Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin
Victoria | |
---|---|
Preceded by | The Marquess of Lansdowne |
Succeeded by | The Lord Curzon of Kedleston |
Personal details | |
Born | Montreal, Canada East, Province of Canada | 16 May 1849
Died | 18 January 1917 Dunfermline, Fife, United Kingdom | (aged 67)
Nationality | British |
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse | Gertrude Sherbrooke (m. 1913) |
Children | 12, including Edward |
Parent(s) | James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin Lady Mary Louisa Lambton |
Alma mater | Balliol College, Oxford |
Victor Alexander Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin, 13th Earl of Kincardine,
Background and education
Elgin was born in
Political career
Elgin entered politics as a Liberal, serving as Treasurer of the Household and as First Commissioner of Works under William Ewart Gladstone in 1886.
Viceroy of India
Following in his father's footsteps, Elgin was made
During his time as Viceroy, famine broke out in India, in which Elgin reportedly admitted that up to 4.5 million people died.[3]
Other estimates have put the death toll at 11 million people.
Elgin Commission
Elgin returned to England in 1899 and was made a
The Elgin Committee discussed cavalry in spring 1903. Many mounted infantry units had been raised during the Boer War, some from scratch and some by converting infantry units. All were agreed that cavalry should be trained to fight dismounted with firearms, but traditionalists wanted cavalry still to be trained as the arme blanche, charging with lance and sabre. Although the traditional view appears absurd with hindsight, at the time matters were less clearcut. General French stressed the importance of morale, after the success of his cavalry charges at Elandslaagte and Kimberley. That view was by no means extreme: Maj-Gen J.P. Brabazon thought sword and lance were suitable only for "Latin" cavalry, and that "Anglo-Saxons" should instead be equipped with "a light battleaxe or tomahawk". After Wolseley, Evelyn Wood and Roberts (all of whom had seen the future of cavalry as being for use as mounted infantry only) had retired, the traditional view was reestablished as French and his protégé Major-General Haig rose to the top of the Army.[6] The recommendations of the Commission were never fully implemented. The Esher Report into the future of the Army overshadowed its findings, and the Army came to be dominated by the High Tory reorganisation of the War Office.
Colonial Secretary
When the Liberals returned to power in 1905, Elgin became Secretary of State for the Colonies (with Winston Churchill as his Under-Secretary). As colonial secretary, he pursued a conservative policy and opposed the generous settlement of the South African question proposed by Prime Minister Campbell-Bannerman, which was enacted more in spite of the Colonial Secretary's opposition than because of his efforts. After being dropped from the next government by the next prime minister, Asquith, Elgin retired from public life in 1908.[7]
Honours
Lord Elgin was appointed Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India (GCSI) and Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (GCIE) on his appointment as Viceroy in 1894. He was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Garter (KG) on his return to the United Kingdom in 1899.
In July 1902, he received the
Family
Lord Elgin married Lady Constance Mary Carnegie, daughter of James Carnegie, 9th Earl of Southesk, in 1876. They had six sons and five daughters:
- Lady Elizabeth Mary Bruce (11 September 1877 – 13 May 1944)
- Lady Christina Augusta Bruce (25 January 1879 – 12 September 1940)
- Lady Constance Veronica Bruce (24 February 1880 – 7 July 1969)
- Edward James Bruce, 10th Earl of Elgin, 14th Earl of Kincardine (9 June 1881 – 27 November 1968)
- Hon. Robert Bruce (18 November 1882 – 31 October 1959)
- Hon. Alexander Bruce (29 July 1884 – October 1917)
- Lady Marjorie Bruce (12 December 1885 – 23 May 1901)
- Colonel Hon. David Bruce (11 June 1888 – 26 August 1964)
- Lady Rachel Catherine Bruce (23 February 1890 – 17 December 1964)
- Captain Hon. John Bernard Bruce (9 April 1892 – 3 August 1971)
- Hon. Victor Alexander Bruce (13 February 1897 – 19 December 1930).
After Lady Elgin's death in 1909, he married Gertrude Lilian, daughter of William Sherbrooke and widow of Frederick Charles Ashley Ogilvy, in 1913. They had one posthumous son:
- Hon. Bernard Bruce (12 June 1917 – 17 June 1983)
Death
Lord Elgin died at the family estate in Dunfermline in January 1917, at 67. He was succeeded in his titles by his eldest son from his first marriage, Edward.
His widow, Gertrude, later remarried and died in February 1971.
Kincardine whisky
Kincardine whisky was released in November 2016 by Fusion Whisky Ltd, in partnership with independent bottler and distillery
It was made to honour his achievements, particularly his time in India when he served as Viceroy and Governor-Consul. It featured photography from the Bruce family's archive.
The Kincardine was a blend, or fusion, of seven-year-old India single malt whisky from
Adelphi's Alex Bruce is the great-grandson of Victor Bruce.
See also
References
- ^ a b "Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin". Encyclopædia Britannica. 29 February 2024.
- ^ The great landowners of Great Britain and Ireland
- ^ ISBN 1-85984-739-0pg. 158
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 9 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 268.
- ^ "No. 27419". The London Gazette. 25 March 1902. p. 2081.
- ^ Reid 2006, p107-8, 112
- ISBN 0-313-29366-X.
- ^ "The Freedom of St Andrews". The Times. No. 36824. London. 19 July 1902. p. 14.
- ^ "Scotch-Indian whisky hybrid launches". www.scotchwhisky.com. 8 November 2016.
- ^ "The Glover 18 year old". www.malt-review.com. 25 August 2016.
Further reading
- Elgin Papers, India Office Records, British Library
- Queen Victoria – "Journals"
- Queen Victoria – "Our Life in the Highlands"
- Hyam, Ronald. Elgin and Churchill at the Colonial Office 1905-1908: The Watershed of the Empire-Commonwealth. Macmillan & Co., London, 1968.
- Bence-Jones, Mark. The Viceroys of India. Constable, London, 1982.
- Reid, Walter (2006). Architect of Victory: Douglas Haig. Birlinn Ltd, Edinburgh, 2006. ISBN 1-84158-517-3.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Elgin
- Kidd, Charles, ed. (1903). Debrett's peerage, baronetage, knightage, and companionage. London: Dean and son. p. 352.