The Douglas-Bate Family

A recent Chronological family History of the Douglas-Bate family, with Vignettes.

This thread of the Douglas family is part of the Black Douglas cohort, via the Marquis of Queensbury.

Mid to 1800s

Admiral Sholto Douglas (1833 to 1913):

• Served in the Royal Navy. Actively engaged as a young officer with rank of Commander when combatting the slave trade on the West Coast of Africa in the early 1860’s.
• Part of a long naval lineage, with forebears such as Commander Peter Douglas, Captain Peter Douglas, and Lord George Douglas, the younger brother of the Marquis of Queensbury.
• His second son was Henry Percy Douglas (see the section below on Vice Admiral Henry Percy Douglas), with his first wife, Maria Louisa, the only daughter of William Bickford, of Stonehouse, Devon.

An intelligence report from a young officer, Commander Sholto Douglas about slavery from the West African Coast, 1862

 In 1862, Commander Sholto Douglas wrote a short intelligence report about slavery on the West Coast of Africa, in line with Britain’s declared anti-slavery stance. It’s worth a read.

Late 1800s

Colonel A.L.F. Bate (1862 to 1929):

• An Army doctor, he distinguished himself in the Boer War, where he pioneered the development of field hospitals and motorized ambulances.
• Married, Emily Florence Wilson (née West) (1872-1930) in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in 1897.
• They had four sons: Cecil Herbert Louis, Timothy, Alexander, and Redvers (the latter potentially named after Sir Redvers Buller).

Cecil Herbert Louis Bate (1898 to 1957):

• Born in Ladysmith, South Africa, during the 1898 siege.

• Born at Dacre Hill,Born at Dacre Hill,Born at Dacre Hill, Bebington, Cheshire, second son of Sholto Douglas, he rose to the rank of Vice Admiral and was the Hydrographer of the Royal Navy and was knighted twice.  His first knighthood being the CMG (Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George) was awarded sometime after April 1918. He also received the Belgian order of Leopold and the Italian silver medal for valour.
• He was honoured with the CB (Companion of the Order of the Bath) in 1929.
• And awarded the second knighthood, (Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath) KCB in 1933.
• He received the CMG, the Belgian Order of Leopold, and the Italian Silver Medal for Valour sometime after April 1918.
• He became The Hydrographer of the Royal Navy.
• His father was Commander Sholto Douglas,  and his father was, we think, Commander Peter Douglas, and his father was also a Captain Peter Douglas, all Royal Navy. In turn the earlier Captain Peter Douglas’s father was Lord George Douglas, younger brother of The Marquis of Queensbury.
• He married Katherine Chute Mackenzie in 1899, second daughter of Captain John Mackenzie. They had a daughter, Kathleen Hay Douglas (born 1900), also known as "Gandimazie” to her grandchildren.
• He was a “Younger Brother” of
  Trinity House The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond, also known as Trinity House (and formally as The Master, Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the most glorious and undivided Trinity and of St Clement in the Parish of Deptford Strond in the County of Kent), is the official authority for lighthouses in England, Wales, the Channel Islands and Gibraltar. Trinity House is also responsible for the provision and maintenance of other navigational aids, such as lightvessels, buoys, and maritime radio/satellite communication systems. It is also an official deep sea pilotage authority, providing expert navigators for ships trading in Northern European waters.
• Some geographical features in Antarctica are also named after him, for example the Douglas Range, Douglas Islands and the Douglas Strait.

Early anti-submarine warfare system “ASDIC” and a navigation protractor

Vice Admiral Henry Percy Douglas was an innovator and helped lead the Royal Navy team that developed the first sea-bed echo sounder, or sonar, called

• Daughter of Admiral Percy Douglas, she later joined the Women’s Royal Naval Service (WRNS) during WWII.
• Married Cecil Herbert Louis Bate with the new family name “Douglas-Bate”, in 1926. Creation of the "Douglas-Bate" surname by Deed Poll, was to continue this particular thread of the Douglas lineage.
• After the death of Cecil, she remarried William (Bill) Cornelius Grootenhuis, a shipping agent.

Cecil Herbert Louis Douglas-Bate (1898–1957):

• Married Kathleen Hay Douglas in 1926, and they had two children: Susan Wemyss and Andrew S. Douglas-Bate.
• He died in 1957, possibly due to lung cancer exacerbated from gas injuries in WWI.

When Kathleen Hay Douglas and Cecil Herbert Louis Bate decided to get married, Kathleen’s father – Vice Admiral Sir Henry Percy Douglas KCB, KCMG and his wife Lady Katherine, had something to say…

Kathleen, being a female, was the last ‘Douglas’ of this - the senior branch - of the Queensbury line, but Sir Percy and Lady Katherine Douglas very much wanted the Douglas name to continue. As this was one of the conditions for the marriage to go ahead Kathleen and Cecil obliged and their married name was combined, and by Deed Poll, became ‘Douglas-Bate.’

When Cecil Herbert Louis Bate was 17 he attempted to enlist as an officer in the British Army. The recruiting unit sent him away saying come back when you have a moustache. Eventually he joined the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers as a young second lieutenant in 1916 and fought in the second Battle of the Somme. One day he was sent on an errand to a headquarters far behind behind the lines. On his return to the forward command post, clutching a piece of paper with a message, he found nobody was left at the position, it had been blown to pieces, everything and everybody, obliterated.

After WWI he went to Sandhurst where he became a  good horseman winning a prize for it. Later, he always sported a luxuriant moustache.

At the end of WWII, Kathleen had apparently risen near to the top of the Wrens to a higher rank than his, so he always saluted her first! (1)

• Born in India, where her father Cecil was stationed as an Army officer.
• Married Harry Nigel Newson Wemyss in 1954
• She became an executive leader in the
  Riding for the Disabled Association Riding for the Disabled (RDA) is a charitable organization that uses horses to provide therapeutic and recreational opportunities for disabled children and adults. Founded in 1969, RDA offers activities like therapeutic riding, carriage driving, and non-ridden experiences such as "Quiet Corners" and "Tea with a Pony". These activities help improve mobility, boost physical health and mental wellbeing, build confidence, and teach new skills.
  , running the Southern Region from the Channel Islands up to Oxfordshire.

• Served in the Royal Navy before pursuing a career in various industries, including steel, shipping, security, and recruitment.
• Further career details are below.
• He was awarded an MBE in 2005. He married Mary Fay Sylvia Groves in 1960.

Mary F.S Douglas-Bate (née Groves) (born 1940):

• She married and Andrew in 1961 and have three children, Rupert and Sophie and Harriet. Mary had a powerful career as a marriage guidance counsellor

When  World War II hit the planet on Sept 1^st 1939, both Andrew and Susan’s parents joined up to serve, his mother to the Navy as a Wren based in the UK and his father re-joining the Army and being sent to North Africa. The family home, 64 Carlton Hill, St John’s Wood London, was requisitioned by the Government and a number of refugees from the Blitz were installed there. The London house was eventually returned to the family in about 1952.

Andrew was educated at Charterhouse and at the age of eighteen, for his National Service he joined the Royal Navy. He was commissioned as a Midshipman RNVR/RNR leaving some years later as a Lieutenant RNR. After National Service he joined the United Steel Company Ltd, first learning the business shovelling coke in a blast furnace in South Wales, but eventually rising up through the levels, spending two five-year periods in the United Steel’s Selling/Technical Services office in Tehran, the local company, which represented many of the major UK steel manufacturers. Later he left the steel industry and worked at a senior level in Shipping, Nuclear Security, and Employment sectors – retiring in 2000. He also co-founded with his son Rupert,

Late 1960s to Present

• Son of Andrew and Mary Douglas-Bate, an aid worker since 1989 working in hot spots across the planet.
• Co-Founder of MapAction with his father Andrew Douglas-Bate in 2002.
• Rupert is also founder of 
  GlobalMapAid GlobalMapAid, also known as MapAid, is a social enterprise that creates maps to help direct aid and support development initiatives. Founded in 2002, the organization works with local communities, policymakers, donors, non-governmental organizations, and corporate social responsibility groups to identify and map local solutions for development and disaster prevention
   in 2004 while on a technology Fellowship at Stanford University on the
  Reuters Digital Vision Programme Reuters Digital Vision Program was funded by the Reuters Foundation and encouraged innovative applications of computing and communications in the developing world. Located at Stanford University's Center for the Study of Language and Information, the Program supported social entrepreneurs and organizations who sought to leverage technology-based solutions in the interest of humanitarian, educational, and sustainable development goals. The Program fostered interdisciplinary projects and prototyping efforts that address real needs in underserved communities.
  . These NGOs are committed to providing knowledge to promote accurate delivery of humanitarian and disaster prevention support, including climate change and poverty solutions. Global MapAid specialises in AI to deliver groundwater mapping solutions to support placement of water wells and other water interventions for small farmers in Africa.
• He wrote a short book entitled: The Competition For Hope: Why Sustainable Jobs for Men Aged 18 to 29 Years are Critical to Global Security.
• In terms of business, he set up a door-to-door food sales business, building over 1,000 customers from scratch.
• In terms of humanitarian work, he worked often an emergency water engineer in several humanitarian aid agencies.
• He joined the Royal Navy briefly, but the call of humanitarian work proved too strong, and he returned to that domain.
• In 2024 he became an executive career coach for the AI and technology sector, as well as running Global MapAid.
• He married first Janet Duffin (born 1957) who had a career as a crisis therapist, and they have three children. The marriage ended.
• In 2022 he married Nathalie Douglas-Bate (née Houdret) (born 1970). She helps run her family food export company. Previously she worked for the police.
• More information on Rupert Douglas-Bate is here>>>.

• Daughter of Andrew and Mary Douglas-Bate and owner of the
  Edible Food Design Ltd https://www.ediblefooddesign.co.uk/ look after director’s dining rooms, cater for weddings, provide delicious eats for cocktail parties, sporting events, large dinners and all sorts of other private events as well as cooking regular parties for charitable organisations and local businesses.
   which provides food and service for many different types of events.
• As a result of a long friendship Sophie married a South African, Louis Mearns Abel in 2021, and their son is James Henry Joshua Mearns Abel (born 2010).

Harriet Parker (née Douglas-Bate) (born 1966):

• Daughter of Andrew and Mary Douglas-Bate and working as a school teacher in South West England.
• She helped found and launch
  Walking with the Wounded Walking With The Wounded empowers veterans by reigniting their sense of purpose, enabling them to make a positive contribution to their communities and lead independent lives. Whether mentally, physically or socially wounded the charity supports ex-service personnel and their families most in need, offering personalised employment support, mental health and well-being support, and supports care coordination to help veterans who are struggling after military service.
  , a military veteran’s charity that helps many veterans, especially but not exclusively from the Iraq and Afghan conflicts.

This timeline encapsulates some of the main family events and military and humanitarian legacies, of the Douglas-Bate family, from the mid-1800s to the present.