Officers of the 7th (Queen's Own) Hussars

Category

Museums & Galleries Item

Item no

36831

Title

Officers of the 7th (Queen's Own) Hussars

Description

One sepia photograph of a group of Officers of the 7th Hussars. 22 officers present in all, with a background of three stone pillars. Douglas Haig is standing with cane in centre of picture. Handwritten names of men present and '7th Hussars Secunderabad 1890'.

Date

1890

Type

Photograph

Location

Museum of Edinburgh

Douglas Haig was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the 7th Hussars on the 7th February, 1885 at the age of 24. Haig would stay in India until 1892 when he returned to the UK in order to prepare for the entrance exams to attend the Staff College at Camberley.

While in India Haig served as the Regimental Adjutant and was later promoted to Captain. Haig also competed as part of the 7th Hussars Polo Team in Inter-Regimental competition.

Douglas Haig was born in Charlotte Square, Edinburgh on the 9th June, 1861 to John Haig, the whisky distiller and Rachel Veitch. The young Douglas would spend the majority of his youth at the main family home of Cameron House in Fife before being educated at Clifton College, Bristol and then Brasenose College, Oxford.

Douglas Haig was commissioned into the 7th Hussars following his attendance the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, thus beginning a military career which would see several tours of India, action in both the war in the Sudan and South Africa before rising up the ranks to be posted as the head of the Aldershot Command prior to the First World War.

Douglas Haig went to war with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in August, 1914 in command of the I Corps. In December of 1915 following Sir John French's departure Haig took up the post as Commander-in-Chief of the BEF.

After the war Douglas Haig retired from the army in 1920, was created the 1st Earl Haig and spent the rest of his life seeing to the well-being of ex-servicemen.

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Clothing and dress

Clothing and dress > Garments > Uniforms

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People > Famous people > Field Marshal Earl Haig

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Places > Asia > India