Col. Herbert Hugh Muirhead (10 December 1850 – 4 March 1904) was a British soldier, who played for the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

in the 1872 FA Cup Final.

Family

3 Miurhead children by Julian E Drummond 1824 to 1906

Muirhead was born at 3 Oriental Place,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, the son of

James Patrick Muirhead James Patrick Muirhead FRSE (26 July 1813 – 15 October 1898) was a Scottish advocate and author, best known as the biographer of James Watt. Life Born at The Grove, Hamilton, Lanarkshire, he was son of Lockhart Muirhead; George Muirhead (lingu ...

(1813–1898) and his wife Katharine Elizabeth née Boulton (1819–1890). His father was the biographer of

James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was f ...

, the engineer, and his mother was the granddaughter of Watt's partner,

Matthew Boulton Matthew Boulton ( ; 3 September 172817 August 1809) was an English businessman, inventor, mechanical engineer, and silversmith. He was a business partner of the Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century, the par ...

. Muirhead's eldest brother was Lionel Boulton Campbell Lockhart Muirhead, who composed hymns, and whose son,

Anthony Anthony, also spelled Antony, is a masculine given name derived from the '' Antonii'', a '' gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descenda ...

, was MP for Wells in

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

from 1929 to 1939. Muirhead never married.

Education

Muirhead was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

from 1864 to 1867, before changing schools to

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, followed by the

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of Officer (armed forces), commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers o ...

until 1871.

Football career

Muirhead represented both his schools and the RMA at

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

, before joining the

. Muirhead played as a forward and was "noticed for his excellent and fine runs". In November 1871, the

were among fifteen teams who entered the inaugural FA Cup competition; after victories over

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district of Hertfordshire, England. The town dates from at least the 7th century. It lies in the valley of the River Hiz at the north-eastern end of the Chiltern Hills ...

(5–0), Hampstead Heathens (3–0) and

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

(3–0 after a replay), the Engineers met Wanderers, the top amateur club of the day, in the first FA Cup Final, played at

Kennington Oval Kennington is a district in south London, England. It is mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, running along the boundary with the London Borough of Southwark, a boundary which can be discerned from the early medieval period between th ...

on 16 March 1872, which the Engineers lost 1–0, to a goal from

Morton Betts Morton Peto Betts (30 August 1847 – 19 April 1914) was a leading English sportsman of the late 19th century. He was notable for scoring the first goal in an English FA Cup Finals, FA Cup final. Early life Betts was the son of Edward Betts of ...

. In the final, Muirhead was involved in the only attack by the Engineers which succeeded in breaking through the Wanderers defence when, according to the match report in ''The Field'', "a fine run by Lieut. Muirhead brought the ball within a few yards of the centre of the posts".

Military career

Muirhead graduated from RMA Woolwich and joined the

as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 2 August 1871. Fellow graduates on the same day were two of his fellow FA Cup finalists, Alfred Goodwyn and

Edmond Cotter Col. Edmond William Cotter (12 February 1852 – 23 August 1934) was an Irish Republican, who played for the Royal Engineers in the 1872 FA Cup Final. As a soldier, he was engaged in four military campaigns: the Ashanti campaign of 1873–74 ...

, as well as

Richard Ruck Major-General Sir Richard Mathews Ruck (27 May 1851 – 17 March 1935) was a British Army officer who served with the Royal Engineers, spending most of his career in the Submarine Mining Service, before becoming the Director of Fortifications ...

, who played in the 1875 FA Cup Final. Muirhead was promoted to

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

twelve years later. Muirhead received further promotions, to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

on 17 December 1889 and to lieutenant-colonel on 4 April 1897, becoming a full

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

on 4 April 1901. Between October 1871 and September 1873, Muirhead was based at Chatham, before spending two years in Ireland. In January 1876, Muirhead was posted to Bermuda until November 1878 before a transfer to Gibraltar, returning to England at the end of May 1881, where he was based at

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

. Between November 1881 and December 1883, he was based at The Curragh (Ireland), before taking up a post with the

Royal Arsenal The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich is an establishment on the south bank of the River Thames in Woolwich in south-east London, England, that was used for the manufacture of armaments and ammunition, proof test, proofing, and explosives research for ...

, Woolwich, where he served until July 1893, reaching the position of "Second Assistant, Building Works, Ordnance Factories". Between August 1893 and September 1898, he was posted to

Esquimalt The Township of Esquimalt () is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Jua ...

on Canada's Pacific coast, where he was involved in West coast defence works. He spent the last five years in the Royal Engineers at

Pembroke Dock Pembroke Dock () is a town and a community in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, northwest of Pembroke on the banks of the River Cleddau. Originally Paterchurch, a small fishing village, Pembroke Dock town expanded rapidly following the constr ...

in South Wales. On 4 April 1902, Muirhead retired on £450 per annum retired pay.

Death

Muirhead died at 32 Seymour Street,

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

on 4 March 1904 from

pleuropneumonia Pleuropneumonia is inflammation of the lungs and pleura, pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (Pulmonary pleurae, pleurae). This can result in a sharp ...

, aged 53. He left an estate valued for probate at £19,001.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muirhead, Herbert 1850 births 1904 deaths Men's association football forwards English men's footballers Footballers from Brighton Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich People educated at Eton College People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Royal Engineers A.F.C. players Royal Engineers officers Deaths from pneumonia in England