Anne Hamilton, 3rd Duchess of Hamilton
Encyclopedia
Peerage of Scotland
The Peerage of Scotland is the division of the British Peerage for those peers created in the Kingdom of Scotland before 1707. With that year's Act of Union, the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England were combined into the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a new Peerage of Great Britain was...
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The daughter of Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton and 3rd Marquess of Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton
General Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman and influential Civil war military leader.-Young Arran:...
, Scottish General and premier peer
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
of the realm, and Lady Mary Feilding, daughter of William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh
William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh
William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh was an English naval officer and courtier.William Feilding was the son of Basil Fielding of Newnham Paddox in Warwickshire, , and of Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Walter Aston and his wife, Elizabeth Leveson.The descent of the Feildings from the house of Habsburg,...
and Lady Susan Villiers
Susan Feilding, Countess of Denbigh
Susan Feilding, Countess of Denbigh was an English courtier. She was a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Henrietta Maria....
, a sister of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
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She was born at the Palace of Whitehall
Palace of Whitehall
The Palace of Whitehall was the main residence of the English monarchs in London from 1530 until 1698 when all except Inigo Jones's 1622 Banqueting House was destroyed by fire...
in London, where her mother was a Lady of the Bedchamber
Lady of the Bedchamber
This is an incomplete list of those who have served as Lady of the Bedchamber in the British Royal Household...
to Henrietta Maria of France
Henrietta Maria of France
Henrietta Maria of France ; was the Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the wife of King Charles I...
, wife of King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
of Scotland
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
and of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
.
Accession
Following the 1st Duke's execution for his part in the Wars of the Three KingdomsWars of the Three Kingdoms
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms formed an intertwined series of conflicts that took place in England, Ireland, and Scotland between 1639 and 1651 after these three countries had come under the "Personal Rule" of the same monarch...
in 1649, his brother, William, Earl of Lanark
William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton
William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman who supported both Royalist and Presbyterian causes during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms....
, inherited the titles and lands. William died from wounds received at the Battle of Worcester
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 at Worcester, England and was the final battle of the English Civil War. Oliver Cromwell and the Parliamentarians defeated the Royalist, predominantly Scottish, forces of King Charles II...
in 1651, whilst leading his regiment into some of the thickest of the fighting. In his will made at the Hague in 1650, he stipulated that the Lady Anne was his heir, over and above his own children, (all daughters, his only son having died in childhood).
Lady Anne became the Duchess of Hamilton, with the subsidiary titles Marchioness of Clydesdale, Countess of Arran, Lanark and Cambridge, the Lady Aven, Innerdale, Machanshire and Polmont. She succeeded to the Dukedom of Hamilton thanks to the special remainder. The remainder stipulated that, failing heirs male of the body of the 1st Duke, the Dukedom should devolve upon his brother and his heirs male, and that the eldest daughter of the 1st Duke should succeed to the Dukedom only if her uncle died leaving no sons.
Through paternal descent, Anne had a claim to the throne of Scotland, although this was dependent upon the failure of the House of Stewart. She was descended from James II
James II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
through the marriage of the 1st Lord Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton, 6th Lord of Cadzow was a Scottish nobleman, scholar and politician.-Early life:...
to the Princess Mary of Scotland
Mary Stewart, Princess of Scotland
Princess Mary, Countess of Arran was the eldest daughter of King James II of Scotland and Mary of Guelders. Her brother was King James III of Scotland. She married twice; firstly to Thomas Boyd, 1st Earl of Arran; secondly to James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton...
. Her great great grandfather, the 2nd Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault and 2nd Earl of Arran was a Scottish nobleman.-Biography:He was the eldest legitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran....
, had been heir presumptive
Heir Presumptive
An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...
from the death of Regent Albany
John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany
John Stewart, Duke of Albany was Regent of the Kingdom of Scotland, Duke of Albany in peerage of Scotland and Count of Auvergne and Lauraguais in France.-Early life:...
until the birth of James VI
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
, and had served as Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
of Scotland during the childhood and absence in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
of Mary, Queen of Scots.
Marriage and issue
She was wed in 1656, at the kirk of CorstorphineCorstorphine
Corstorphine was originally a village to the west of—and separate from—Edinburgh, Scotland, and is now a suburb of that city.Corstorphine retains a busy main street with many independent small shops, although a number have closed in recent years since the opening of several retail parks...
near Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, to William Douglas, 1st Earl of Selkirk
William Douglas, Duke of Hamilton
William Douglas-Hamilton, 3rd Duke of Hamilton, KG, PC , born Lord William Douglas, was the son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas and his second wife Lady Mary Gordon, a daughter of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly...
, a younger son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas
William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas
William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas and 11th Earl of Angus was a Scottish nobleman.-Master of Angus:William Douglas, Master of Angus was the eldest son of William Douglas, 10th Earl of Angus and his Countess, Elizabeth Oliphant, eldest daughter of Laurence Oliphant, 4th Lord Oliphant...
. Selkirk was created Duke of Hamilton for his lifetime, included the subsidiary titles pertaining to the Dukedom de jure uxoris , and in 1660 he assumed the surname Douglas-Hamilton
Douglas-Hamilton
Douglas-Hamilton is the family surname of the Dukes of Hamilton and Earls of Selkirk. The name originates from the marriage of Anne Hamilton, 3rd Duchess of Hamilton to William Douglas, 1st Earl of Selkirk in 1656. Anne was Duchess in her own right and head of the "House of Hamilton"...
. Between 1657 and 1673, the couple produced 13 children.
- Lady Mary Hamilton (1657–1666)
- James Hamilton (1658–1712), later 4th Duke of Hamilton
- Lord William Hamilton (1659–1681)
- Lady Anna Hamilton (1661–1663)
- Lady Catherine Hamilton (1662–1707), married John Murray, 1st Duke of AthollJohn Murray, 1st Duke of AthollJohn Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl, KT, PC was a Scottish nobleman, politician, and soldier. He served in numerous positions during his life, and fought in the Glorious Revolution for William III and Mary II....
- Charles Hamilton (1664–1739), later 2nd Earl of SelkirkEarl of SelkirkEarl of Selkirk is a title in the Peerage of Scotland.It was created on 4 August 1646 for Lord William Douglas, third son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas, along with the title Lord Daer and Shortcleuch...
- John Hamilton (1665–1744), later 1st Earl of RuglenEarl of RuglenEarl of Ruglen was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. Along with the subsidiary titles Viscount of Riccartoun and Lord Hillhouse, it was created on the 14th of April, 1697, for Lord John Douglas-Hamilton, fourth son of William Douglas-Hamilton, Duke of Hamilton, 1st Earl of Selkirk, and his wife...
and 3rd Earl of Selkirk - George HamiltonGeorge Hamilton, 1st Earl of OrkneyField Marshal George Douglas-Hamilton, 1st Earl of Orkney KT was a British soldier and Scottish nobleman and the first British Army officer to be promoted to the rank of Field Marshal. The son of the Duke and Duchess of Hamilton, he fought for William of Orange in Ireland and the Low Countries...
(1666–1737), later 1st Earl of OrkneyEarl of OrkneyThe Earl of Orkney was originally a Norse jarl ruling Orkney, Shetland and parts of Caithness and Sutherland. The Earls were periodically subject to the kings of Norway for the Northern Isles, and later also to the kings of Alba for those parts of their territory in mainland Scotland . The Earl's... - Lady Susan Hamilton, married 1st John Cochrane, 4th Earl of Dundonald, 2nd John Hay, 2nd Marquess of TweeddaleJohn Hay, 2nd Marquess of TweeddaleJohn Hay, 2nd Marquess of Tweeddale was a Scottish nobleman.Hay was the eldest son of John Hay, 1st Marquess of Tweeddale and his wife, Jean, daughter of Walter Scott, 1st Earl of Buccleuch. In 1666, at Highgate in London, he married Lady Mary Maitland, daughter of John Maitland, 1st Duke of...
- Lady Margaret Hamilton (1668–1731, married James Maule, 4th Earl of PanmureJames Maule, 4th Earl of PanmureJames Maule, 4th Earl of Panmure , was a Scottish peer.Born in Monifieth, Scotland, James Maule lived at Ballumbie and became the 4th Earl of Panmure in 1686 on the death of his brother, George Maule, the 3rd Earl. he married Margaret, the daughter of William Douglas, Duke of Hamilton...
- Lady Anna Hamilton (1669 died in infancy)
- Lord Basil Hamilton (1671–1701)
- Lord Archibald HamiltonLord Archibald HamiltonLord Archibald Hamilton was a British politician.Hamilton was the youngest son of William Douglas-Hamilton, Duke of Hamilton and Anne Hamilton, 3rd Duchess of Hamilton. He became a Captain in the Royal Navy and in 1708, was elected as MP for Lanarkshire...
(1673–1754)
The Duchess died at Hamilton on 17 October 1716, and is buried there, in the Bent Cemetery.
Building works
After her marriage the Duchess and her husband set about laying the foundations for what would be, under later Dukes, the largest private residence in the western hemisphereWestern Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere or western hemisphere is mainly used as a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian and east of the Antimeridian , the other half being called the Eastern Hemisphere.In this sense, the western hemisphere consists of the western portions...
, Hamilton Palace
Hamilton Palace
Hamilton Palace was a large country house located north-east of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The former seat of the Dukes of Hamilton, it was built in 1695 and subsequently much enlarged. The house was demolished in 1921 due to ground subsidence despite inadequate evidence for that...
.
This was constructed on the site of what was commonly called either the 'Palace' or 'The Orchard', a courtyard style building in the "Low Parks of Hamilton". The Hamiltons had lived in the "Low parks" the more formal area of their estate, in the Clyde
River Clyde
The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....
valley, since the fourteenth century.
In 1684 she commissioned the architect, James Smith
James Smith (architect)
James Smith was a Scottish architect, who pioneered the Palladian style in Scotland. He was described by Colen Campbell, in his Vitruvius Britannicus , as "the most experienced architect of that kingdom".-Biography:...
to remodel the existing buildings, removing the southern part of the previous courtyard building on the site and increasing the scale of the edifice to form a U-shaped mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
house.
Today, the Palace is no more, and the "Low Parks" now form part of Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Country Park is a country park located in Lanarkshire, Scotland.The park covers some 4 km², centred on the artificial Strathclyde Loch. It is located next to the River Clyde between Hamilton and Motherwell. Strathclyde Park forms what used to be known as the Low parks of the now...
, having been given to the nation in lieu of death duties upon the passing of the 14th Duke of Hamilton
Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton
Air Commodore Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton and 11th Duke of Brandon, KT, GCVO, AFC, PC, DL, FRCSE, FRGS, was a Scottish nobleman and pioneering aviator....
in 1973.
Another of the Duchess's works was the building of a new school building to house the Grammar School of Hamilton (in 1848 renamed the Hamilton Academy
Hamilton Academy
Hamilton Academy was a school situated in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland.Described as "one of the finest schools in Scotland" in the Cambridge University Press County Biography of 1910, Hamilton Academy featured in the Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association Magazine article series on...
) which had originally been endowed in 1588 by her great grandfather John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Hamilton
John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Hamilton
John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Hamilton was a Scottish nobleman.-Life:Hamilton was the third son of James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran by his wife Margaret Douglas, a daughter of James Douglas, 3rd Earl of Morton...
and sited near the churchyard adjoining Hamilton Palace. In 1714 the Duchess presented this new school building on the newly named Grammar School Square to the Town Council of Hamilton. The building remained in the school's use until 1848 when, as now the Hamilton Academy, the school relocated to a further purpose-built building. Duchess Anne's building of 1714 survived until its demolition in 1932, a plaque commemorating the site being subsequently erected by Hamilton Civic Society, the Hamilton family continuing as benefactors of the school (see article Hamilton Academy
Hamilton Academy
Hamilton Academy was a school situated in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland.Described as "one of the finest schools in Scotland" in the Cambridge University Press County Biography of 1910, Hamilton Academy featured in the Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association Magazine article series on...
.)