Captain James C. Murdoch of the 91st Highlanders

My instincts did not err. The father of Colin Campbell Murdoch was indeed the Capt James C. mentioned in my previous post! Seems Alexander was a myth! No wonder he was so hard to find. My niece Kirrily arrived at Capt. James C from a completely different starting point. Here's what she found:

" . . . born in Kilmadock, Perth, Scotland.

His military career began as an ensign in June 1806. He became a Lieutenant in 1807 and a Captain in 1810. He also served with the 56th Regiment of Foot.

With the 91st, Captain Murdoch was present at the Peninsular Wars, the Pyrenees and Waterloo . . . his presence at Waterloo is noted in several books. He was notably part of the Walcheren Campaign in 1809, where he contracted, and luckily prevailed [over] Walcheren Fever.

Whilst in France, he married a French woman, with whom he returned to Scotland following his service abroad. Their eldest son Colin . . . was born in France.

In 1833 Captain James Campbell Murdoch died and was buried in Scotland." (Source: Rebecca S. Whomever she may be.)

 Transcription of above: MURDOCH,

James Campbell
Captain, 91st Regiment of Foot [aka 91st Highlanders; 91st Argyll/Argyllshire Highlanders]
Obelisk:Kilmadock churchyard, Kilmaddock, Perthshire, Scotland (Photograph)

SACRED TO THE MEMORY OF JAMES C. MURDOCH WHO DIED AT BRIDGE OF TEITH SON JAMES LATE CAPT IN THE 91ST REGT OR ARGYLLSHIRE HIGHLANDERS. HE SERVED HIS COUNTRY AT WALCHEREN, IN SPAIN AND POTUGAL, PYRENEES, FRANCE AND WATERLOO. HE DIED AT EDINBURGH 30TH MARCH 1833 AGED 49. ERECTED BY HIS SISTER SARAH OF GARTINCABER.

Ensign 18th June 1806, Lt 20th May 1807, Capt 29th November 1810. Served in the Peninsula Jan - Oct 1813. Present in the Pyrenees, Present in the Waterloo Campaign where he was present at Hal, the Seige of Cambrai and with the Army of Occupation. Also served at Walcheren 1809.

I had a suspicion that if James was our man, that C. would stand for Campbell, and it does! I wonder who else Kirrily has tucked away in her family tree? Was James' father an Alexander perhaps? And what more do we know of the persistent affinity to the Campbells? 

NOTES: 
i) James C would have served under a Colonel Duncan Campbell.
ii) Walcheren Fever wiped out a huge number of those stationed there. It had a lasting effect with relapses of fever and debilitation. Wellington refused to have any men who had suffered the fever serving under him. (Wikipedia)

IMAGES:

The 91st wore a distinctive, tasseled sporran.

Don't know the regiment but just love the photo.

91st Argyll Highlanders

What if 92nd Highlanders was wrong? Here's my train of thought:

Alexander's son Colin Campbell Murdoch was born in Ile de France (the province that includes Paris) during the Allied occupation of France following Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. This places Alexander probably in France at that time. A number of British regiments were posted there but according to my research, the 92nd Gordon Highlanders was not among them. However, the 91st Argyll Highlanders was. (See this Blog: Colin Campbell.)  Note the connection to the Campbells: the Duke of Argyll was always a Campbell. Alexander had some connection of loyalty to the Campbells: he named his son Colin Campbell Murdoch and the name has passed down through the generations. Considering the above death notice was made by Alexander's great grandchildren, could it be that they made a mistake about his regiment and said 92nd when they should have said 91st? Or could there have been an error in the transcription?  Also, Alexander may have served in more than one regiment. (Update: See next Post)

A further thought: could the family pride in Alexander be because he died in battle or was decorated? If so, lists of those soldiers are a bit easier to find.

In the meantime, here's a Murdock who served in the 91st Argyll Highlanders. If his name had been Alexander he would have done very nicely. Source: Full text of "Historical records of the 91st Argyllshire Highlanders, now the 1st Battalion Princess Louisa's Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, containing an account of the Regiment in 1794, and of its subsequent services to 1881" (Google) (archive.org)

MURDOCH: James C. - Ensign, 18th June 1806; Lieutenant 28th May 1807; Captain, 29th November 1810. Was present at Waterloo [The 91st were on standby but were not called on to fight]. To half-pay 1819.

 From Forces War Records:

MURDOCH Alexander (Private) 1857 Unit unknown
MURDOCH Alex (Serjeant) 1803 East Fife Volunteers (militia)
Alexr Murdoch (Private)  1800 9th (Royal Perthshire) North . . .  (militia)

 Next - search Forces War records for Murdoch - periods after Napoleonic.

Colin Campbell

The name Colin Campbell or just Colin has been passed down through the family, thus:

(UPDATED) Beatrix Murdoch nee Campbell called her son James Campbell Murdoch. He called his son Colin Campbell Murdoch.
Colin Campbell Murdoch called his son James Campbell Murdoch
James C. Murdoch called his son (Maude's brother) James Colin Campbell Murdoch.
Maude Gowland nee Murdoch called her son Colin George Frederick Gowland 
Colin G. F. Gowland called his son Colin James Gowland.
. . . and it's safe to assume there were others among the decendants.

But which Colin Campbell was being honoured? Was it perhaps the British general of Alexander's time or maybe the 13th century founder of Clan Cambell and self-styled Duke of Argyll? 

I know from my family (Colin and Elva Gowland) that our Murdoch ancestors were supporters of Clan Campbell. This was stated emphatically and must have been very important to have been remembered after so many generations, in a colony on the other side of the world. There's a good chance that my ancestor/s fought for King George II in the regiment known as Campbell's Highlanders at Culloden. From Wikipedia (Ref: Clan Campbell)

1745 to 1746 Jacobite Rising

Just before 1745, the strength of the Clan Campbell had been put at a total of 5,000 men.^[3] During the Jacobite rising of 1745, the Clan Campbell continued their support for the British Government. They fought against the rebel Jacobites at the Battle of Falkirk (1746) where government forces were defeated. However, shortly afterwards the Campbells held out during the Siege of Fort William where the Jacobites were defeated.^[24] At the Battle of Culloden in 1746 where the Jacobites were finally defeated, involved in the fighting on the government side were four companies from the Campbell of Argyll Militia, three companies from Loudon's Highlanders who were under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Campbell and one company from the 43rd Highlanders who were under the command of Captain Dugald Campbell of Auchrossan.^[25]

(Source: Wikipedia)

How extraordinary that Highlanders fought against each other in this ugly battle! I suppose different chiefs thought they had more to gain under either the Hanovers or the Stewarts and their followers pretty much obeyed the chief's orders. The consequences were terrible and oppressed all Scots, not just the Rebels.

NAMES: There's a good chance that if Alexander had a middle name it was Colin, Colin Campbell or James ( another family name). I wonder if there are Campbells in the Murdochs' forebears? Perhaps the name change was due to a marriage?

I'm stuck on Captain Alexander Murdoch of the 92nd Highlanders, of County Down. He was Maude's great grandfather. His military service and origins were a matter of such family pride that they were remembered by his great grandchildren and included in their father, Colin's death notice. Perhaps this was their way of emphasising that, despite migrating to Australia they were loyalists. Trouble is, I haven't been able to find Alexander in records for the 92nd Highlanders. However I have learned a few things about the regiment, which subsequently became known as the 92nd Gordon Highlanders. They were a Regiment of Foot, meaning foot soldiers, though officers probably rode horses. I wonder if a Captain qualified for a horse? See below for paintings and photos of Gordon Highlanders in uniform.
Great pic of 92nd Highlanders in 19th century

Alexander could have been a busy boy, with postings in other countries as well as Ireland: India for example. He may have fought at Waterloo. One of his children, Colin, was born in Ile de France (the province which contains Paris) though it seems unlikely Alexander's regiment was posted in France. Could have, though?? 

Name variants: Abbreviations of Alexander can be Alex or Alexr

LEAD: An Alexander Murdoch, his wife and children, were recorded in the Irish census of 1857 in County Down. One son was named James. This would not be my Alexander, but may be his son?? We don't know what children he had other than Colin.

IMAGES > > > > 

Artist J. Shumate