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Surname: |
MacRae |
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Forename(s): |
Patrick Cameron |
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Rank: |
Captain |
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Service number: |
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Regiment: |
Royal Army Medical Corps – 80th Field Ambulance |
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Date of death: |
5 March 1917 Aged 27 |
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Place of death: |
Dalwhinnie |
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Buried Commemorated |
Kingussie Churchyard Dalwhinnie War Memorial and Kingussie and Insh Memorial in Kingussie Parish Church |
Background
Patrick was born 12 July 1889 in Inverness. His parents John McRae and Mary Ann (m.s. also McRae) were married 2 Decemebr 1886 at Helmsdale. His parents had moved there from Lochalsh and Glenshiel.
Patrick grew up in Dalwhinnie where his father John was the station master. He excelled at Kingussie Public School, Higher Grade Department – Session 1905-06 where he achieved Greek 1st, Mathematics 3rd, Latin 3rd and French 4th. On leaving school he went to Edinburgh University where he studied medicine and enrolled in the Officers’ Training Corps October 1909. At university he became president of the Celtic Society and Captain of the shinty team. He qualified at Edinburgh University with M.A. 1910 and M.B., Ch.B. in 1915.
His brother Donald, served in the 4th Cameron Highlanders and died in Kingussie 31 May 1927 age 29.
War Record
On achieving his degree, in 1915, Patrick joined the 50th Field Ambulance which was attached to the 37th Division, as a lieutenant. He sailed to France from Southampton on 29 July 1915 and on 1 August, he and the other men of the 50th Field Ambulance left Le Havre. It is understood that he took with him his bagpipes.
On the 10th August 1915 it is reported that he learnt of the death of Johnnie Cattanach who was from Newtonmore, also a shinty player, who had graduated in medicine from Edinburgh University in 1912 and joined the R.A.M.C.
In November 1915 Patrick was transferred to the 80th Field Ambulance and he sailed with them to Salonika and the Balkan front in December 1915. It is reported that he spent New Years Eve 1915 with Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders who were in Salonika. He contracted malaria and was invalided back to a hospital in England in August 1916 and then home to Dalwhinnie where he died 5 March 1917.
