Guy Cunninghame Knight (1866 - 1914)

Biography

Lieutenant Colonel Guy Cunninghame Knight was born on 12th December 1866 at Ajaccio, Corse-du-Sud, Corsica, France. He was the youngest son of Captain Lewis Knight.

After graduating from Wellington College, Beresford and Combermere (a joint house then) House ^[1] he entered Royal Military College, Sandhurst. ^[2] He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment in 1887. ^[3] He was promoted to Lieutenant in September 1888 and Captain in July 1894.

He married Menie Buchanan, younger daughter of Walter Cross-Buchanan, in June 1898 in St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney, New South Wales. ^[4] The wedding was the subject of a detailed Court & Social article in the Sydney Morning Herald, providing an insight into the fashions of the day. ^[1][5]

Seconded to the New South Wales Military Force as adjutant in 1898, Guy served during the Second Boer War as commanding officer of a company of the 1st Battalion, New South Wales Mounted Rifles; arriving in South Africa in February 1900 aboard Southern Cross. He took part in actions at Poplar Grove, Driefontein, Vet River, Zand River, and Wittebergen and Bothaville, and was slightly wounded in the operations in Cape Colony. He was Mentioned in Despatches and was awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with five Clasps. The battalion embarked for home in December. ^[6] He was promoted to Brevet Major in 1901.

He subsequently served on the staff at Malta and Egypt (1905-08), and was Deputy Assistant Adjutant General (DAAG) in South Africa (1909-11). In February 1911 Guy was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and given command of 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. At the outbreak of the First World War, Guy deployed to France, commanding his battalion. He was killed in action during the Battle of the Marne, France on 11th September 1914 and is buried in the Priez Communal Cemetery, France. Following the war his widow was issued his 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.

Guy was a member of the Naval and Military Club and a proficient sportsman: a strong rider, he was keen on polo and hunted with the North Staffordshire. All his leave in India was spent in big-game shooting, with several tigers to his credit. ^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Old Wellington Lodge; accessed 12 Dec 2021
2. ↑ Masonic Great War Project; accessed 12 Dec 2021
3. ↑ 'Knight, Guy Cunninghame (1866–1914)', Obituaries Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University; accessed 13 Jun 2020
4. ↑ New South Wales Marriage Index #2666/1898
5. ↑ The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW: 1842 - 1954) Sat 2 Jul 1898 Page 7 SOCIAL; accessed 12 Dec 2021
6. ↑ Australian War Memorial nominal roll: Guy Cunninghame Knight; accessed 13 Jun 2020

• CWGC casualty report https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/578977/guy-cunninghame-knight/