Sir Hugh Thomas Munro, 4th Baronet of Lindertis

1856 - 1919  (62 years)

• Name	Hugh Thomas Munro  [1, 2, 3]
  Prefix	Sir
  Suffix	4th Baronet of Lindertis
  Born	16 Oct 1856	London, , Greater London, England
  Gender	Male
  Died	19 Mar 1919	Tarascon, France
  Person ID	I1988	Munro
  Last Modified	25 Jan 2013

  
  

  Father	Sir Campbell Munro, 3rd Baronet of Lindertis,   b. 7 Sep 1823, , , , Scotland ,   d. 13 Jun 1913, , , , Scotland  (Age 89 years)
  Mother	Henrietta Maria Drummond,   b. Abt 1834, , , , Scotland ,   d. 28 Aug 1912, , , , Scotland  (Age ~ 78 years)
  Married	4 Apr 1853
  Family ID	F952	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Selina Dorothea Petronilla Amalia Gregoria Byrne,   b. Abt 1860, , , Yorkshire, England ,   d. 13 May 1902, , , , Scotland  (Age ~ 42 years)
  Married	29 Aug 1892	, , , Scotland
  Children	1. Sheila Mabel Judith Munro,   b. 20 Sep 1893,   d. 25 Sep 1893  (Age 0 years) + 2. Morna Violet Munro,   b. 4 Jan 1895,   d. Yes, date unknown   3. Carmen Ida Constance Munro,   b. 2 Dec 1896,   d. Yes, date unknown + 4. Sir Thomas Torquil Alphonso Munro, 5th Baronet of Lindertis,   b. 7 Feb 1901, Edinburgh, , Midlothian, Scotland ,   d. 10 Jul 1985, Kirriemuir, Angus, Scotland  (Age 84 years)
  Last Modified	22 Mar 2009
  Family ID	F951	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Sir Hugh Thomas Munro was 4th Baronet of Lindertis. He lived at Lindertis, Kirriemuir, Angus, Scotland. He was D.L. and J.P., co. Forfar and served in the Basuto Campaign 1880-1 (medal with clasp) in South Africa. His wife was the daughter of Major-General Thomas Edmond Byrne, Royal Army. Sir Hugh was one of the first Munro's to be active in politics in the Conservative Party. He was an avid collector of birds, fossils and shells. He served as a King's Messenger (or diplomatic courier), and was an accomplished Higland dancer. He learned to climb as a young man in the Alps. He loved to travel, and he visited almost all of Europe, North Africa, the Caribbean and West Indies. After his wife died, he embarked on a five-month, around the world trip with his daughter, Morna, who was then 18. They visited Niagra Falls, the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Hawaii, Japan, China, Singapore, Ceylon and Egypt. He was one of the early members of the Scottish Mountaineering Club which was founded in 1888. He later served as president of the organization. He undertook the task of inventorying all the Scottish mountains which are higher than the arbitrary level of 3,000 feet. It took him several years of extensive research using existing ordinance maps, as well as his own field surveying. In the late 1800's it was quite a problem getting around Scotland, and he used virtually every mode of transport imaginable, including ponies, dog-carts, and just his own two feet. His usual climbing garb consisted of an Inverness Cape, kilt, and balmoral bonnet. The only instruments available to him in those days were an aneroid barometer and a notebook. The fact that very few corrections have been made to his "Tables", is a tribute to his abilities. The task was completed in 1891 and "Munro's Tables" were published in the second Journal of the Scottish Mountaineering Club. He tabulated 538 "tops" over 3,000 feet, and this was later refined to 277 mountains. These mountains became known as "The Munros" and many, many climbers have made it their goal to climb them all and so become known as "Munroists". When World War I erupted in 1914, Hugh was over-age to join the military, but he went to Malta with the Red Cross and later organized a Red Cross Canteen for the troops, with the help of his two daughters, Morna and Carmen. He died of pneumonia in Tarascon, France in 1919 at the age of 63. ********** (The following is from "Munro Eagle" - Summer 2012 - #42 - "Sir Hugh T. Munro, Scottish Mountaineer 1856-1919" - by George Munro) «i»Sir Hugh Thomas Munro, 4th Baronet of Lindertis, to give him his full title, was born in London in 1856 the eldest of nine children of the 3rd Baronet Sir Campbell Munro. While the family was Scottish, they divided their time between their families Estate of Lindertis near Dundee in the County of Forfar-shire and London where the 3rd Baronet had many business interests. A trip to Germany at the age of 17 to learn German increased young Hugh's interest in mountains, which he already had since his Scottish home was near Kirriemuir, close to the Cairngorm Mountain range. His enthusiasm for mountains was further developed when in 1880 he went to Natal in South Aftica for a change of climate following a bad attack of pleurisy. Following his return from South Aftica he entered politics for a while, standing in 1885 as the Conservative MP for the constituency known as the Kirkcaldy Burghs. However it was not through politics that he was to make a name for himself. Mountaineering both in Scotland and the Alpine area of Europe was becoming very popular, particularly amongst academics and university students. Following correspondence in the Glasgow Herald this was taken forward by the formation of the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) in Glasgow in 1889. Hugh T. Munro was indeed one of SMC's founding members. One of the main purposes of SMC was to thoroughly explore the Scottish mountains and crags and to record them in Journals. Prior to 1889, nobody had a clue how many mountains over 3,000 feet there were in Scotland, although it was thought at one time there were 31, while another estimate in 1884 gave this number to be 236. This situation was entirely unsatisfactory to the SMC and the task of righting this situation was given to Hugh Munro, one of the most experienced Scottish hill walkers. Munro began his task in December 1889. Using both his own knowledge of mountains (he had already climbed 42), the experience of fellow climbers, and of course the one-inch to the mile and the six-inch to the mile Ordinance Survey maps, he completed the task by the summer of 1891. His findings, which identified 283 mountains, with at least a 500 feet climb between the tops, were subsequently published as Tables in the 6th Journal of the SMC, causing much surprise in the mountaineering circles. He was working on a revision of his Tables when he died in 1919 at the age of 63 during the influenza epidemic that followed World War I. Indeed, there have been revisions and slight corrections made over the years, but one thing that remains is the name, the Munro Tables. In conclusion, Sir Hugh inspired many thousands of people to take up a healthy pastime and to appreciate the love and beauty and remoteness of many parts of Scotland. Indeed he caught the imagination of the general public in a way that he could never have forseen in his wildest dreams. Before his efforts Scotland had hills and mountains, far too many to count, and certainly far too many to think about climbing. By publishing his tables, he gave a new generation something to aim for and targets to achieve.«/i» ********** ********** (The following is from "The Munro Beacon" - Vol. 34, No. 4 - Winter 2012) «i»Some may assume that «/i»[Sir Hugh]«i» Munro himself climed all his listed peaks, but when he died, aged 63, he had still to climb the Inaccessible Pinnacle, Carn an Fhidhleir and Carn Cloich-mhuilinn. It is likely that Munro's objective was to climb all the subsidiary tops before completing the "Munros"... Due to its closeness to Lindertis, Carn Cloich-mhuilinn, now a subsidiary top, was being kept for the final hill.«/i» ********** Ref: Clan Munro files - Stroud, Anna Margaret "Munro Eagle" - #24 - 1993-94 - p. 23-25 (article by Sir Alasdair Munro) Compiled and edited by Allen Alger, Genealogist, Clan Munro Association, USA

  
  

• Sources

  [S783] Wikipedia, Wikipedia.org, (http://www.wikipedia.org/ : continuously updated), accessed 18 May 2012), Munro Baronets (Reliability: 3). [S856] Munro Eagle, George Munro, "Sir Hugh T. Munro Scottish Mountaineer,"No. 42 Summer 2012. (Reliability: 3). [S830] Munro Beacon, Vol. 34 (Winter 2012). (Reliability: 3).