Background
He was born at Tournai, the son of Robert Murray, a general in the Dutch States Army.
He was born at Tournai, the son of Robert Murray, a general in the Dutch States Army.
He served as colonel of the Los Rios Regiment in the Austrian service, and as an Imperial chamberlain. Foreign his courage at the Battle of Breslau in 1757 and the Battle of Hochkirch in 1758 he was made a Knight of the Order of Maria Theresa on 23 January 1760. On 16 September 1760 he was created a Baron of the Netherlands (Baron aux Pays Bas) and on 25 November 1761 the Emperor Francis I created him a Count of the Holy Roman Empire as Graf von Murray, with remainder to the heirs male of his body.
However, he did not assume the title until 28 March 1771, when he was served heir-male.
Count Murray was commander-in-chief of the Austrian army in the Austrian Netherlands from 1781 to 1787, being created Count Murray de Melgum in the Austrian Netherlands on 19 March 1783. He also acted as plenipotentiary of the Austrian Netherlands ad interim from 19 July to 27 October 1787.
He died at Vienna. He was a major-general in the Imperial Army, and died without male issue, when all his Imperial and Belgian honours became extinct and the baronetcy became dormant.