Alexander Blair (rugby union)

Alexander Blair was a Scottish rugby union player. He was the 36th President of the Scottish Rugby Union. He became a Colonel in the army and then became President of the British Legion and Chairman of the Earl Haig Fund. An advocate to trade he was a Writer to the Signet. He received a CBE in the New Years Honours List of 1933.[1]

Alexander Blair
Birth nameAlexander Stevenson Blair
Date of birth(1865-06-03)3 June 1865
Place of birthEdinburgh, Scotland
Date of death10 September 1936(1936-09-10) (aged 60)
Place of deathEdinburgh, Scotland
SchoolLoretto School
UniversityBrasenose College, Oxford
Rugby union career
Position(s) Three Quarters
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
Oxford University ()
36th President of the Scottish Rugby Union
In office
1909–1910
Preceded byDavid Cassels
Succeeded byCharles Fleming

Rugby Union career

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Amateur career

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After attending Loretto School,[2] Blair went to Brasenose College in Oxford.[3] He played for Oxford University,[4] and was in the 1st XV.[5] He was secretary of both the rugby and athletics club of the university.[1]

Administrative career

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He was Secretary of the Scottish Rugby Union for 4 years from 1886.[1]

Blair was on the International Rugby Board in 1889.[6]

He became the 36th President of the Scottish Rugby Union. He served one year from 1909 to 1910.[7]

Military career

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First as Lieutenant Colonel, then Colonel, Blair commanded the 'Dandy Ninth', the Lothian Regiment of the Royal Scots, in the First World War.[8] In 1916 he was awarded a CMG.[1]

After the war he joined the British Legion where he became treasurer in Scotland.

Law career

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Blair's firm, Strathearn and Blair, acted as solicitors for the Scottish Rugby Union.[9] Blair was a Writer to the Signet.[1]

Death

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He is buried in Dean Cemetery in Edinburgh.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "BNA: 0000577/19360911/088/0008".
  2. ^ "BNA: 0001055/18841211/041/0004".
  3. ^ "BNA: 0000893/18841022/092/0004".
  4. ^ "BNA: 0000893/18841113/069/0004".
  5. ^ "BNA: 0000893/18851026/078/0004".
  6. ^ "BNA: 0001055/18890302/087/0007".
  7. ^ "Scottish Rugby Record 2018/19" (PDF). Scottish Rugby. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-11-16. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  8. ^ "Catalogue description Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Stevenson BLAIR. The Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)".
  9. ^ "BNA: 0000563/19250120/020/0003".
  10. ^ "LTC Alexander Stevenson Blair (1865-1936) - Find A".