Boer War Veteran
~~~Miles Charles Cariston SETON, Australian Imperial Force, AIF, The Great War~~~
Transcript of military service for commissoned officer:--- Major Seton
Born:--- Edinburgh, Scotland, 1874
Religion:--- Church of England
Civil employment:--- Medical practitioner, Outpatient Surgeon at Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria.
Home Address:--- 132 Hotham St, St Kilda, Victoria
Marital status:--- Single
Age on enlistment:--- 41 years.
Next of kin:--- Sister, Miss Seton, 26 Howard Place, Edinburgh, Scotland
Prior military service:--- Served in South Africa (Boer War) for 2 years (first as Civil Surgeon, South African Field Force; then as Captain, Cape Medical Staff Corps).
Attested into AIF:--- 1st December 1915
Rank on enlistment:--- Captain
Embarked from:--- Sydney, New South Wales, aboard HMAT A67 Kanowna, 22nd December 1915
Final Rank:--- Major
Final Unit:--- Australian Army Medical Corps
Fate:--- Murdered on 13th January 1919, shot 14 times by Colonel Norman Cecil Rutherford, DSO at 13 Clarendon Road Holland Park, Kensington, residence of Major Seton's cousin, Malcolm Cotter Cariston Seton, Secretary of the Judicial and Public Department of the India Office. (While Norman was in France, it appears that Alice may have become romantically involved with Major Miles Seton, an old friend of Norman. She requested a divorce. Then, following his return to England, Norman resorted to shooting Major Seton to death in 1919.)
Burial:--- Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey, England
War service:--- Egypt, England
Medals:--- British War Medal, Victory Medal
Parents:--- William Carden Seton and Amy Isobel Forsyth married 22nd March 1871,
Edinburgh. Midlothian. Scotland
Colonel Norman Cecil Ruterford's Fate:--- He was found guilty of willful murder but insane. He spent almost ten years in Broadmoor Hospital, a high-security psychiatric hospital, before being released in 1929. Norman Rutherford died at St Mary's Hospital, Pinetown District, Natal, South Africa on 6th December 1951 at the age of 69.
Alice Maude Mary Roberts' Fate:--- Born on 27th June 1881 at The Knoll, Bingley, Yorkshire, England. She was the daughter of James Roberts and Elizabeth Foster.
She first married Norman Cecil Rutherford on 27th August 1902 in Ferry-Port on Craig, Fife, Scotland. She later married Archibald Stewart Clark on 20th August 1938. Alice Roberts died on 6th February 1982 at age 100 in Onchan, Douglas, Isle of Man.
~~~~~~~~~~Other details of military service~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Reported for duty, 1st Auxiliary Hospital, Heliopolis, 1 February 1916.
Embarked Alexandria for England, 1 August 1916; marched in to No 2 Camp, Parkhouse, 27 August 1916. Marched out to 15th Training Bn, 27 September 1916.
Transferred to No 4 Command Depot, Wareham, 30 October1916.
Admitted to Wareham Hospital, 26 December 1916 (malaria); marched in to No 4 Command Depot from hospital, 31 January 1917.
Marched in to No 2 Command Depot, Weymouth, 2 October 1917.
Promoted Major, 10 September 1918.
Attached for duty to No 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital, Harefield, 26 November 1918.
Murdered by Colonel Norman Cecil Rutherford, DSO (jealous husband), at 13 Clarendon Road, Holland Park, London, 14 January 1919. Rutherford was found to be insane from shell-shock and committed to Broadmoor Hospital for the Criminally Insane. Official Secretary to the Governor-General, Melbourne, wrote to Secretary, Defence Department, 31 January 1919: ' ... the reported circumstances under which this Officer met his death seems to scarcely come within the circumstances which call for the King's Message' [of condolence to the next of kin].
~~~~~~~~~~Biography contributed by Evan Evans~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The summary below was completed by Cathy Sedgwick – Facebook "WW1 Australian War Graves in England/UK/Scotland/Ireland
Died on this date – 13th January…… Myles Charles Cariston Seton was born on 29th May, 1874 at Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland.
Miles Charles Carriston Seton was listed in the UK Medical and Dental Students Registers 1882 – 1937. His date of Registration was 22 October, 1891 & his place & date of Medical Study was listed as Edinburgh University 21st October, 1891.
The 1909 Victorian Police Gazette recorded Miles Charles Cariston Seton, as a legally qualified Medical Practitioner. His certificate Number was 2682 from 7th December, 1909 care of Dr. Hood, Sutherland Road, Armadale.
On 22nd November, 1915 Miles Charles Cariston Seton, of 132 Hotham Street, St. Kilda, Victoria, applied for a Commission in the Australian Imperial Force. He was an Outpatient Surgeon at The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne at the time of applying & stated he had served in South African War for 2 years – Civil Surgeon with South African Field Force in 1900 & Captain with Cape Medical Staff Corps from 1901 – 2.
Miles Charles Cariston Seton was a 41 year old, single, Medical Practitioner from St. Kilda, Victoria when was appointed Captain with the Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.) on 1st December, 1915. His religion was Church of England & his next of kin was listed as his sister – Miss Seton, 26 Howard Place, Edinburgh, Scotland. Captain Seton was recommended for General Duty & Hospital Surgical (not for Field Ambulance or Transport Duty).
He embarked from Sydney, New South Wales on HMAT Kanowna (A61) on 22nd December, 1915 with the Medical Officers.
On 1st February, 1916 Captain Seton reported for duty at 1st Auxiliary Hospital, Heliopolis. He was posted as Embarkation Officer at Port Tufick on 1st June, 1916 then embarked from Alexandria on 1st August, 1916.
Captain Seton was marched in to Camp 2, Parkhouse, Wiltshire, England on 27th August, 1916 & reported to No. 1 Command Depot on 28th September, 1916.
He was transferred from No. 1 Command Depot at Perham Downs, Wiltshire to Wareham, Dorset on 30th October, 1916. He was sent sick to Wareham Military Hospital with Malaria (as listed on Casualty Form – Active Service) on 26th December, 1916 however a Medical Board assembled at Mount Dore Hospital, Bournemouth, England on 1st January, 1917 examined him & concluded he had Influenza.
Captain Seton returned to No.4 Command Depot at Wareham on 31st January, 1917.
Captain Miles Charles Cariston Seton was promoted to Major on 10th September, 1918. He was attached to 1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital, Harefield, England for duty from 26th November, 1918.
Major Miles Charles Cariston Seton died on 13th January, 1919 at 13 Clarendon Road, Holland Park, London, England.
A Coroner's Inquest (10 pages of Inquest can be found in research on website) was held & it was found that Major Seton had been murdered by Colonel Norman Cecil Rutherford DSO.
Major Miles Charles Cariston Seton was buried in Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey, England where around 360 other WW1 Australian War Graves are located.
Inscription reads:
Ung Loy-Ung Foy-Ung Roy
(Translation: One Law-One Faith-One King)
Newspaper item from Western Mail, Perth, Western Australia – 8 February, 1919:
In the Rutherford case the maid servant of Mrs. Rutherford gave evidence to the effect that Lieut.-Colonel Rutherford refused to allow in the house any photographs of men, and that he was subject to outbreaks of unreasoning temper. A few days before Colonel Rutherford's return from France his wife gave to the witness Major Seton's photograph, which had been in Mrs Rutherford's dressing room, and told her to put it in her (the witness's) bedroom. The witness denied emphatically that she had seen any act of impropriety between Major Seton and Mrs Rutherford.
Outcome from Murder case:
Colonel Norman Cecil Rutherford DSO was found to be insane from shell-shock and committed to Broadmoor Hospital for the Criminally Insane.

(The above is a summary of my research. The full research can be found by following the link below)
Headstone photo courtesy of Ian Fletcher
Cemetery photo courtesy of Neil Bright
*Please note this story is too long to include all the details - there are several newspaper items in my research & a link to a full in-depth explanation of the whole story.