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Archibald James Murray
23 April 1860(1860-04-23) – 21 January 1945 (aged 84)
Lt.-Gen. Sir Archibald J. Murray
Nickname	'Old Archie'
Place of birth	Kingsclere, Hampshire
Place of death	Reigate, Surrey
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1879 - 1922
Rank	general
Commands held	Egyptian Expeditionary Force
Battles/wars	Second Boer War World War I
Awards	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Distinguished Service Order

General Sir Archibald James Murray GCMG, KCB, CVO, DSO (23 April 1860 - 21 January 1945) was a British Army officer during World War I, most famous for his commanding the Egyptian Expeditionary Force from 1916 to 1917.

Army career

Educated at Cheltenham College, Archibald Murray was commissioned into the 27th Regiment in 1879.^[1]

In 1901 Murray was appointed Commanding Officer of the 2nd Battalion Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers which was deployed to Northern Transvaal in 1902: Murray was wounded in action and awarded the Distinguished Service Order. After this he held a series of senior staff appointments.^[1]

In 1912 Murray was appointed General Officer Commanding 2nd Division but when the First World War started he became Chief of Staff to Sir John French, Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force.^[1] Murray was given the position largely because the initial choice for the post, Sir Henry Wilson, became undesirable for political reasons. He and French did not work well together, and Murray was ultimately relieved in January 1915. He was made Deputy Chief of the Imperial General Staff in February 1915 and then Chief of the Imperial General Staff that September, but was replaced just a few months later by Sir William Robertson.^[2]

Revolt in the Desert

Lt.-Gen. Sir A. J. Murray WWI Cigarette Card issued by W.D. & H.O. Wills Bristol & London

In January 1916, he was given command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force.^[3] Trying to prevent another Turkish attack against the Suez Canal, Murray reorganized his troops and led a counterattack, which captured most of the Sinai Peninsula, but became stymied in Palestine. Murray was unsuccessful in his attempts to seize Gaza (see First Battle of Gaza and Second Battle of Gaza) in 1917, and he was ultimately relieved of command, and replaced by the much more successful Edmund Allenby.^[1] He was known and criticized for his indecisive character and was not particularly well-liked by his men, largely because he ran his campaign more often than not by remote control from Cairo, rather than the field. He also authorized T. E. Lawrence's expedition to join the Arab Revolt against the Turks in Arabia, providing monetary and limited military support for Lawrence's attack on Aqaba. Initially skeptical of the Revolt's potential, Murray became an ardent supporter of it later in his tenure in Cairo, largely through Lawrence's persuasion.

Post war

Murray was reassigned, becoming General Officer Commanding-in-Chief for Aldershot Command for the remainder of the war.^[1] He retired from the army in 1922 and died at Reigate in Surrey in 1945.

He was portrayed by Donald Wolfit in the film Lawrence of Arabia.

References

External links

• First World War.com Bio
• The British Army in Great War

Chiefs of the General Staff of the British Army Chief of the General Staff Sir Neville Lyttelton Chiefs of the Imperial General Staff Sir William Nicholson • Sir John French • Sir Charles Douglas • Sir James Murray • Sir Archibald Murray • Sir William Robertson • Sir Henry Wilson • The Earl of Cavan • Sir George Milne • Sir Archibald Montgomery-Massingberd • Sir Cyril Deverell • The Viscount Gort • Sir Edmund Ironside • Sir John Dill • Sir Alan Brooke • The Viscount Montgomery of Alamein • Sir William Slim • Sir John Harding • Sir Gerald Templer • Sir Francis Festing • Sir Richard Hull Chiefs of the General Staff Sir Richard Hull • Sir James Cassels • Sir Geoffrey Baker • Sir Michael Carver • Sir Peter Hunt • Sir Roland Gibbs • Sir Edwin Bramall • Sir John Stanier • Sir Nigel Bagnall • Sir John Chapple • Sir Peter Inge • Sir Charles Guthrie • Sir Roger Wheeler • Sir Michael Walker • Sir Mike Jackson • Sir Richard Dannatt • Sir David Richards