Lt. Col. William Francis Cyril James Hamilton Napier, 13th Lord Napier, 4th Baron Ettrick DL (9 September 1900 – 23 August 1954) was a Scottish soldier and courtier.

Early life

He was the eldest son of Francis Napier, the 12th Lord Napier and his wife Hon. Clarice Jessie E. Hamilton, daughter of James Hamilton, 9th Lord Belhaven and Stenton. His brother, Hon. Neville Archibald John Watson Ettrick Napier, married Eileen Thorne (daughter of Hubert Prangley Thorne), in 1937. He was educated at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: New Zealand * Wellington College, Wellington, New Zealand * Wellington College of Education, now the Faculty of Education of Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand * Wellington Girls' College, Wellington, N ...

and Sandhurst.

Career

In 1920, he was commissioned into the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers, Royal Highland Fusiliers ...

, as a 2nd lieutenant, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel by 1939. During this time, he served as the commanding officer of the 6th Battalion of the Scottish Borderers (from 1939 to 1941), as well as assistant adjutant general of the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

(from 1943 to 1944 – under General Sir Ronald Adam). He was elected into the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland, is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a pers ...

in 1930, and held a number of political positions, including county councillor for

Selkirkshire Selkirkshire or the County of Selkirk is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county of Scotland. It borders Peeblesshire to the west, Midlothian to the north, Roxburghshire to the east, and Dumfriesshire to the south. It de ...

(from 1946 to 1948) and DL and JP for Selkirkshire.World War II unit histories and officers
/ref> Upon his father's death in 1941, he succeeded as Lord Napier and Ettrick and as chief of the name and arms of

Clan Napier Clan Napier is a Lowland Scottish clan.Way, George and Squire, Romily. ''Collins Scottish Clan & Family Encyclopedia''. (Foreword by The Rt Hon. The Earl of Elgin KT, Convenor, The Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs). Published in 1994. pp. 288 ...

Personal life

On 28 September 1928, he married Violet Muir Newson, a daughter of Sir Percy Newson, 1st Baronet and Helena Franklin (a daughter of Lt.-Col. Denham Franklin). Together, they had four children: * Francis ''Nigel'' Napier, 14th Lord Napier (1930–2012), who married Delia Mary Pearson, daughter of Maj. Archibald David Barclay Pearson and Hilda Constance Helen Blackburn, in 1958. * Hon. Charles Malcolm Napier (born 1933), who married Lady Mariota Cecilia Murray, a daughter of

Mungo Murray, 7th Earl of Mansfield Mungo David Malcolm Murray, 7th Earl of Mansfield, 6th Earl of Mansfield FLS FZS FSAScot FRHS JP DL (9 August 1900 – 2 September 1971), styled Lord Scone from 1906 to 1935, was a Scottish Unionist Party politician. Early life Mansfiel ...

, in 1969.Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes.''

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd Burke's Peerage Limited is a British genealogical publisher, considered an authority on the order of precedence of noble families and information on the lesser nobility of the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1826, when the Anglo-Irish geneal ...

, 2003, vol. 2, pp. 2598, 2863. * Hon. John Greville Napier (1939–1988), who married Juliet Elizabeth Hargreaves Durie, daughter of Sir Alexander Charles Durie and Joyce May Hargreaves, in 1968. * Hon. Hugh ''Lennox'' Napier (1943–1996), a doctor who died unmarried. Lord Napier died on 23 August 1954 and was succeeded by his eldest son,

Nigel Nigel ( ) is an English masculine given name. The English ''Nigel'' is found in records dating from the Middle Ages; however, it was not used much before being revived by 19th-century antiquarians. For instance, Walter Scott published '' The F ...

References

External links

William Francis Cyril Napier, 13th Lord Napier and 4th Baron Ettrick (1900-1954), Lieutenant-Colonel and politician
at the

National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London that houses a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. When it opened in 1856, it was arguably the first national public gallery in the world th ...

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Napier, William Napier, 13th Lord Napier 1900 births 1954 deaths People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire William Napier, 13th Lord Napier 4 British Army personnel of World War II King's Own Scottish Borderers officers Councillors in Scotland Deputy lieutenants of Selkirkshire Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Members of the Royal Company of Archers Lords Napier

211 Year 211 ( CCXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, in the Roman Empire it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Terentius and Bassus (or, less frequently, year 964 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomin ...