Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Edward Bruce (23 March 1876 – 26 January 1950) was a British Indian Army officer and British colonial administrator. He served as the Chief Commissioner of Baluchistan in the 1920s.

Biography

Bruce was born in India, the son of Richard Isaac Bruce of the Indian Civil Service. He was educated in England at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...

. From Sandhurst, he was commissioned into the

Lancashire Fusiliers The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and had many different titles throughout its 28 ...

and within the year was transferred to the 24th Baluchistan Regiment. He took part in the Boxer Rebellion in China and also some frontier wars of the North-Western Frontier. Bruce then joined the Political Department, where he became a devoted follower of the policies of Sir

Robert Groves Sandeman Sir Robert Groves Sandeman, KCSI (1835–1892) was a British Indian Army officer and colonial administrator. He was known for his activities in Balochistan, where he introduced a system of "tribal pacification" that endured until the partitio ...

. As noted by ''

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 ...

'': " rucebecame so deeply attracted by its success that he held it to be applicable to the tribes of quite different calibre in the Frontier regions invisibly divided by the

Durand Line The Durand Line ( ps, د ډیورنډ کرښه; ur, ), forms the Pakistan–Afghanistan border, a international land border between Pakistan and Afghanistan in South Asia. The western end runs to the border with Iran and the eastern end to th ...

. He was proud to be called to act as Chief Commissioner of Baluchistan in 1930. He retired in 1931 and when opportunity offered he spoke in advocacy of Sandemanization."

Honours

Bruce was appointed an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the

1919 New Year Honours The 1919 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were published in ''The London Gazette'' and ''The Times'' in Jan ...

, when he was serving as a political officer with Marri Punitive Force, Baluchistan. He was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander (GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No appoi ...

in the 1920 New Year Honours for services in India involving the

Third Anglo-Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War; fa, جنگ سوم افغان-انگلیس), also known as the Third Afghan War, the British-Afghan War of 1919, or in Afghanistan as the War of Independence, began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan inv ...

. Third Anglo-Afghan War He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the

1925 Birthday Honours The 1925 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were p ...

. He was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander ( GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointmen ...

in 1929.

References

Chief Commissioners of Baluchistan 1950 deaths 1876 births British military personnel of the Boxer Rebellion Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire Companions of the Order of the Star of India People from Finchampstead British Indian Army officers Lancashire Fusiliers officers People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Military personnel of British India British people in colonial India Indian Political Service officers {{UK-politician-stub