[2] Shand was born in London into an upper-class family whose ancestors had moved to England from Scotland.

His father was a close friend of Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier and whose company, Finmar, imported furniture by Alvar Aalto to the United Kingdom.

Contrary to some newspaper reports, young Shand was not abandoned by his mother and stepfather but was taken to live with them in Westbury, Long Island, New York, in 1921.

The 12th Lancers were equipped with lightly armed Morris armoured cars in a reconnaissance role.

The regiment spent six months at Foncquevillers during the Phoney War, then advanced to the River Dyle and retreated in the face of the German blitzkrieg.

He aided in covering the withdrawal to Dunkirk, from where he was evacuated back to England, arriving at Margate on 31 May 1940.

[8] After a period with the regiment in Poole and in Reigate, and an interlude training the North Irish Horse in Northern Ireland, Shand was sent with the regiment to North Africa in September 1941 as part of the 7th Armoured Division, where he was promoted to the temporary rank of captain.

He earned his second MC in January 1942, covering the withdrawal of armoured cars of the 6th Rajputana Rifles in the face of a strong counterattack by the German Afrika Corps.

[10] On 25 April 1947, Shand was retired from the army on account of disability and was granted the honorary rank of major.

In 1993, Shand reportedly reproached Charles, Prince of Wales at a private event for ruining his daughter's life after their relationship became public.

On 16 June, Shand's funeral service was held at the Trinity Church in Stourpaine and was attended by the then Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall.