He became Chief of the Imperial General Staff three months after the start of the First World War, but was ineffectual and was replaced in September 1915 following the failure of the Dardanelles campaign.

[3] After attending Staff College, Camberley he became Deputy Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster-General in Northern England January 1884.

[7] He saw action in the Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War in West Africa between November 1895 and February 1896 and was then transferred to India where he became Assistant Adjutant-General on 25 January 1898,[8] receiving promotion to lieutenant colonel on 31 March 1898.

[14] In May 1901 he returned to India to command a brigade, and received the temporary rank of brigadier general whilst so employed.

[15] Promoted to the substantive rank of major-general on 1 January 1903,[1] he was made Quartermaster-General in India on 2 May 1903[16] and Master-General of the Ordnance at Army Headquarters in London on 12 February 1904.

[17] At this time the Esher Committee chaired by Lord Esher was proposing far reaching changes to the structure of the British Army including the creation of a "blue ribbon" elite drawn strictly from the General Staff to the exclusion of Administrative Staff:[18] Murray strongly opposed this aspect of the proposals.