Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin
Victor Alexander Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin, 13th Earl of Kincardine, known as Lord Bruce until 1863, was a right-wing British Liberal politician who served as Viceroy of India from 1894 to 1899. He was appointed by Prime Minister Arthur Balfour to hold an investigative enquiry into the conduct of the Boer War in 1902 to 1903; the Elgin Commission was the first of its kind in the British Empire, it travelled to South Africa and took oral evidence from men who had fought in the battles. It was the first to value the lives of the dead and to consider the feelings of mourning relatives left behind, it was the first occasion in the history of the British Army that recognised the testimony of ordinary soldiery as well as that of the officers. Elgin was born in Montreal, Canada, the son of James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin, who served as Governor-General of Canada at the time, his wife, Lady May Louisa, daughter of John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, he was educated at Glenalmond and Balliol College, Oxford.
Elgin entered politics as a Liberal, serving as Treasurer of the Household and as First Commissioner of Works under William Ewart Gladstone in 1886. Following in his father's footsteps, Elgin was made Viceroy of India in 1894, his viceroyalty was not a notable one. Elgin himself did not enjoy the pomp and ceremony associated with the viceroyalty, his conservative instincts were not well suited to a time of economic and social unrest, he said, "India is the pivot of our Empire.... If the Empire loses any other part of its Dominion we can survive, but if we lose India, the sun of our Empire will have set." During his time as Viceroy, famine broke out in India, in which Elgin admitted that up to 4.5 million people died. Other estimates have put the death toll at 11 million people. Elgin was made a Knight of the Garter. From 1902 to 1903, Elgin was made chairman of the commission that investigated the conduct of the Second Boer War, he was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 1st Fifeshire Volunteer Artillery Corps on 26 March 1902.
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 thearme 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, that "Anglo-Saxons" should instead be equipped with "a light battleaxe or tomahawk". After Wolseley, Evelyn Wood and Roberts had retired, the traditional view was reestablished as French and his protégé Major-General Haig rose to the top of the Army; the recommendations of the Commission were never implemented.
The Esher Report into the future of the Army overshadowed its findings, the Army came to be dominated by the High Tory reorganisation of the War Office. When the Liberals returned to power in 1905, Elgin became Secretary of State for the Colonies; as colonial secretary, he pursued a conservative policy and opposed the generous settlement of the South African question proposed by Prime Minister Campbell-Bannerman, 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, Elgin retired from public life in 1908. Lord Elgin was appointed Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India and Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire on his appointment as Viceroy in 1894, he was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Garter on his return to the United Kingdom in 1899. In July 1902, he received the freedom of the city of St Andrews "in recognition of his devotion to the public service, whether holding the exalted position of Viceroy of India, where he watched over the interests of a vast Empire with remarkable skill and success, or discharging the duties connected with county government and giving his time and wide experience as Chairman of the Carnegie Trust for the advancement of education in Scotland".
Lord Elgin married Lady Constance Mary, daughter of James Carnegie, 9th Earl of Southesk, in 1876. They had six sons and five daughters: Lady Elizabeth Mary Bruce Lady Christina Augusta Bruce Lady Constance Veronica Bruce Edward James Bruce, 10th Earl of Elgin, 14th Earl of Kincardine Hon. Robert Bruce Hon. Alexander Bruce Lady Marjorie Bruce Colonel Hon. David Bruce Lady Rachel Catherine Bruce Captain Hon. John Bernard Bruce Hon. Victor Alexander Bruce. 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 son: Hon. Bernard Bruce 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 remarried and died i
Integrated Authority File
The Integrated Authority File or GND is an international authority file for the organisation of personal names, subject headings and corporate bodies from catalogues. It is used for documentation in libraries and also by archives and museums; the GND is managed by the German National Library in cooperation with various regional library networks in German-speaking Europe and other partners. The GND falls under the Creative Commons Zero licence; the GND specification provides a hierarchy of high-level entities and sub-classes, useful in library classification, an approach to unambiguous identification of single elements. It comprises an ontology intended for knowledge representation in the semantic web, available in the RDF format; the Integrated Authority File became operational in April 2012 and integrates the content of the following authority files, which have since been discontinued: Name Authority File Corporate Bodies Authority File Subject Headings Authority File Uniform Title File of the Deutsches Musikarchiv At the time of its introduction on 5 April 2012, the GND held 9,493,860 files, including 2,650,000 personalised names.
There are seven main types of GND entities: LIBRIS Virtual International Authority File Information pages about the GND from the German National Library Search via OGND Bereitstellung des ersten GND-Grundbestandes DNB, 19 April 2012 From Authority Control to Linked Authority Data Presentation given by Reinhold Heuvelmann to the ALA MARC Formats Interest Group, June 2012
Canadian Militia
The Canadian Militia is a traditional title given to militia units raised from local communities for the defence of Canada. The term has been used to describe colonial militias raised in Canada, as well as its regular army from 1855 to 1940; the earliest militia units in Canada dates back to the French regime in New France. In the French colony, a compulsory militia of settlers from every parish was raised in order to support the military of New France in the defence, expansion of the colony. Following the British conquest of New France in 1760, sedentary militia units continued to be raised, in support of British military units stationed in the Canadas. Enrolment in the sedentary militias occurred until 1873; the Canadian Militia referred to the regular army established by the Province of Canada under the Militia Act of 1855. The two organizations that originated from the Act, the Permanent Active Militia, the Non-Permanent Active Militia, served as Canada's regular army following Canadian Confederation in 1867.
In November 1940, both PAM and NPAM were reorganized into the Canadian Army, with PAM becoming the Army's Regular Force, NPAM becoming the Army Reserve. Local militias were raised and used by colonial authorities in Canada, including the French colony of New France, the subsequent British colonies in the Canadas. Prior to Canadian Confederation, the British colonies situated within Atlantic Canada maintained their own militias independent of the Canadian Militia. Use of militias date back to New France. In 1669, King Louis XIV, concerned about the colony's inability to defend itself adequately against raids, ordered the creation of a compulsory militia that would include every fit male between 16 and 60 years of age, they were organized into companies one per church parish, structured in the same way as a regular French infantry company. The men were noted as excellent shots, in better physical condition than regulars, because of their tough life, farming and hunting. Volunteer militiamen were used to support the regulars and their First Nation allies on lengthy raids, where they absorbed the skirmishing tactics of the latter.
However, little time was spent on conventional European drill. Following the British conquest of New France, local militia units continued to be raised, support British soldiers stationed in the Canadas. During the War of 1812, British authorities raised a number of Canadian military and militia units to support the British in defending the Canadas; as the British began to withdraw soldiers from British North America in the decades after the War of 1812, the Parliament of the Province of Canada passed the Militia Act of 1855, creating the Active Militia. The Active Militia split into the Permanent Active Militia, the Militia's regular army component, the Non-Permanent Active Militia, a force that would act as the Militia's military reserve force for the Canadian Militia; the traditional sedentary militias were re-styled as the Reserve Militia. Members of the militia were mobilized during the Fenian raids of 1866. Following Canadian Confederation in July 1867, both PAM, NPAM were managed by the Canadian Minister of Militia.
Enrolment for the sedentary reserve militias last occurred in 1873, although its theoretical practice was not abolished until 1950. The Militia was mobilized on a number of occasions in the latter half of the 19th century, including the Fenian raids of 1870–71, the Wolseley expedition, the North-West Rebellion, the Second Boer War; the Second Boer War saw more than 8,000 volunteers raised for service in South Africa, from 82 different militia units, including PAM. A number of administrative reforms were instituted after the war, with the establishment of the Canadian Army Service Corps in 1901, the Canadian Military Engineers, Canadian Army Medical Corps, Canadian Ordnance Corps, the Signalling Corps in 1903. From 1875 to 1904, the officer heading the Canadian Militia was the General Officer Commanding the Canadian Militia, a position required to be held by a officer of the British Army. However, serious differences in opinion over divisions of responsibilities between the civil and military branches of the Militia Department would see the post abolished under the Militia Act of 1904.
The office of the GOC was replaced by the Militia Council, with the Minister of Militia as its President, four military members, a civilian member, an accountant of the Department, a civilian secretary. Although modelled after the British Army Council, the Militia Council was purely an advisory body, with the Minister holding supreme authority over it. During World War I, the militia was not mobilized, with Canadians serving overseas enlisting with the Canadian Expeditionary Force, a separate military field force managed by the Ministry of Overseas Military Forces; as World War I drew to a close in 1918, the CEF expected to disband, plans to re-organize the Canadian militia were initiated, guided by the Otter Commission. The Commission proposed that PAM field a force of six infantry divisions, one cavalry division, supplemented by personnel from NPAM. Additionally, the Otter Commission saw links of perpetuation created, for battle honours earned from units of the CEF with units of the Canadian Militia.
Improvements to both PAM's and NPAM's officer corps were undertaken in the 1930s, with PAM officers directing officer cadets through co
George Boyle, 6th Earl of Glasgow
George Frederick Boyle, 6th Earl of Glasgow DL was a Scottish nobleman. He was the son of George Boyle, 4th Earl of Glasgow and Julia Sinclair, daughter of Sir John Sinclair, 1st Baronet, he married Hon. Montague Abercromby, daughter of George Abercromby, 3rd Baron Abercromby and Louisa Penuel Forbes, on 29 April 1856, they had two daughters Lady Gertrude Julia Georgina Boyle. He succeeded to his half brother's titles on 11 March 1869, he held the offices of Deputy Lieutenant of Renfrewshire. He held the office of Lord Clerk Register of Scotland from 1879 until his death, he died without male issue. On his death, the UK barony of Ross of Hawkhead became extinct. Boyle was an Episcopalian and was a long time associate of Bishop Alexander Penrose Forbes and a supporter of his views. Correspondence between the two men is held by the University of Dundee's archives. In 1848 the Boyle founded a choir school attached to the Church of Millport, he followed this up in 1849 by founding and endowing the Episcopal College and Collegiate Church of the Holy Spirit, Cumbrae.
The College was completed in 1851 to plans by William Butterfield and was affiliated to the University of Durham as Cumbrae Theological College. While the Collegiate Church was elevated to the status of Cathedral of Argyll and the Isles in 1879, the college closed in 1888. Secondary sources Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Glasgow thepeerage.com George Frederick Boyle, 6th Earl of Glasgow
Mentioned in dispatches
A member of the armed forces mentioned in dispatches is one whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which his or her gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy is described. In some countries, a service member's name must be mentioned in dispatches as a condition for receiving certain decorations. Service men and women of the British Empire or the Commonwealth who are mentioned in despatches are not awarded a medal for their action, but receive a certificate and wear an oak leaf device on the ribbon of the appropriate campaign medal. A smaller version of the oak leaf device is attached to the ribbon. Prior to 2014 only one device could be worn on a ribbon, irrespective of the number of times the recipient was mentioned in despatches. Where no campaign medal is awarded, the oak leaf is worn directly on the coat after any medal ribbons. In the British Armed Forces, the despatch is published in the London Gazette. Before 1914 nothing was worn in uniform to signify a mention in despatches, although sometimes a gallantry medal was awarded.
For 1914–1918 and up to 10 August 1920, the device consisted of a spray of oak leaves in bronze worn on the ribbon of the Victory Medal. Those who did not receive the Victory Medal wore the device on the British War Medal. Established in 1919, it was retrospective to August 1914, it was not a common honour with, for example, only twenty-five members of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment in the First World War mentioned in despatches. In all, 141,082 mentions were recorded in the London Gazette between 1914 and 1920. From 1920 to 1993, the device consisted of a single bronze oak leaf, worn on the ribbon of the appropriate campaign medal, including the War Medal for a mention during the Second World War; the Canadian Armed Forces still use the bronze oak leaf device. Since 1993 a number of changes have been made in respect of United Kingdom armed forces: For awards made from September 1993, the oak leaf has been in silver; the criteria were made more specific, it now being defined as an operational gallantry award for acts of bravery during active operations.
From 2003, in addition to British campaign medals, the MiD device can be worn on United Nations, NATO and EU medals. In a change introduced in 2014, up to three MiD devices may be worn on a single campaign medal and ribbon bar for those with multiple mentions, backdated to 1962. Prior to this change if the serviceman was mentioned in despatches more than once, only a single such device was worn. Prior to 1979, a mention in despatches was one of three awards that could be made posthumously, the others being the Victoria Cross and George Cross; the 1979 reform allowed. Soldiers can be mentioned multiple times; the British First World War Victoria Cross recipient John Vereker Field Marshal Viscount Gort, was mentioned in despatches nine times, as was the Canadian general Sir Arthur Currie. The Australian general Gordon Bennett was mentioned in despatches a total of eight times during the First World War, as was Field Marshal Sir John Dill. Below are illustrations of the MiD device being worn on a variety of campaign medal ribbons: Australian service personnel are no longer eligible to be mentioned in dispatches.
Since 15 January 1991, when the Australian Honours System was established, the MiD has been replaced by the Australian decorations: the Commendation for Gallantry and the Commendation for Distinguished Service. The equivalents of the MiD for acts of bravery by civilians and by soldiers not engaged with the enemy have been reformed; the reformed and comprehensive system is now as follows: The Commendation for Gallantry is now the fourth level decoration for gallantry. The Commendation for Brave Conduct recognises acts of bravery carried by soldiers not directly fighting the enemy and by civilians in war or peace; the Commendation for Distinguished Service, a third level distinguished service decoration, recognises distinguished general service, for exemplary performance in fields such as training and administration. A mention in dispatches – in French, Citation à l'ordre du jour – gives recognition from a senior commander for acts of brave or meritorious service in the field; the Mention in dispatches is among the list of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada.
Mention in dispatches has been used since 1947, in order to recognize distinguished and meritorious service in operational areas and acts of gallantry which are not of a sufficiently high order to warrant the grant of gallantry awards. Eligible personnel include all Army and Air Force personnel including personnel of the Reserve Forces, Territorial Army and other lawfully constituted armed forces, members of the Nursing Service and civilians working under or with the armed forces. Personnel can be mentioned in dispatches posthumously and multiple awards are possible. A recipient of a mention in a dispatch is entitled to wear an emblem, in the form of a lotus leaf on the ribbon of the relevant campaign medal, they are issued with an official certificate from the Ministry of Defence. Under the current Pakistani military honours system, the Imtiazi Sanad is conferred upon any member of the Pakistani Armed Forces, mentioned in dispatches for an act of gallantry that does not qualify for a formal gallantry award.
In 1920 the Minister of Defence of the Union of South Africa was empowered to award a multiple-leaved bronze oak leaf emblem to all servicemen and servicewomen mentioned in dispatches during the First World War for valuable services in action. The emblem, regarded as a decoration, was worn on the ribbon of the Victory Medal. Only one emblem was
Territorial Decoration
The Territorial Decoration was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Territorial Force was formed on 1 April 1908, following the enactment of the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907, a large reorganisation of the old Volunteer Army and the remaining units of militia and Yeomanry. However, the Militia were transferred to the Special Reserve rather than becoming part of the Territorial Force. A recipient of this award is entitled to the letters "TD" after their name; the original criterion was for a minimum of 20 years service in the Territorial Force and Territorial Army, with war service counting double and service in the ranks counting half. In 1930 the new Efficiency Decoration was introduced to be awarded to all three services; when the ED was awarded to a Territorial Army officer it continued to be known as the Territorial Decoration and the recipient still used the letters TD after their name.
It was replaced in 1999 by the Volunteer Reserves Service Medal, awarded to all ranks in all services. For members of the Honourable Artillery Company the ribbon differed, being a half blue, half scarlet ribbon, with yellow edges; this distinction was bestowed by King Edward VII for the Volunteer Long Service And Good Conduct Medal and the honour extended to the same medals under the Territorial designations. The HAC ribbon colours were the household colours of King Edward VII. Note that this medal is separate from the Territorial Force Imperial Service Badge; the equivalent award for the ranks was the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal, the Territorial Efficiency Medal, the Efficiency Medal. J M A Tamplin, The Territorial Decoration, 1908-1930, Queens Royal Surrey regiment - Territorial Decorations and Medals On Churchill being awarded a TD
Royal Bank of Scotland
The Royal Bank of Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Banca Rìoghail na h-Alba, Scots: Ryal Bank o Scotland abbreviated as RBS, is one of the retail banking subsidiaries of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc, together with NatWest and Ulster Bank. The Royal Bank of Scotland has around 700 branches in Scotland, though there are branches in many larger towns and cities throughout England and Wales. Both the bank and its parent, The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, are separate from the fellow Edinburgh-based bank, the Bank of Scotland, which pre-dates The Royal Bank of Scotland by 32 years; the Royal Bank of Scotland was established in 1724 to provide a bank with strong Hanoverian and Whig ties. Following ring-fencing of the Group's core domestic business, the bank is expected to become a direct subsidiary of NatWest Holdings by 2019. NatWest Markets comprises the Group's investment banking arm. To give it legal form, the former RBS entity was renamed NatWest Markets in 2018. Drummond and Child & Co. businesses in England.
The bank traces its origin to the Society of the Subscribed Equivalent Debt, set up by investors in the failed Company of Scotland to protect the compensation they received as part of the arrangements of the 1707 Acts of Union. The "Equivalent Society" became the "Equivalent Company" in 1724, the new company wished to move into banking; the British government received the request favourably as the "Old Bank", the Bank of Scotland, was suspected of having Jacobite sympathies. Accordingly, the "New Bank" was chartered in 1727 as the Royal Bank of Scotland, with Archibald Campbell, Lord Ilay, appointed its first governor. On 31 May 1728, the Royal Bank of Scotland invented the overdraft, considered an innovation in modern banking, it allowed a merchant in the High Street of Edinburgh, access to £ 1,000 credit. Competition between the Old and New Banks was centred on the issue of banknotes; the policy of the Royal Bank was to either drive the Bank of Scotland out of business, or take it over on favourable terms.
The Royal Bank built up large holdings of the Bank of Scotland's notes, which it acquired in exchange for its own notes suddenly presented to the Bank of Scotland for payment. To pay these notes, the Bank of Scotland was forced to call in its loans and, in March 1728, to suspend payments; the suspension relieved the immediate pressure on the Bank of Scotland at the cost of substantial damage to its reputation, gave the Royal Bank a clear space to expand its own business—although the Royal Bank's increased note issue made it more vulnerable to the same tactics. Despite talk of a merger with the Bank of Scotland, the Royal Bank did not possess the wherewithal to complete the deal. By September 1728, the Bank of Scotland was able to start redeeming its notes again, with interest, in March 1729, it resumed lending. To prevent similar attacks in the future, the Bank of Scotland put an "option clause" on its notes, giving it the right to make the notes interest-bearing while delaying payment for six months.
Both banks decided that the policy they had followed was mutually self-destructive and a truce was arranged, but it still took until 1751 before the two banks agreed to accept each other's notes. The bank opened its first branch office outside Edinburgh in 1783 when it opened one in Glasgow, in part of a draper's shop in the High Street. Further branches were opened in Dundee, Dalkeith, Port Glasgow, Leith in the first part of the nineteenth century. In 1821, the bank moved from its original head office in Edinburgh's Old Town to Dundas House, on St. Andrew Square in the New Town; the building as seen along George Street forms the eastern end of the central vista in New Town. It was designed for Sir Lawrence Dundas by Sir William Chambers as a Palladian mansion, completed in 1774. An axial banking hall behind the building, designed by John Dick Peddie, was added in 1857; the banking hall continues in use as a branch of the bank, Dundas House remains the registered head office of the bank to this day.
The rest of the nineteenth century saw the bank pursue mergers with other Scottish banks, chiefly as a response to failing institutions. The assets and liabilities of the Western Bank were acquired following its collapse in 1857. By 1910, the Royal Bank of Scotland had around 900 staff. In 1969, the bank merged with the National Commercial Bank of Scotland to become the largest clearing bank in Scotland; the expansion of the British Empire in the latter half of the nineteenth century saw the emergence of London as the largest financial centre in the world, attracting Scottish banks to expand southward into England. The first London branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland opened in 1874. However, English banks moved to prevent further expansion by Scottish banks into England. An agreement was reached, under which English banks would not open branches in Scotland and Scottish banks would not open branches in England outside London; this agreement remained in place until the 1960s, although various cross-border acquisitions were permitted.
The Royal Bank's English expansion plans were resurrected after World War I, when it acquired various small English banks, includin
