Obituaries Australia

We regret to announce the death of Admiral Lord Charles Thomas Montague-Douglas Scott, which took place on Monday night at Boughton House. The Northamptonshire seat of the Buccleuch family – Lord Charles had been in poor health for 12 months.

Lord Charles Scott was the fourth son of the fifth Duke of Buccleuch, and a brother of the present Duke, and of the late Lord Montagu of Beaulieu; his sisters are the Marchioness of Lothian and Lady Margaret Cameron of Lochiel. He was born on October 20, 1839, and entered the Navy as a Naval Cadet in May, 1853, being appointed to the new screw twodecker St. Jean d'Acre, at that time the finest ship of her class afloat, commissioned for the first time that month by the late Sir Harry Keppel. In the “Jenny d'Acre," as the bluejackets nicknamed her, young Scott was present at the capture of Bomarsund and other operations in the Baltic, 1854, and at the capture of Kertch and other operations in the Black Sea in the following year. In November, 1856, Keppel hoisted his broad pennant in the Raleigh as Commodore on the East Indies and China Station, and Lord Charles accompanied his old chief, serving, after the wreck of the ship on April 14, 1857, in the tenders and boats to which the officers and crew were transferred, being present at the destruction of the Chinese fleet of war-junks in the Fatshan Creek on June 1, and other operations in the Canton River. In July he was appointed to the Pearl, when that ship with the Shannon was ordered from Hong-kong to Calcutta on the news of outbreak of the Mutiny in India being received, and he was one of the officers of what was known afterwards as the Pear’s Naval Brigade, which, landing on September 12, 1857, under the command of Captain Sotheby, formed during the following 15 months a main part of the Goruckpore Field Force During the operations Oudh. Lord Charles was mentioned despatches for his gallant conduct at the battle of Belwa on March 5, when he with three others captured and turned open the enemy one of their guns; in this action Brigadier Rowcroft’s small force of 1,200 men and four guns, of which the Pearl’s Brigade formed part, completely routed the rebel troops, consisting of 4,000 Sepoys, 10,000 irregulars, 300 Cavalry, and ten guns. Captain Sotheby and his brigade were publicly thanked in dispatches 13 times, and on their re-embarking at Calcutta in February, 1859, the Governor-General in a Gazette Extraordinary recorded his valuable thanks and that of the Government for the valuable assistance the brigade had rendered. For his services Lord Charles was promoted to the rank of lieutenant within a month of his passing for sub-lieutenant.

He became a commander in September, 1865, and in that rank, while in command of the Rinaldo, he took port in the expedition to Yangchow, November, 1868, and in the destruction of piratical villages near Swatow in the January following. He was promoted to captain in February, 1872, and in July, 1879, he commissioned the Bacchante for service with the detached squadron under the command or Rear-Admiral the Earl of Clanwilliam, and it was to the charge of Lord Charles that the King and his brother the late Duke of Clarence were committed when they made their voyage round the world with the squadron.

Lord Charles attained flag-rank in January, 1888, and as Rear-Admiral he commanded on the Australia station from September, 1889, to September, 1892; he became a Vice-Admiral in March, 1894, but did not again hoist his flag until after his promotion to full Admiral in January, 1899, when in March 1900, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief at Plymouth, which position he held for the customary three years. He received the C.B. (Civil) for his services in connexion with the two young princes in the Bacchante. Was made a K.C.B. (Military) in May, 1898, and was promoted to the G.C.B. on November 9, 1902.

He married in February, 1883, Ada Mary, daughter of Mr Charles Ryan, of Macedon, Victoria, Australia, by whom he leaves two sons, Charles William and David John Montagu-Douglas Scott. He was a member of the Royal United Service Institution, and had been both Vice-Chairman and Chairman of the Institution, in the proceedings of which he took great interest.