Sir George Herbert Murray (27 September 1849 – 4 April 1936) was a British civil servant.

Early life

Murray was born in

Southfleet Southfleet is a small village and civil parish in the borough of Dartford in Kent, England. The village is located three miles southwest of Gravesend, while the parish includes within its boundaries the hamlets of Betsham and Westwood. Southfle ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the son of and Penelope Frances Elizabeth Pemberton Austin (the daughter of Brigadier-General Austin) and the Reverend George Edward Murray, the village's

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

. He was also a grandson of the Right Reverend George Murray, Bishop of Rochester (who married Lady Sarah Hay-Drummond, daughter of Robert Hay-Drummond, 10th Earl of Kinnoull), a great-grandson of the Right Reverend Lord George Murray (who was second son of

John Murray, 3rd Duke of Atholl John Murray, 3rd Duke of Atholl KT, PC (6 May 1729 – 5 November 1774), known as John Murray until 1764, was a Scottish peer and Tory politician. Background He was born 6 May 1729. Murray was the eldest son of Lord George Murray, fifth son ...

, himself the eldest son of renowned Scottish Jacobite Lord George Murray, the sixth son of

John Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl John Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl, KT, PC (24 February 166014 November 1724) was a Scottish nobleman, politician, and soldier. He served in numerous positions during his life, and fought in the Glorious Revolution for William III and Mary II ...

). He was educated at Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford.

Career

He entered the Foreign Office in 1873 and transferred to

HM Treasury His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...

in 1880. From 1892 to 1894 he was private secretary to

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

in his role as

First Lord of the Treasury The first lord of the Treasury is the head of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom, and is by convention also the prime minister. This office is not equivalent to the ...

, and became principal private secretary to his successor,

Lord Rosebery Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929) was a British Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from March 1894 to June 1895. Between the death of ...

, until 1895. In 1897, Murray was appointed chairman of the

Board of Inland Revenue The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation ta ...

. In 1899 he became secretary to the General Post Office and in 1903 returned to the Treasury as Joint Permanent Secretary, in charge of administrative matters while Sir Edward Hamilton handled the financial affairs. On Hamilton's retirement in October 1907, Murray became sole permanent secretary. In 1909, Murray was involved in lobbying various Crossbench peers in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

to reject the Chancellor of the Exchequer's proposed budget. On 19 July 1910 he was appointed to the Privy Council, entitling him to the style "The Right Honourable". He retired on 23 July 1911. From 1914, Murray played a prominent part in the management of the Prince of Wales's Fund. In 1915 he became chairman of the committee on the employment of soldiers and sailors disabled in the war. He was also a member of the

Haldane Committee Haldane is a surname and a given name which may refer to: People * Clan Haldane, a Lowland Scottish clan Surname * A. R. B. Haldane (1900–1982), Scottish social historian and author * Andrew "Ack-Ack" Haldane (1917–1944), U.S. Marine, World ...

, which reported on the machinery of government in 1918

Personal life

On 23 September 1879, he was married to the Honourable Helen Mary Mulholland, a daughter of John Mulholland, 1st Baron Dunleath, and granddaughter of

Lord Mayor of Belfast The Lord Mayor of Belfast is the leader and chairperson of Belfast City Council, elected annually from and by the City's 60 Councillors#UnitedKingdom, councillors. The Lord Mayor also serves as the representative of the city of Belfast, welcomin ...

Andrew Mulholland Andrew Mulholland (1791–24 August 1866), was a northern Irish cotton and linen manufacturer. Biography He was born in Belfast in 1791, the son of Thomas Mulholland, a cotton manufacturer who founded the company of Messrs. Thomas Mulholland & C ...

. Together, they were the parents of: * Sir George Evelyn Pemberton Murray (1880–1947), who also became secretary to the Post Office, the last person to hold the office. He married Muriel Mildred Elizabeth Beresford-Hope, daughter of Philip Beresford-Hope (a son of Sir Alexander Beresford Hope and Lady Mildred, eldest daughter of

James Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquess of Salisbury James Brownlow William Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquess of Salisbury, (17 April 1791 – 12 April 1868), styled Viscount Cranborne until 1823, was a British Conservative politician. He held office under The Earl of Derby as Lord Privy Seal in 185 ...

), in 1906. * Irene Helen Murray (born 1882), who married Captain Marshall Owen Roberts, a son of the wealthy American businessman

Marshall Owen Roberts Marshall Owen Roberts (March 22, 1813 – September 11, 1880) was an American merchant, financier, railroad man, and prominent art collector. Early life Roberts was born on March 22, 1813, in New York City. He was the son of Welsh born Dr. Owen Ro ...

, in 1903. They divorced in 1921. Lady Murray died on 19 February 1932. Sir George died on 4 April 1936.

Descendants

Through his son, he was a grandfather of Lieutenant-Colonel George Anthony Murray (1907–1945), who was killed in action in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He married the Honourable Angela Pearson (a daughter of

Harold Pearson, 2nd Viscount Cowdray Weetman Harold Miller Pearson, 2nd Viscount Cowdray, (18 April 1882 – 5 October 1933), styled The Honourable Harold Pearson between 1910 and 1927, was a British peer and Liberal Party politician. Background Cowdray was the son of Weetman Dic ...

, and Agnes Beryl Spencer-Churchill, granddaughter of

George Spencer-Churchill, 6th Duke of Marlborough George Spencer-Churchill, 6th Duke of Marlborough (27 December 1793 – 1 July 1857), styled Earl of Sunderland until 1817 and Marquess of Blandford between 1817 and 1840, was a British nobleman, politician, and peer. The great-grandfather of S ...

). Their son, George Iain Murray, inherited the Dukedom of Atholl in 1957. Through his daughter, he was a grandfather of Owen George Endicott Roberts, a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

and aviator who founded the Caribbean International Airways; and Angela Susan Roberts, who married three times: first to Lieutenant-Colonel the Honourable Somerset Arthur Maxwell (son of Arthur Maxwell, 11th Baron Farnham) in 1930, second to Lieutenant-Commander Henry Harrison Proctor (a son of Charles A. Proctor) in 1944, and third to Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Remington-Hobbs in 1950.

Honours

Murray was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in 1894 and

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

(KCB) in the

1899 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1899 were announced on 3 June 1899 in celebration of the birthday of Queen Victoria. The list included appointments to various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and British India. The list was published in '' ...

, shortly after joining the Post Office. He was appointed to the Imperial Service Order (ISO) in 1904, and was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in the

1908 Birthday Honours The 1908 Birthday Honours for the British Empire were announced on 28 June, to celebrate the birthday of Edward VII. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged by honour, with classes (K ...

and

Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(GCVO) in the 1920 New Year Honours.

References

External links

* *Obituary, ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'', 6 April 1936 {{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, George Herbert 1849 births 1936 deaths People from the Borough of Dartford People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Permanent Secretaries of HM Treasury Secretaries of the General Post Office Chairmen of the Board of Inland Revenue Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of HM Foreign Service Private secretaries in the British Civil Service

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...

Companions of the Imperial Service Order