonel of the72nd Regiment of Foot 1817–1823 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst 1819–1824 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Colonel of the42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment of Foot 1823–1843 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance 1824–1825 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief, Ireland 1825–1828 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Inverness 1829–1833 | Office abolished |
| Preceded by | Colonel of the1st, or The Royal Regiment of Foot 1843–1846 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for War and the Colonies 1828–1830 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Master-General of the Ordnance 1834–1835 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Master-General of the Ordnance 1841–1846 | Succeeded by |
