John Murray, 11th Duke of Atholl

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The Duke of Atholl
1997 photograph by Allan Warren
11th Duke of Atholl
Preceded byThe 10th Duke of Atholl
Succeeded byThe 12th Duke of Atholl
Personal details
Born
John Murray

(1929-01-19)19 January 1929
Johannesburg, South Africa
Died15 May 2012(2012-05-15) (aged 83)
South Africa
SpouseMargaret Yvonne Leach
ChildrenLady Jennifer Murray
The 12th Duke of Atholl
Lord Craig John Murray

John Murray, 11th Duke of Atholl (19 January 1929 – 15 May 2012), was a

Colonel-in-Chief of the Atholl Highlanders. As Duke of Atholl, he commanded the only legal private army in Europe. He acceded as the 11th duke on 27 February 1996, succeeding his second cousin, once removed, The 10th Duke of Atholl
.

Early life

The Duke was born in

He was the paternal grandson of the Rev. Douglas Stuart Murray, Rector of Blithfield, Staffordshire, and his wife Harriet Georgina Isabel Bridgeman. Douglas Stuart Murray was a grandson of the Rt. Rev. George Murray, Bishop of Rochester, who himself was a grandson of John Murray, 3rd Duke of Atholl.[1][2]

The young Murray was educated at

Michaelhouse from 1941 to 1946, in what was then the midlands of Natal, and gained an appreciation for cricket and the outdoors. From there, he proceeded to the University of the Witwatersrand, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering.[1][3]

Life

After taking his degree, Murray worked as a land surveyor.[4]

Arms of the Dukes of Atholl.

On 15 December 1956 in

Transvaal, South Africa
and wife Faith Kleinenberg.

They had three children:

In 1996, on the death of his kinsman, a second cousin, once removed, Iain Murray, 10th Duke of Atholl, Murray succeeded as 11th Duke at the age of 67. However, the day before the death of the 10th Duke, it was announced that he had given his ancestral seat of Blair Castle and most of his estates to a charitable trust, thus shielding the estate from a crippling 40% United Kingdom inheritance tax rate. The Daily Telegraph reported the 10th Duke had been unimpressed when his heir had indicated that he had no desire to leave South Africa for Scotland.[2]

Atholl continued to live in South Africa, while making annual visits to Scotland. He died on 15 May 2012 in a South African hospital at the age of 83. He was succeeded in his titles by his elder son, Bruce Murray, Marquess of Tullibardine.[2]

As Duke of Atholl, he commanded the only legal private army in Europe, the Atholl Highlanders. The army is based at Blair Castle, the ancestral home of the dukes of Atholl. The Duke did not inherit Blair Castle, which passed to a charitable trust.[5] However, every year the Duke visited from South Africa to stay at Blair for the traditional display put on by his army.[2][6][7]

The Duke was also the hereditary Clan Chief of Clan Murray.[8]

Wife's Ancestry

Margaret was the paternal granddaughter of Charles Ronald Leach and first wife Louise Adelaide Zeederberg and maternal granddaughter of Johannes Petrus Stephanus Kleinenberg and wife Letitia Pittendrigh Cooksley.

Charles Ronald Leach was son of Charles William Leach and first wife Agnes Mary Bell paternal grandson of John Leach and wife Sara Ann Hinds and maternal grandson of William Bell and wife Mary Ann Mason.

Louise Adelaide Zeederberg was daughter of Hans Jacobus Zeederberg, storekeeper in Pretoria in 1878, and wife Jessie Gray, paternal granddaughter of Petrus Hans Zeederberg and wife Sophia Margrita Ruisch, and maternal granddaughter of John Gray and wife Ann Young.

Johannes Petrus Stephanus Kleinenberg was son of Bauke Theunis Kleinenberg, who emigrated in 1852 to South Africa, teacher and lecturer in Piketberg and Calvinia, married firstly in Piketberg, Cape Colony, on 10 April 1854 Maria Susanna Theron, and second wife Maria Magdalena Margaretha Coetzee, paternal grandson of Teunis Kleinenberg, farmer and wife Gebke Kerkhof and maternal grandson of Dirk Johannes Coetzee and wife Johanna Sophia Boonzaaier.

Letitia Pittendrigh Cooksley was daughter of John Skinner Cooksley, a

Port Elizabeth in 1862, and wife Mary Pittindrigh.[9][10][11][12][13]

References

  1. ^ a b c Burke's Peerage, volume 1, 2003, page 175
  2. ^ a b c d "The Duke of Atholl". The Daily Telegraph. 17 May 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  3. ^ thepeerage.com: John Murray, 11th Duke of Atholl
  4. ^ Independent 28 February 1996 Duke of Atholl Died Aged 64
  5. ^ VisitScotland Perthshire: Three Generations of the Atholl family to be on parade at Blair Castle
  6. ^ Blair Atholl: Events Archived 2010-04-13 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Clan Murray Society NA: Clans and Septs Archived 2010-01-23 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Dukes of Atholl - website of Cracroft's Peerage
  9. ^ Burke's Peerage and Baronetage
  10. ^ "Parenteel van John Leach". Archived from the original on 25 October 2010. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
  11. ^ "Amanda-M-Du-plessis - User Trees - Genealogy.com". familytreemaker.genealogy.com. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  12. ^ "South African Settlers". southafricansettlers.com. Retrieved 22 October 2018.

External links

Peerage of Scotland
Preceded by
Duke of Atholl

1996–2012
Succeeded by