John Stewart-Murray, 8th Duke of Atholl  John George Stewart-Murray, 8th Duke of Atholl, (15 December 1871 – 16 March 1942), styled Marquess of Tullibardine until 1917, was a Scottish soldier and Unionist politician. Styled Marquess of Tullibardine from birth, he was born at Blair Castle, Perthshire, the second but eldest surviving son of John Stewart-Murray, 7th Duke of Atholl, by Louisa, daughter of Sir Thomas Moncreiffe of that Ilk, 7th Baronet. and was educated at Eton College. He learned to speak Gaelic before English. In "Working Partnership" his wife, The Duchess of Atholl, says that Tullibardine and all his siblings were brought up to speak Gaelic and were "extremely proficient" in it. He was President of An Comunn Gàidhealach, the national Gaelic Society, from 1898 until 1904. He was commissioned into the Royal Horse Guards with the rank of second lieutenant on 28 December 1892, and was promoted to lieutenant on 30 December 1893. He served in Kitchener's expedition to the Sudan, fighting at the Battle of Khartoum and the Battle of Atbara. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) on 15 November 1898, and rose to the rank of captain a year later, on 20 November 1899. In 1900 he served as an aide-de-camp to Brigadier-General J. F. Burn-Murdoch, in command of a brigade of the Cavalry division stationed in Natal. In November 1900 he was given the rank of brevet major in the Royal Horse Guards, and asked by Lord Kitchener, whom he had served under on the Omdurman Campaign, to raise a regiment of Scotsmen in South Africa, called The Scottish Horse. The regiment was raised quickly and soon saw active service in the Western Transvaal. A second regiment of Scottish Horse was raised from troops recruited by The 7th Duke of Atholl and a permanent headquarters was set up to supply both of these regiments, with Atholl in command but with subordinate commanding officers in the field in charge of each of the Regiments. This success continued until the Scottish Horse was a whole brigade by the end of the Second Boer War. In August 1901 Lord Tullibardine received the local rank of lieutenant colonel in South Africa while commanding the Scottish Horse. He was mentioned in despatches by Lord Kitchener dated 23 June 1902.