Captain Charles St. Clair

Captain The Hon. Charles Henry Murray St. Clair, 1st Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders. He was a Regular Soldier and was killed in action in France on the 20th December 1914, aged 36 during the Battle of Givenchy.He was the son of the Right Hon. Charles William St. Clair, 15th Baron Sinclair and Margaret Jane, Baroness Sinclair of 55 Onslow Square, London, Nisbet, Duns and Herdmanston, Pencaitland. He is buried in Guards Cemetery, Windy Corner, Cuinchy, France where his Headstone is inscribed ” Younger Son Of Charles William St. Clair Fifteenth Baron Sinclair “. He had been educated at Eton and Sandhurst and commissioned into 2nd Seaforths in May 1898. He served in the Boer War and saw action at Magersfontein, Paardeburg and Poplar Grove and was Mentioned in Despatches. From 1903-1906 he was Adjutant of his Battalion and then became A.D.C. to General Sir Bruce Hamilton at H.Q. Scottish Command. In 1912 he was posted to 1st Battalion, Seaforths at Agra, India. His Regiment as part of the Meerut Division and had landed in France on 13th October 1914. He was a member of the King’s Bodyguard for Scotland ( Royal Company of Archers ) and was a member of the New Club, Edinburgh. The Battle was fought between 18th and 22nd December 1914 at the request of the French  and only resulted in 4,000 casualties amongst the troops of the Meerut Division who faced very strong German entrenchments and counter attacks.