Montgomerie Hamilton

Hugh Montgomerie Hamilton (26 June 1854 – 11 August 1930) was an Australian barrister and judge who played international rugby union for Scotland from 1874 to 1875.^[1]

Montgomerie Hamilton

Montgomerie Hamilton in 1930
Birth name	Hugh Montgomerie Hamilton
Date of birth	(1854-06-26)26 June 1854
Place of birth	Parramatta Colony of New South Wales
Date of death	11 October 1930(1930-10-11) (aged 76)
Place of death	Strathfield, New South Wales, Australia
Rugby union career
Position(s) Three-Quarters Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) - West of Scotland () International career Years Team Apps (Points) 1874–75 Scotland 2 (0)

Early life

Hamilton was born at Parramatta in the Colony of New South Wales, the eldest son of Margaret Clunes née Innes and Hugh Hamilton, a pastoralist from Ayrshire, Scotland. He was educated at Geneva, Edinburgh and Marlborough College.^[2]

Rugby Union career

Amateur career

Hamilton was a member of the Marlborough College rugby team for 3 years,^[3] the last as captain, subsequently playing for West of Scotland^[4] and Marlborough Nomads.^[2]

International career

In 1874 he was selected by both England and Scotland for the fixture at The Oval on 23 February 1874, electing to play for Scotland.^[1][5]

His second - and last - match for Scotland, again against England, was the fixture at Raeburn Place, Edinburgh on 8 March 1875.^[6] He is credited with introducing the passing game into rugby union, along with (Sir) William Milton.^[2]

Legal career

Hamilton was a student of the Inner Temple from 22 May 1875, studying law at the University of London and graduating in 1877. He was called to the bar on 15 May 1878.^[7] He practiced as a barrister for 11 years before returning to Sydney in 1890.^[3] On 12 May 1914 he was appointed a judge of the District Court of NSW,^[8] where he served for more than 19 years, before being retired at age 70 in 1924.^[3]

Personal life

He married Adelaide Eliza Margaret Northcott on 18 March 1880.^[7] He married a second time to Minnie née Redfern who predeceased him on 9 August 1924.^[9] He died at Strathfield on 11 August 1930 (aged 76),^[10] survived by a daughter and two sons from his second marriage.^[2]

References

1. "Hugh Hamilton | Rugby Union | Players and Officials". ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
2. Holt, HTE (1983). "Hamilton, Hugh Montgomerie (1854–1930)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
3. "Judge Hamilton". The Sydney Morning Herald. 31 January 1924. p. 8. Retrieved 28 February 2022 – via Trove.
4. Scotland. The Essential History of Rugby Union. Nick Oswald and John Griffiths. Headline Publishing. 2003.
5. "England v Scotland". ESPN scrum.
6. "Scotland v England". ESPN scrum.
7. Foster, Joseph. Men-at-the-Bar. p. 199.
8. "Government Gazette Appointments and Employment". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 13 May 1914. p. 2825. Retrieved 28 February 2022 – via Trove.
9. "Family notice: deaths". The Daily Telegraph. 11 August 1924. p. 6. Retrieved 28 February 2022 – via Trove.
10. "Judge Hamilton". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 17. Retrieved 28 February 2022 – via Trove.