Everard Blair

Brigadier-General Everard McLeod Blair (26 July 1866 – 16 May 1939) was an Indian-born English soldier and cricketer. Blair was a career soldier in the Royal Engineers, rising to the rank of Brigadier-General when he retired in 1918. He played in seven first-class cricket matches for Kent County Cricket Club between 1893 and 1900.

Early life and education Blair was born in 1866 at Bangalore, then in the state of Mysore in British India. His father, Gustavus Blair, was a Colonel in the Royal Artillery. Blair attended Cheltenham College where he represented the school in racquets and gymnastics as well as being in the cricket XI in 1883 and 1884.

Military career Blair was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Royal Engineers in February 1886. After serving in Hong Kong he was appointed instructor in fieldworks at the Royal School of Military Engineering at Chatham. In March 1896 he was promoted to captain and became an instructor at the Royal Military Academy from 1898 to 1903. The pipeline was completed after the Second Battle of Gaza in April 1917. Whilst the works were ongoing Blair was awarded the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the 1917 New Year Honours. In his first-class debut he scored 61 runs against Gloucestershire at the County Ground, Bristol, form which his Wisden obituary said that he "never regained", despite being "strong in defence with plenty of shots".