Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Ormond
Encyclopedia
Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Ormond (1609–1655) was the eldest son of William Douglas, 1st Marquis of Douglas from whom he inherited the courtesy title of Earl of Angus
.Vian in the DNB spells the title Earl of Ormonde. Lee in the DNBIE and Paton in the much more recent ODNB, spell the name Earl of Ormond. Douglas was a member of privy council of Scotland, 1636; vacillated in his opinions on the new service-book, originally (1636) approving its use. Appointed extra ordinary lord of session in 1631. He signed the covenant, was unwilling to take up arms in its defence, but was a commissioner for the covenanters in England in 1643. In 1646 made colonel of Régiment de Douglas in France when his brother Lord James Douglas
, was killed in action. Member of committee of estates in 1650. Created Earl of Ormond in 1651; fined £1,000 by Cromwell's Act of Grace
, 1664.
, was born in 1609. In a charter of the barony of Hartside or Wandell, granted to him and his father 15 June 1613, he is named Lord Douglas, Master of Angus, and it is by the title of Earl of Angus, which became his on his father's elevation to the marquisate, that he is generally known. In 1628 Angus married Lady Anne Stuart, second daughter of Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox
, Charles I
being a party to the marriage contract.
In 1630 Angus went abroad and did not return before the latter end of 1633. In May 1636 he was appointed a member of the Privy Council of Scotland
, and was present at the meeting in December of that year at which the use of the new service-book was sanctioned. His sympathies, however, were believed to lie with the Covenanters, for when the Duke of Lennox was sent to enforce the use of the service-book, Angus was chosen to treat with him. Yet when the royal proclamation was issued commanding the use of the book, the order was made with the approval of Angus. On the final suppression of the book he was one of those members of the privy council who addressed a letter of thanks to the king. Judged by his vacillation in this matter Angus would seem to have had a large share of that spirit of irresolution which was the chief characteristic of the political careers of his half-brother and nephew and the third and fourth dukes of Hamilton
. Angus was appointed an extraordinary lord of session 9 February 1631, and not long afterwards signed the covenant. But when the Covenanters prepared to take the field, he left the country.
Angus returned to Scotland in 1641, when he appeared in parliament, and his right to sit as a peer's eldest son being questioned and decided against him, he was turned out, together with some others of the same rank. At the general assembly summoned in August 1643 he was elected one of the commissioners appointed to further the cause of the covenant in England, and at the same time he was put on the special commission which was to meet the commissioners sent to treat with the assembly by the English Long Parliament
. In 1646, on the death of his younger brother, Lord James Douglas
, in action, he was appointed to the command held by him as colonel of the Régiment de Douglas in France. He held this post till 1653, when he resigned it in favour of his brother George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton
, but it does not appear that he saw any active service. The greater portion of these years he spent at home in Scotland, though he took no prominent part in public affairs till the arrival of CharlesII
in Scotland.
With the arrival of Charles II in 1650, he became a member of the committee of estates, and was among those appointed to make preparations for the king's coronation. At that ceremony he officiated as high chamberlain, and in the following April he was created Earl of Ormond in the Peerage of Scotland
, (the subsidiary title of this earldom was Lord Bothwell and Hartside), with remainder to the heirs male of his second marriage with Lady Jane Wemyss, eldest daughter of David, 2nd Earl of Wemyss
, his first wife having died 16 August 1646, in her thirty-second year.
At the assembly which met at Edinburgh, and afterwards at Dundee, in July 1651, the earl took a leading part in the opposition to the Western Remonstrance
; but after the departure of Charles II to the continent he retired into private life. He was fined £1,000 by Cromwell's act of grace in 1654, though it was stoutly alleged on his behalf by the presbytery that he was a true protestant. He resided in the Canongate or at Holyrood Palace
till his death, which took place 15 January 1655, in the lifetime of his father. He was buried at Douglas in the family vault in St. Bride's Church. By his first wife Ormond became the father of one son, James
, who succeeded his grandfather as Marquis of Douglas. By Lady Jane Wemyss he had a daughter who became the fourth wife of Alexander, 1st Viscount Kingston
, and two sons, the elder of whom, Archibald
, succeeded him in his title, and in 1661 obtained a new patent creating him Earl of Forfar. The widow of the first Earl of Ormond, who outlived him sixty years, was married in 1659 to George, 15th Earl of Sutherland, whom she also survived.Paton ODNB, states it was "George, fifteenth Earl of Sutherland", Vian DNB stated it was "George, fourteenth Earl of Sutherland", but the fourteenth Earl's first name was John.
Earl of Angus
The Mormaer or Earl of Angus was the ruler of the medieval Scottish province of Angus. The title, in the Peerage of Scotland, is currently held by the Duke of Hamilton.-Mormaers:...
.Vian in the DNB spells the title Earl of Ormonde. Lee in the DNBIE and Paton in the much more recent ODNB, spell the name Earl of Ormond. Douglas was a member of privy council of Scotland, 1636; vacillated in his opinions on the new service-book, originally (1636) approving its use. Appointed extra ordinary lord of session in 1631. He signed the covenant, was unwilling to take up arms in its defence, but was a commissioner for the covenanters in England in 1643. In 1646 made colonel of Régiment de Douglas in France when his brother Lord James Douglas
Lord James Douglas
Lord James Douglas was a Scottish nobleman and soldier.He was born at Douglas Castle, Douglas, South Lanarkshire, the son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas, and his wife Margaret Hamilton, a daughter of Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley....
, was killed in action. Member of committee of estates in 1650. Created Earl of Ormond in 1651; fined £1,000 by Cromwell's Act of Grace
Cromwell's Act of Grace
Cromwell's Act of Grace or more formally the Act of Pardon and Grace to the People of Scotland, was proclaimed at the mercat cross in Edinburgh on 5 May 1654...
, 1664.
Biography
Douglas was the eldest son of William Douglas, 11th Earl of Angus and 1st Marquis of Douglas, by his first wife, Margaret Hamilton, daughter of Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord PaisleyClaud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley
Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley was a Scottish politician. He was a younger son of James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran. In 1553, he received the lands of the abbey of Paisley...
, was born in 1609. In a charter of the barony of Hartside or Wandell, granted to him and his father 15 June 1613, he is named Lord Douglas, Master of Angus, and it is by the title of Earl of Angus, which became his on his father's elevation to the marquisate, that he is generally known. In 1628 Angus married Lady Anne Stuart, second daughter of Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox KG was the son of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox. He was a patron of the playwright Ben Jonson, who lived in his household for five years.He married Katherine Clifton, 2nd Baroness Clifton, in 1609...
, 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...
being a party to the marriage contract.
In 1630 Angus went abroad and did not return before the latter end of 1633. In May 1636 he was appointed a member of the Privy Council of Scotland
Privy Council of Scotland
The Privy Council of Scotland was a body that advised the King.In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of material on the political, administrative, economic and social affairs of Scotland...
, and was present at the meeting in December of that year at which the use of the new service-book was sanctioned. His sympathies, however, were believed to lie with the Covenanters, for when the Duke of Lennox was sent to enforce the use of the service-book, Angus was chosen to treat with him. Yet when the royal proclamation was issued commanding the use of the book, the order was made with the approval of Angus. On the final suppression of the book he was one of those members of the privy council who addressed a letter of thanks to the king. Judged by his vacillation in this matter Angus would seem to have had a large share of that spirit of irresolution which was the chief characteristic of the political careers of his half-brother and nephew and the third and fourth dukes of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that Peerage , and as such its holder is the Premier Peer of Scotland, as well as being head of both the House of Hamilton and the House of Douglas...
. Angus was appointed an extraordinary lord of session 9 February 1631, and not long afterwards signed the covenant. But when the Covenanters prepared to take the field, he left the country.
Angus returned to Scotland in 1641, when he appeared in parliament, and his right to sit as a peer's eldest son being questioned and decided against him, he was turned out, together with some others of the same rank. At the general assembly summoned in August 1643 he was elected one of the commissioners appointed to further the cause of the covenant in England, and at the same time he was put on the special commission which was to meet the commissioners sent to treat with the assembly by the English Long Parliament
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...
. In 1646, on the death of his younger brother, Lord James Douglas
Lord James Douglas
Lord James Douglas was a Scottish nobleman and soldier.He was born at Douglas Castle, Douglas, South Lanarkshire, the son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas, and his wife Margaret Hamilton, a daughter of Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley....
, in action, he was appointed to the command held by him as colonel of the Régiment de Douglas in France. He held this post till 1653, when he resigned it in favour of his brother George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton
George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton
Major-General George Douglas, 1st Earl of Dumbarton KT was a Scottish nobleman, and soldier.-Early Life:The son of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas and his second wife Lady Mary Gordon daughter of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly, Douglas was the younger brother of the William...
, but it does not appear that he saw any active service. The greater portion of these years he spent at home in Scotland, though he took no prominent part in public affairs till the arrival of CharlesII
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
in Scotland.
With the arrival of Charles II in 1650, he became a member of the committee of estates, and was among those appointed to make preparations for the king's coronation. At that ceremony he officiated as high chamberlain, and in the following April he was created Earl of Ormond in the Peerage of Scotland
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...
, (the subsidiary title of this earldom was Lord Bothwell and Hartside), with remainder to the heirs male of his second marriage with Lady Jane Wemyss, eldest daughter of David, 2nd Earl of Wemyss
David Wemyss, 2nd Earl of Wemyss
David Wemyss, 2nd Earl of Wemyss was an army officer.Only son of John Wemyss, 1st Earl of Wemyss and Jean Gray , daughter of Lord Gray....
, his first wife having died 16 August 1646, in her thirty-second year.
At the assembly which met at Edinburgh, and afterwards at Dundee, in July 1651, the earl took a leading part in the opposition to the Western Remonstrance
Western Remonstrance
The Western Remonstrance was signed in October 1650 by Scotsmen who demanded that the Act of Classes was enforced and remonstrating against Charles, the son of the recently beheaded King Charles I, being crowned King of Scotland.-See also:* Third Civil War in Scotland in the Wars of the Three...
; but after the departure of Charles II to the continent he retired into private life. He was fined £1,000 by Cromwell's act of grace in 1654, though it was stoutly alleged on his behalf by the presbytery that he was a true protestant. He resided in the Canongate or at Holyrood Palace
Holyrood Palace
The Palace of Holyroodhouse, commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the monarch in Scotland. The palace stands at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle...
till his death, which took place 15 January 1655, in the lifetime of his father. He was buried at Douglas in the family vault in St. Bride's Church. By his first wife Ormond became the father of one son, James
James Douglas, 2nd Marquess of Douglas
James Douglas, 2nd Marquess of Douglas was the son of Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus and 1st Earl of Ormonde, and Lady Anne Stuart....
, who succeeded his grandfather as Marquis of Douglas. By Lady Jane Wemyss he had a daughter who became the fourth wife of Alexander, 1st Viscount Kingston
Alexander Seton, 1st Viscount of Kingston
Sir Alexander Seton, 1st Viscount of Kingston , a Cavalier, was the first dignity Charles II conferred as King.-Family:...
, and two sons, the elder of whom, Archibald
Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Forfar
Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Forfar, 2nd Earl of Ormonde was a Scottish peer.He was the second son and youngest child of Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus and 1st Earl of Ormond, by his second wife, Jean Wemyss, the daughter of David Wemyss, 2nd Earl of Wemyss and the Hon. Anna Balfour of Burleigh...
, succeeded him in his title, and in 1661 obtained a new patent creating him Earl of Forfar. The widow of the first Earl of Ormond, who outlived him sixty years, was married in 1659 to George, 15th Earl of Sutherland, whom she also survived.Paton ODNB, states it was "George, fifteenth Earl of Sutherland", Vian DNB stated it was "George, fourteenth Earl of Sutherland", but the fourteenth Earl's first name was John.