Robert Munro was a

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

international who represented

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in the first international rugby match in 1871.

Early life

Robert Munro was born in

Dull, Perthshire Dull ( gd, Dul, IPA: ̪uɫ̪ is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is paired with Boring, Oregon. Bland Shire, Bland, New South Wales, Australia, is also a member of the League of Extraordinary Communities established by Boring and ...

in 1839, the son of Alexander M. Munro, a schoolmaster, and Margaret Stewart. He was educated at the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

Rugby union career

Munro played for the University of St Andrews and such was his prowess he was selected to play in the first international rugby match in 1871 between Scotland and England. This was played on 27 March 1871 at Raeburn Place, Edinburgh and won by Scotland. Later in 1871 he became licensed by the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

of St Andrews and began missionary duties.

Career and personal life

Munro became a minister in the

. He was licensed in November 1871 by the St Andrews Presbytery and became a missionary at

Struan in Atholl Struan is a name of Scottish origin and may refer to: Places * Struan, South Australia, Australia * Struan, Saskatchewan, Canada * Struan, Skye, Scotland * Struan, Perthshire, Scotland ** Struan railway station People *Struan Dewar (born 1989), ...

. He was ordained to St Kiarans,

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

, on 16 November 1876. He was translated to Ardnamurchan on 16 April 1879 and on 15 January 1890 translated and admitted. He was demitted on 5 December 1908. Munro died on 28 August 1913.Scott, Hew, 1791–1872; Macdonald, D. F. (Donald Farquhar), ''Fasti ecclesiæ scoticanæ; the succession of ministers in the Church of Scotland from the reformation (1915)'', (Edinburgh : Oliver and Boyd)
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References

1839 births 1913 deaths Alumni of the University of St Andrews University of St Andrews RFC players Scottish rugby union players Scotland international rugby union players Rugby union forwards Rugby union players from Perth and Kinross {{Scotland-rugbyunion-bio-stub