Mary was born in Crieff, Perth, Scotland in 1881. Her father was a Rear Admiral in the British Royal Navy, who was appointed a Naval Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria on 4th August 1890. Her mother was Agnes Peile Lumsden Boyle. Mary had the following siblings: Agnes M. b. 1880, Dorothy Catharine, b. 1886, Archibald Robert b. 11th August 1888 and David E. b. 9th September 1890. The children were initially educated at home by a Governess.
Mary’s brother, David Erskine Boyle, became a professional soldier. He joined the 2nd Battalion of the Lancashire Fusiliers and was killed in the early days of WW1 at Le Cateau, near Cambrai on 26th August 1916. David Erskine Boyle is remembered on the Memorial at La Ferte-Sous-Jouarre, Seine-et-Marne, France.
Mary’s brother Archibalde Robert also joined the Army – the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. “Archie”, as he was known, survived the war and was awarded two Military Crosses – one on 23rd June 1915 and the other on 25th November 1916.
Mary’s sister Dorothy married Frank Douglas Browne in Kohat, Bengal, India in 1907.
Mary’s WW1 poetry collections were: “Aftermath: Poems” (Heffer, Cambridge, 1914) – dedicated to the memory of her brother, David - and “Pilate in Exile at Vienne” (Heffer, Cambridge, 1915).
Connie Ruzich has posted one of Mary’s poems on her wonderful website Behind Their Lines here: https://behindtheirlines.blogspot.com/2019/02/aftermath.html
