Andrew Bruce, 11th Earl of Elgin

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The Earl of Elgin

11th Earl of Elgin
Tenure1968–present
Full name
Andrew Douglas Alexander Thomas Bruce
Other titlesLord Bruce (1924–1968)
BornAndrew Douglas Alexander Thomas Bruce, Lord Bruce
(1924-02-17) 17 February 1924 (age 100)
Broomhall House, Fife, Scotland [1]
ResidenceBroomhall House, nr. Dunfermline, Scotland
Offices Chief of Clan Bruce
Lord Lieutenant of Fife
Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
Spouse(s)
Victoria Usher
(m. 1959;died 2024)
Issue5, including Adam
Parents Edward Bruce, 10th Earl of Elgin
Katherine Cochrane
Military career
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branch British Army
Years of service1943–46, 1951–65, 1976–86
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
Service number 293466
Unit Scots Guards
Battles / wars Second World War
Awards Order of the Thistle
Canadian Forces' Decoration

Andrew Douglas Alexander Thomas Bruce, 11th Earl of Elgin and 15th Earl of Kincardine, KT , CD , JP , DL (born 17 February 1924), styled Lord Bruce before 1968, is a Scottish peer and Chief of Clan Bruce. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Elgin was born in 1924 at the family seat, Broomhall House, in Fife, the eldest son of the 10th Earl of Elgin and Katherine Elizabeth, Countess of Elgin, daughter of the 1st Baron Cochrane of Cults. The arrival of a male heir following the births of two daughters, Lady Martha and Lady Jean, created tremendous celebration at the Broomhall estate, which included a bonfire and fireworks attended by crowds of villagers from Limekilns and Charlestown. He was styled Lord Bruce from birth [3] and christened at Broomhall on 31 March 1924 by his great-uncle Rev. Henry Holmes Stewart. [4] His five god-parents were Field Marshal Earl Haig, his uncle the Hon. Thomas Cochrane, Sir Alexander Gibb; Lord Elgin's elder sister, Lady Elisabeth Babington Smith; and Lady Victoria Cavendish-Bentinck, daughter of the Duke of Portland. [5]

He was educated at Eton and at Balliol College, Oxford.

Military career

On 12 September 1943, Bruce was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 3rd (Armoured) Bn Scots Guards [6] [7] and was wounded during Operation Bluecoat, the breakout from Normandy in August 1944. He was invalided out of the army on 24 October 1946, with the honorary rank of lieutenant. [8]

On 4 April 1951, he was appointed an instructor in the Army Cadet Force, with the rank of Lieutenant. [9] In July 1963, by then the County Cadet Commandant for Fife, he was awarded the Cadet Forces Medal. [10] He resigned his commission on 19 April 1965, retaining the honorary rank of lieutenant-colonel. [11] [12] Since 1970, he has been Colonel-in-Chief of the 31 Combat Engineer Regiment (The Elgins), [13] and was Honorary Colonel of the 153 (Highland) Transport Regiment from 1976 to 1986.

Career

Elgin has held a number of business appointments, including as President of the Scottish Amicable Life Assurance Society (1975–1994), and Chairman of the National Savings Committee for Scotland. He was also President of the Royal Scottish Automobile Club. [14]

He was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 1951, was Deputy Lieutenant of Fife 1955–1987, and Lord Lieutenant 1987–1999. In 1980, he was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II as her Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and reappointed in 1981. [15] In 1981 HM The Queen appointed him as a Knight of the Thistle. [16] He was awarded the Canadian Forces' Decoration in 1981. He is a former Captain of the Royal Company of Archers and a former convenor of the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs.

He was County Cadet Commandant for Fife from 1952 to 1965, Brigade President of the Boys' Brigade from 1966 to 1985, and Grand Master Mason of Scotland from 1961 to 1965. [17]

He is a Freeman of Bridgetown, Regina, Saskatchewan, Port Elgin, Winnipeg, Manitoba, St. Thomas, Ontario, and Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Lord Elgin is a Past President of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, and is the Life President of the Broomhall Curling Club. He skippered the Scottish curling teams that defeated the Governor-General of Canada's teams in a series of matches in Ottawa in 1982. [18]

Lord Elgin is Chief of Clan Bruce and President of the Bruce Family Organization [19] which is the main association for members of the Bruce family.

Honours

39-45 Star BAR.svg France and Germany Star BAR.svg Defence Medal BAR.svg War Medal 39-45 BAR.svg
UK Queen EII Coronation Medal ribbon.svg UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg
UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg UK King Charles III Coronation Medal BAR.svg Cadet Forces Medal ribbon.png CD-ribbon and 4 bars.png
CountryRibbonDescriptionNotes
Scotland Order of the Thistle UK ribbon.svg Order of the Thistle (KT)
  • Knight
  • 1981
United Kingdom Ribbon - 1939-45 Star.png 1939–1945 Star
United Kingdom France and Germany Star BAR.svg France and Germany Star
United Kingdom Defence Medal BAR.svg Defence Medal
United Kingdom Ribbon - War Medal.png War Medal
United Kingdom UK Queen EII Coronation Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal
  • 1953
United Kingdom UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal
  • 1977
  • UK Version of this Medal
United Kingdom UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
  • 2002
  • UK Version of this Medal
United Kingdom QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
  • 2012
  • UK Version of this Medal
United Kingdom UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
  • 2022
  • UK Version of this Medal
United Kingdom UK King Charles III Coronation Medal BAR.svg King Charles III Coronation Medal
  • 2023
  • UK Version of this Medal
United Kingdom Cadet Forces Medal ribbon.png Cadet Forces Medal
  • July 1963
United Kingdom CD-ribbon and 4 bars.png Canadian Forces' Decoration (CD)
  • 1981
  • With 4 Clasps

Honorary military appointments

Military BranchDateRegimentPosition
Flag of the Canadian Army.svg Canadian Army 1970 present 31 Combat Engineer Regiment (The Elgins) Colonel-in-Chief [20]
Flag of the British Army.svg British Army 1976–1986 153 (Highland) Transport Regiment (TA) Honorary Colonel
Flag of the Canadian Army.svg Canadian Army No. 7 (St. Thomas) Royal Canadian Army Cadets Honorary Colonel

Family

In 1959 he married Victoria Mary Usher and they have five children:

The Countess of Elgin and Kincardine was the Patron of both the Royal Caledonian Ball and Edinburgh’s Queen Margaret University. [23] The Earl succeeded to the earldoms and other family titles on the death of his father in 1968.[ citation needed ]

The Earl celebrated his 100th birthday on the 17 February 2024. [24] He was interviewed by the BBC as part of a project to record the memories of Second World War veterans, marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day on 6 June 2024. [25]

On 15 November 2024, Bruce's wife of 65 years, Victoria, Countess of Elgin, died aged 85. [26]

Notes

  1. "Births". The Times . The Times Digital Archive. 19 February 1924. p. 1.
  2. Dewar, Peter Beauclerk (2001). Burke's Landed Gentry of Great Britain: together with members of the titled and non-titled contemporary establishment Edition 19, Burke's Peerage, ISBN   0-9711966-0-5. p. 104
  3. "An Important Baby". Gentlewoman. 1 March 1924. p. 21. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  4. "Lord Elgin's Heir Christened Big Assembly at Broomhall". Dundee Courier. 1 April 1924. p. 5. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  5. "Earl of Elgin's Heir". Aberdeen Press and Journal. 2 April 1924. p. 6. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
  6. "BBC - WW2 People's War - The Breakout: Part 1 (To Normandy with the 3rd Tank Battalion Scots Guards)". www.bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 June 2006.
  7. "No. 36206". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 October 1943. p. 4499.
  8. "No. 37767". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 October 1946. p. 5256.
  9. "No. 39274". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 June 1951. p. 3613.
  10. "No. 43051". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 July 1963. p. 5882.
  11. "No. 43652". The London Gazette (Supplement). 14 May 1965. p. 4854.
  12. "No. 43712". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 July 1965. p. 6726.
  13. Video on YouTube
  14. "Lord Elgin: Defender of aristocratic adventure and national treasures". The Independent. 17 January 2004. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
  15. Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
  16. "New appointments to the Order of the Thistle". The Royal Household of the Queen. 30 November 2003. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
  17. "Conservatives at the heart of Freemasonry" . The Independent. 31 October 1995. Archived from the original on 9 November 2009.
  18. Video on YouTube
  19. "familyofbruce.org - Family of Bruce International, Inc. - About Us". familyofbruce.org. Archived from the original on 13 August 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
  20. Video on YouTube
  21. "Infamous fraudster Lady Bruce vows to return to Scotland". Deadline News. 28 February 2010.
  22. "cracroftspeerage.co.uk". Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  23. "Patronesses". Royal Caledonian Ball. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  24. "From Scotland, 100-year-old chief of Clan Bruce hails 'swift and true' Waterloo squadron". The Record. 16 February 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  25. "'The German army blew up a cup of tea next to me'". BBC News . London. 4 June 2023. Archived from the original on 4 June 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  26. Victoria ELGIN Obituary

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References

Masonic offices
Preceded by Grand Master Mason of the
Grand Lodge of Scotland

1961–1965
Succeeded by
Honorary titles
Preceded by Lord Lieutenant of Fife
1987–1999
Succeeded by
Peerage of Scotland
Preceded by Earl of Elgin
Earl of Kincardine

1968–present
Incumbent
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by Gentlemen
The Rt. Hon. The Earl of Elgin & Kincardine
Succeeded by