Duncan Alwyn Macfarlane

Brigadier general Duncan Alwyn Macfarlane, CB, DSO[1] (19 November 1857 – 9 April 1941 )[2] was a British Army officer,[3] most notably Colonel of the King's Own Scottish Borderers from 1928 to 1938.[4]


Duncan Alwyn Macfarlane
Born(1857-11-19)19 November 1857
Died9 April 1941(1941-04-09) (aged 83)
Dunian Park, Inverness, Scotland
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army
RankBrigadier general
Commands heldKing's Own Scottish Borderers
Battles/wars
Alma materMagdalen College, Oxford

The son of the Reverend James Duncan Macfarlane, Macfarlane was educated at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he matriculated in 1876, graduating B.A. at St. Alban Hall in 1879.[5]

He was commissioned a lieutenant in The King's Own Scottish Borderers on 6 May 1882, and promoted to captain on 11 January 1888. Later that year he joined the 2nd battalion of his regiment as it was sent to Sudan during the Mahdist War, and he took part in the Battle of Suakin (December 1888) and operations on the Sudan Frontier in 1889.[6] He was adjutant of the 2nd battalion as it took part in the Chitral Expedition under General Sir Robert Low in 1895, then served in the Tirah campaign in the North-West Frontier Province 1897–98,[6] for which he received the brevet rank of major on 20 May 1898.[7]

He was promoted substantive major on 5 January 1900, and was with the 1st battalion of his regiment as it went to South Africa to serve in the Second Boer War from 1900 to 1902. He took part in operations in the Orange Free State February to March 1900, including action at Vet River and Zand River; then moved to Transvaal where he took part in the occupation of Johannesburg and Pretoria in June 1900 and was present at the action on Zilikat's Nek in August 1900. He served with the battalion in Transvaal throughout the guerrilla phase of the war, and was temporary in command of the battalion from 20 February to 20 April 1902.[6] For his service in the war he was mentioned in despatches, received the Queen's Medal with three clasps, was appointed a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), and received the brevet rank of lieutenant-colonel on 22 August 1902.[8]

He later served on the Western Front in World War I.[9] In later life he was a Deputy Lieutenant of Inverness. He died at Dunian Park, Inverness;[10] and his wife Edith[11] in 1961.[citation needed]

References edit

  1. ^ "His Majesty's Birthday: List of Honours". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 3 June 1915. pp. 9–10
  2. ^ "Brig-Gen. Duncan Alwyn MacFarlane b. 19 Nov 1857 Staveley, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England d. 9 Apr 1941 Dunain Park, Inverness-Shire, Scotland: MacFarlane Clan & Families Genealogy". www.clanmacfarlanegenealogy.info. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  3. ^ War Office The Times (London, England), Saturday, May 21, 1898; pg. 10; Issue 35522
  4. ^ "The King's Own Scottish Borderers [UK]". archive.is. 18 January 2008. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  5. ^ Foster, Joseph (1888–1892). "Macfarlane, Duncan Alwyn" . Alumni Oxonienses: the Members of the University of Oxford, 1715–1886. Oxford: Parker and Co – via Wikisource.
  6. ^ a b c Hart′s Army list, 1903
  7. ^ "No. 26968". The London Gazette. 20 May 1898. p. 3167.
  8. ^ "No. 27490". The London Gazette. 31 October 1902. p. 6902.
  9. ^ "(260) - Army lists > Hart's Army Lists > New annual army list, militia list, yeomanry cavalry list, and Indian civil service list > 1891 - British Military lists - National Library of Scotland". digital.nls.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  10. ^ Obituaries. The Times (London, England), Thursday, Apr 10, 1941; pg. 7; Issue 48897
  11. ^ "Ernest Richard Strangeway 1891–1916 – webtrees". townsley.info. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
Honorary titles
Preceded by Colonel of the King's Own Scottish Borderers
1928–1938
Succeeded by