Lord Ninian Crichton-Stuart
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Ninian Edward Crichton-Stuart (15 May 1883 – 2 October 1915) was a Scottish senior officer in the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
and
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
. He was killed in action in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The second son of the Honourable Gwendolen Mary Anne Fitzalan-Howard and John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, he entered the army in 1903 and served in the
Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Al ...
and the
Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the E ...
as a lieutenant. After marrying he began a career in politics, serving first as a councillor on Fife County Council, Scotland. His family having close connections to the city of
Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
in Wales, he fought and lost the January 1910 election there as a
Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a politic ...
candidate. The resulting hung parliament led to a second election in December 1910, in which Crichton-Stuart won the seat. In 1912, he took command of the 6th (Glamorgan) Battalion, The Welch Regiment. Upon the outbreak of the First World War, he volunteered his unit for service and joined the British Expeditionary Force on the Western Front. After eleven months on the front line, he was shot in the head and killed when leading his men in an attempt to repel a German counter-attack on 2 October 1915 during the
Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...
. He was one of 22 MPs that were killed during the conflict and the only serving MP from Wales to be killed. The home ground of
Cardiff City F.C. Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
was named
Ninian Park Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixtu ...
after Crichton-Stuart offered to be a guarantor for the football club's rental of the site. After his death, a statue of Crichton-Stuart was erected in
Cathays Park Cathays Park ( cy, Parc Cathays) or Cardiff Civic Centre is a civic centre area in the city centre of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, consisting of a number of early 20th century buildings and a central park area, Alexandra Gardens. It i ...
in Cardiff.


Early life

Crichton-Stuart was born at
Dumfries House Dumfries House (Scottish Gaelic: ''Taigh Dhùn Phris'') is a Palladian country house located in the town of Cumnock in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It is within a large estate, around west of Cumnock. Noted for being one of the few such houses with ...
in Ayrshire, Scotland. He was the second son of John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, and his wife, the
Honourable ''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certai ...
Gwendolen Mary Anne Fitzalan Howard, daughter of
Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Glossop Edward George Fitzalan-Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Glossop PC (20 June 18181 December 1883), styled Lord Edward Howard between 1842 and 1869, was a British Liberal politician. He served as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household under Lord John Rus ...
. Through his father, he was an illegitimate descendant of the
House of Stuart The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...
. He was educated at Harrow School, showing promise in mathematics and foreign languages, and was expected to enter the
diplomatic service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...
. To further his studies, he travelled to Kiev in the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
and became a proficient Russian speaker. However, he was forced to return home after contracting a severe fever and instead attended Christ Church, Oxford once he had recovered. His family's estate included numerous properties and considerable land in Cardiff, including Cardiff Castle, and Crichton-Stuart frequently visited the city, including accompanying his father on visits to Bute docks. He also learnt to speak Welsh. Crichton-Stuart later chose to enter the army and was commissioned in 1903 into the 3rd Battalion of the
Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders or 79th (The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. It amalgamated with the Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Al ...
and then served for two years in the 1st Battalion, the
Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the E ...
as a 2nd lieutenant.


Marriage, philanthropy and political career

In 1905, Crichton-Stuart met the Honourable Ismay Preston, the only daughter of
Jenico Preston, 14th Viscount Gormanston Jenico William Joseph Preston, 14th Viscount Gormanston, (1 June 1837 – 29 October 1907), was an aristocratic Anglo-Irish colonial administrator. Born at Gormanston Castle, County Meath, he was son and heir of Edward Preston, 13th Visc ...
and Georgina Jane Connelan, at the wedding of his brother John Crichton-Stuart and Augusta Bellingham where he was best man and Preston was a bridesmaid. The couple announced their engagement in January 1906 and married six months later, on 16 June, at her family estate at
Gormanston Castle Franciscan College Gormanston is a school operated and managed by the Irish province of the Order of the Friars Minor. The college operates under the trusteeship of the Minister Provincial and Definitory of the Franciscan Province of Ireland. ...
. Following their marriage, Crichton-Stuart transferred into the
Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...
and decided to enter politics in order to be closer to his wife and manage his family's estate in
Falkland, Fife Falkland ( gd, Fàclann), previously in the Lands of Kilgour ( 1200), is a village, parish and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, at the foot of the Lomond Hills. According to the 2008 population estimate, it has a population of 1,180. Etymo ...
. Crichton-Stuart first served on Fife County Council in his native Scotland and took a keen interest in local agriculture, becoming president of Fife Agricultural Society. He was later named as a member of a committee appointed by the president of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries to study the rights of tenant farmers when their land was sold or their landlords died. Crichton-Stuart also held the office of Justice of the Peace (JP) for Fife. Crichton-Stuart's family had a history of serving in parliament for the Cardiff area, his great uncle Lord Patrick Crichton-Stuart having held the post on two occasions. In August 1907, at a meeting of the Cardiff Conservative Association, Crichton-Stuart was invited by Herbert Cory and his supporting panel to be the Unionist candidate for the United Boroughs of Cardiff, Cowbridge and Llantrisant. Soon after his selection, he and his wife had their first child, named Ninian Patrick Crichton-Stuart, on 31 October 1907. Lord Ninian's campaign for election was based on reform of the poor law and extending the age range of the old age pension. He also stated of his desire of preserving and strengthening the military forces of Britain. He lost the election to
Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...
candidate David Alfred Thomas in January 1910 but did manage to reduce the majority by half from the previous election in
1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...
. Despite his defeat, his popularity among voters was increasing and at the end of the election campaign a crowd of thousands of people came to see Crichton-Stuart and his wife travel to the train station. The crowd gathered outside the Angel Hotel where the couple were staying and, when they left, their carriage was pulled by around 60 volunteers. The procession stopped briefly outside Cardiff Conservative Club where Crichton-Stuart shook hands with numerous people and gave a short speech before continuing to the station. ''The Evening Express'' remarked on the procession, stating "never before has a parliamentary candidate, victorious or defeated, been so honoured by the people of Cardiff". On the
polling day Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Saturday or Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate; while in other countries elections ar ...
, Lord Ninian's son caught a chill being driven around Cardiff and later died. He was buried near
Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, providing an escape from political and religious turmoil. Today it is under the stewardship of ...
in Fife. Crichton-Stuart and his family did not permanently reside in Cardiff until he and his wife moved there in April 1910, moving into
Penylan Penylan is a district and community in the east of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, known for its Edwardian era period houses and spacious tree lined roads and avenues. Situated to both the north and south of the A48 dual carriageway, it ...
Court which had previously been the residence of William Tatem, 1st Baron Glanely. A second election was held in December 1910 following a hung parliament, in which Crichton-Stuart was successful, taking the seat from the Liberal candidate
Clarendon Hyde Sir Clarendon Golding Hyde (5 February 1858 – 24 June 1934) was a British businessman and Liberal Party politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1906 to 1910, but his most significant public service was his participation in numerous gov ...
, with a majority of 299 votes, a turnaround of 1,800 votes in the space of ten months. With a history in the military, the majority of the issues he raised before parliament concerned the armed forces, including the high costs officers were faced with during manoeuvres and a petition to improve the weaponry provided to the British cavalry units. Crichton-Stuart became a well-known figure in Cardiff and was instrumental in promoting sport in the area. A keen sportsman himself, being proficient in shooting, fishing and motoring, he stabled horses in Cardiff and entered them into steeplechase competitions and races at Ely Racecourse. In 1910, Cardiff City Football Club had secured the lease of a plot of land in order to build a new stadium. During development, one of the guarantors for the club pulled out and Crichton-Stuart instead offered his support of the project and acted as a guarantor for the £90 annual rent that the club had agreed to. In recognition of his role in the building of the ground, the club dropped the original planned name of the ground, Sloper Park, and instead named it
Ninian Park Ninian Park was a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovations during its lifespan and hosted fixtu ...
. The ground was officially opened on 1 September 1910 and Crichton-Stuart performed the kick-off for a friendly match between Cardiff and Football League First Division side Aston Villa. He was also a patron of the Lord Ninian Stuart Cup, a competition for local football teams.


First World War

On 9 March 1911, Crichton-Stuart was promoted as lieutenant-colonel of the 6th (Glamorgan) Battalion, The Welch Regiment and took command of the battalion the following year. It was an experienced unit, being the oldest Swansea volunteer corps, that were often used as a guard of honour during royal visits and Crichton-Stuart's wife Ismay chose the battalion colours of scarlet, silver and green. Following the outbreak of the First World War, he volunteered his battalion for service and they were shipped to France as part of the British Expeditionary Force, with 812 troops, 30 officers and 500 horses, becoming one of the first territorial battalions to join the war. At the battalion drill hall in Swansea prior to their departure, Crichton-Stuart addressed the unit, stating "The greatest honour a man can receive is that he has been provided with a chance to give, if need be, the greatest that he has, which is his life, for his country. I do not doubt every man on this parade will give it and give it as willingly as I mean to give it myself." On their arrival on the Western Front, the 6th were initially used to support
lines of communication A line of communication (or communications) is the route that connects an operating military unit with its supply base. Supplies and reinforcements are transported along the line of communication. Therefore, a secure and open line of communicati ...
for guard and fatigue duties, first in
Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the C ...
before moving to
Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; vls, Sint-Omaars) is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Saint Audoma ...
. The posting greatly frustrated Crichton-Stuart who was eager to join the fighting. In July 1915, they were transferred to the front and took part in operations at
Heuvelland Heuvelland () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the villages of Dranouter, Kemmel, De Klijte, Loker, Nieuwkerke, Westouter, Wijtschate and Wulvergem. H ...
where they were labelled "the lucky 6th" by other units due to their relatively low number of wounded and Crichton-Stuart gained a reputation as a leader who was "always concerned with the welfare of his men".


Death

On the night of 1 October 1915, during the
Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...
, the 6th Battalion was part of a force that successfully charged and captured a set of enemy trenches at the
Hohenzollern Redoubt The Hohenzollern Redoubt () was a strongpoint of the German 6th Army on the Western Front during the First World War, at Auchy-les-Mines near Loos-en-Gohelle in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. Named after the House of Hohenzollern, ...
, near
La Bassée La Bassée () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Population Heraldry Personalities La Bassée was the birthplace of the painter and draftsman Louis-Léopold Boilly (1761–1845). Another native was Ignace François ...
, despite suffering heavy losses. Prior to the battle, the 6th had not slept for two days and had marched for 16 hours to reach the location. The following morning, the German troops launched a counter-attack to retake the trenches and the two Welsh battalions that were holding them were split from each other. Crichton-Stuart ordered the digging of a sap trench in order to reach the other units but prolonged attacks from three sides left the unit short of ammunition and other supplies and the order was given to abandon the trench and retreat. During the start of the evacuation of the trench, he was shot in the head by a German sniper after firing his revolver over the trench parapet and died at the age of 32, the only serving Welsh MP to be killed during the conflict. His body was returned to battalion headquarters and placed in a zinc-lined coffin in a church in the town of Sailly-Labourse. The coffin was held in the church vault until spring 1918 with the intention of returning it to Britain at the end of the war but a German artillery bombardment damaged the vaults and his body was buried in the grounds of the
Béthune Béthune ( ; archaic and ''Bethwyn'' historically in English) is a city in northern France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department. Geography Béthune is located in the former province of Artois. It is situated south-east of Calais, ...
Town Cemetery in a Catholic ceremony. Several reports state that he may have been attempting to rally his troops in order to mount a search party to locate his close friend Major Reginald C. Browning, who was last seen in a trench that had been overrun by German troops. An officer in his regiment reported that Crichton-Stuart "was to be found wherever danger threatened" and that his death had "cast a gloom" over the battalion. Crichton-Stuart had served for eleven months on the front line before his death. Of the 842 members of the 6th Battalion that had begun the war, only 30 survived. There was an outpouring of grief when his death was announced and his wife Ismay received numerous letters of condolence, including one from
Margaret Lloyd George Dame Margaret Lloyd George (; 4 November 1864 – 20 January 1941) was a Welsh humanitarian and one of the first seven women magistrates appointed in Britain in 1919. She was the wife of Prime Minister David Lloyd George from 1888 until her deat ...
, the wife of
David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during ...
. On 30 April 1917 Crichton-Stuart's widow, Ismay, married Captain Archibald Henry Maule Ramsay (4 May 1894 – 11 March 1955), later a Scottish Unionist MP for Peebles and South Midlothian 1931–1945. Together they had four sons. Ismay died on 16 February 1975 aged 92, and was survived by six of her eight children.


Legacy

Crichton-Stuart is commemorated on Panel 8 of the
Parliamentary War Memorial The Parliamentary War Memorial, also known as the Recording Angel Memorial, is a stone sculpture in Westminster Hall, unveiled in 1922, which commemorates the members of both Houses of Parliament of the United Kingdom who died in the First Wor ...
in Westminster Hall, one of 22 MPs and officers of the House of Commons who died during the First World War to be named on that memorial. Crichton-Stuart is one of 19 MPs who fell in the war who are commemorated by heraldic shields in the Commons Chamber. A further act of commemoration came with the unveiling in 1932 of a manuscript-style
illuminated Illuminated may refer to: * "Illuminated" (song), by Hurts * Illuminated Film Company, a British animation house * ''Illuminated'', alternative title of Black Sheep (Nat & Alex Wolff album) * Illuminated manuscript See also * Illuminate (disambi ...
book of remembrance for the House of Commons, which includes a short biographical account of his life and death. A statute of Crichton-Stuart was commissioned soon after his death. Sculpted by Sir William Goscombe John, the statue was placed in Gorsedd Gardens in
Cathays Park Cathays Park ( cy, Parc Cathays) or Cardiff Civic Centre is a civic centre area in the city centre of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, consisting of a number of early 20th century buildings and a central park area, Alexandra Gardens. It i ...
and depicts Crichton-Stuart in military uniform with binoculars in his right hand and papers in his left in a design intended to show him surveying the battlefield. Ninian Road in Roath Park, one of the Bute estate developments from the early twentieth century, continues to bear his name. Ninian Park maintained its name until it was closed and demolished in 2009 following the construction of the Cardiff City's new ground, the
Cardiff City Stadium The Cardiff City Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Dinas Caerdydd) is a stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales. It is the home of Cardiff City Football Club and the Wales national football team. Following expansion of the Ninian Stand in July 2 ...
, although one side of the new ground was named the Ninian Stand. A housing estate was built on the site of the former ground and retained the name Ninian Park. The nearby Ninian Park railway station and Ninian Park primary school also bear his name. A chapel commissioned to be built on the family estate in Falkland as a memorial to Crichton-Stuart's son who died at the age of two still stands partially built after work was abandoned following Crichton-Stuart's death. File:Lord-Ninian-Crichton-Stuart-by-Aberdare-Blog.jpg, Statue in Memory of Lord Ninian situated in Gorsedd Gardens, Cardiff File:Unfinished memorial chapel at Falkland - cropped from geograph.org.uk - 622629.jpg, Unfinished chapel at Falkland, Fife, that is also a memorial to Crichton-Stuart File:Falkland Memorial Chapel interior.jpg, Interior of the memorial chapel, looking west


Family

Crichton-Stuart and his wife Ismay had four children: * Ninian Patrick Crichton-Stuart (31 October 1907 – 4 February 1910) * Ismay Catherine Crichton-Stuart (23 December 1909 - 1989); her first marriage, on 1 October 1930, was to John Anthony Hardinge Giffard, 3rd Earl of Halsbury; together they had one son Adam (1934–2010). They divorced in 1936. Her second marriage was to Donald Walter Munro Ross on 30 August 1937. * Claudia Miriam Joanna Crichton-Stuart (24 June 1913 – 19 June 1985) * Major Michael Duncan David Crichton-Stuart MC (14 March 1915 – 1981); he married Barbara Symes, daughter of Sir George Stewart Symes, on 1 March 1941. His son – Ninian Stuart – is the Hereditary Keeper of
Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, providing an escape from political and religious turmoil. Today it is under the stewardship of ...
, has one son and one daughter by his late wife.Darryl Lundy
"Michael Duncan David Crichton-Stuart"
''The Peerage.com'' database. Retrieved 4 May 2008


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Crichton-Stuart, Ninian 1883 births 1915 deaths People educated at Harrow School Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders officers Scots Guards officers Welch Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Cardiff constituencies UK MPs 1910–1918 British military personnel killed in World War I Younger sons of marquesses Ninian Stuart