Oswyn Alexander Ruthven Murray
SIR Osywn Alexander Ruthven Murray, G.C.B. (17 August, 1873 – 10 July, 1936) was a civil servant who became Permanent Secretary to the Board of Admiralty and head of the Admiralty Secretariat. His service in this capacity meant that his name and/or signature is found on a great many Admiralty publications, such as the Navy Lists. I have been unable to find a Service Record for him at The National Archives.
Early Life & Career
Oswyn Alexander Ruthven Murray was born on 17 August, 1873, the fourth son of the lexicographer Sir James Murray. He was elected a scholar of Exeter College, Oxford in 1891, and obtained three firsts in Mods., Lit. Hum., and Jurisprudence, winning the Vinerian law scholarship.
On 1 February, 1897, he was appointed as a Class I Clerk in Civil Branch at the Admiralty, and on 1 May, 1898, became a Resident Clerk. He was appointed Assistant Private Secretary to the First Lord of the Admiralty, George J. Goschen. Following Goschen's retirement Murray became Assistant Private Secretary to the new First Lord, the Earl of Selborne. On 1 November, 1901, he was appointed Private Secretary to the Parliamentary and Financial Secretary, Hugh O. Arnold-Forster.[1]
Murray was promoted to Assistant Principal on 24 August, 1903, and in October became Private Secretary to Arnold-Forster's successor, Ernest G. Pretyman. On 1 April, 1904, he was appointed to M. Branch, and on 1 October became Assistant Director of Victualling to Sir Henry Yorke. He succeeded Yorke on 2 December, 1905 as Director.[2]
He succeeded Sir W. Graham Greene as Assistant Secretary to the Board of Admiralty on 2 October, 1911. On 7 August, 1917 he was appointed to succeed Greene as Permanent Secretary, and remained in post until his death on 10 July, 1936.[3]
Bibliography
- "Sir Oswyn Murray" (Obituaries). The Times. Saturday, 11 July, 1936. Issue 47424, col B, p. 16.
- Murray, Lady (Oswyn) (1940). The Making of a Civil Servant: Sir Oswyn Murray, G.C.B. Secretary of the Admiralty 1917-1936. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd.
See Also
| Naval Appointments | ||
| Preceded by ? |
Assistant Director of Victualling 1 Oct, 1904[4] – 2 Dec, 1905[5] |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by Sir Henry F. R. Yorke |
Director of Victualling 2 Dec, 1905[6] – Oct, 1911 |
Succeeded by James H. Brooks |
| Preceded by Sir W. Graham Greene |
Assistant Secretary to the Board of Admiralty 1911 – Sep, 1917[7] |
Succeeded by Charles Walker |
| Preceded by Sir W. Graham Greene |
Permanent Secretary to the Board of Admiralty 7 Jul, 1917[8] – 1936 |
Succeeded by Sir R. H. Archibald Carter |
Footnotes
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "Sir O.A.R. Murray, G.C.B. - Statement of Service." National Maritime Museum. GEE/13.
- ↑ "New Secretary at the Admiralty." The Times (London, England), {{{2}}}.
- ↑ Board Minute No. 52 of 20 September, 1917. "Official Copy of Board Minutes: Meetings of the Board of Admiralty August 1917 to December 1918." p. 21. The National Archives. ADM 167/53.
