Alexander Angus MacFarlane-Grieve, (11 May 1891 – 2 August 1970) was a British academic, mathematician, rower, and decorated

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 Gur ...

officer. He served with the

Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First and Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to form the Royal Highland Fu ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. He was

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

University College, Durham , motto_English = Not for ourselves alone , scarf = , established = , principal = Wendy Powers , vice_principal = Ellen Crabtree , undergraduates = 698 , postgraduates = 153 , coordinates = , location_map = Durham , map_size ...

from 1939 to 1954, and additionally Master of

Hatfield College, Durham , motto_English = Either the first or with the first , scarf = , named_for = Thomas Hatfield , established = , senior_tutor = , master = Ann MacLarnon (2017–) , undergraduates = 1010 (2017/18) , postgrad ...

from 1940 to 1949.

Early life

MacFarlane-Grieve was born on 11 May 1891, and was

baptised Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

St Mary Abbots St Mary Abbots is a church located on Kensington High Street and the corner of Kensington Church Street in London W8. The present church structure was built in 1872 to the designs of Sir George Gilbert Scott, who combined neo-Gothic and early- ...

, an Anglican church in Kensington, London. He was educated at

The Perse School (He who does things for others does them for himself) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day school , religion = Nondenominational Christian , president = , head_label = Head , ...

, a

private school Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * Private (Ryōko Hirosue song), "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

, England. He went on to study mathematics at

, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1913. He rowed for both his college ( University College Boat Club) and for the university (

Durham University Boat Club Durham University Boat Club (DUBC) is the rowing club of Durham University. In recent years, DUBC has cemented itself as one of the strongest university boat clubs in Great Britain. Under the leade ...

). He was President of the DUBC during his final year, from 1912 to 1913.

Military service

On 15 August 1914, having been a member of the

Officer Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...

while at university, MacFarlane-Grieve was commissioned into the 4th Battalion,

The Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First and Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to form the Royal Highland Fus ...

, as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...

(on probation). In December 1914, his commission and rank were confirmed. In July 1915, he attended the Scottish Command School of Signalling at

Peebles Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...

, Tweeddale, Scotland. He then became one of three officers commanding the 4th Battalion's signal section. By June 1917, he had been promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. By the end of the war, he held the

acting rank An acting rank is a designation that allows a soldier to assume a military rank—usually higher and usually temporary. They may assume that rank either with or without the pay and allowances appropriate to that grade, depending on the nature of t ...

of lieutenant colonel. On 4 August 1923, he was transferred to the Regular Army Reserve of Officers (thereby ending his army career) and was promoted to major with seniority from 4 May 1922. While an academic at Durham, he was an officer of the Durham University contingent of the Officer Training Corps.

Academic career

In 1923, having left the army, MacFarlane-Grieve returned to Durham University to become a lecturer in military subjects. Between 1923 and 1939, he was also

Bursar A bursar (derived from "bursa", Latin for '' purse'') is a professional administrator in a school or university often with a predominantly financial role. In the United States, bursars usually hold office only at the level of higher education (fo ...

. In 1939, at the age of 47, he was appointed

of University College. He was the first head of the college not to be not in Holy Orders: i.e. he was the first

layman In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperso ...

. With

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

causing a shrinkage in student numbers, he was additionally appointed acting Master of

in 1940. He stood down from that acting appointment in 1949 and was succeeded by

Eric Birley Eric Barff Birley, From 1948 to 1953, he was Sub-Warden of the Durham Colleges and therefore the deputy of the Vice-Chancellor and Warden with specific responsibility for the

Colleges of Durham University The Colleges of Durham University are residential colleges that are the primary source of accommodation and support services for undergraduates and postgraduates at Durham University, as well as providing a focus for social, cultural and sporting ...

. In 1953, MacFarlane-Grieve inherited the

family estate An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which would historically generate income for its owner. British context In the UK, historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, and woods that s ...

Edenhall Edenhall is a clustered village in the south-west of the civil parish of Langwathby, 800m to the north in the Eden district, in the county of Cumbria, England. Edenhall has a church called St Cuthbert's Church. The name Edenhall originates fro ...

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lot ...

, and retired early from Durham.

Honours

In May 1917, MacFarlane-Grieve was awarded the

Silver Medal of Military Valor The Silver Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia d'argento al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. Italian medals for valor were first instituted by Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia on 21 May 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, ...

by the

King of Italy King of Italy ( it, links=no, Re d'Italia; la, links=no, Rex Italiae) was the title given to the ruler of the Kingdom of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The first to take the title was Odoacer, a barbarian military leader, ...

"for distinguished services rendered during the course of the campaign". In June 1917, he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

(MC) "for distinguished service in the field". In February 1932, he was awarded the

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

(TD) for long service.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:MacFarlane-Grieve, Angus 1891 births 1970 deaths Officers' Training Corps officers British Army personnel of World War I British mathematicians British male rowers Highland Light Infantry officers Academics of Durham University People educated at The Perse School Alumni of University College, Durham Seaforth Highlanders officers Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Military Cross Masters of Hatfield College, Durham Durham University Boat Club rowers Masters of University College, Durham