Earl of Stair
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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...
. It was created in 1703 for the lawyer and statesman John Dalrymple, 2nd Viscount of Stair
John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair
John Dalrymple the Master of Stair was a Scottish noble who played a crucial role in the 1707 Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, that created the Kingdom of Great Britain....
. He actively supported William III
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
's claim to the throne and served as Secretary of State for Scotland
Secretary of State for Scotland
The Secretary of State for Scotland is the principal minister of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Scotland. He heads the Scotland Office , a government department based in London and Edinburgh. The post was created soon after the Union of the Crowns, but was...
. However, he was forced to resign after he authorised the massacre of Glencoe
Massacre of Glencoe
Early in the morning of 13 February 1692, in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution and the Jacobite uprising of 1689 led by John Graham of Claverhouse, an infamous massacre took place in Glen Coe, in the Highlands of Scotland. This incident is referred to as the Massacre of Glencoe, or in...
of 1692. Dalrymple was made Lord Newliston, Glenluce and Stranraer and Viscount of Dalrymple, at the same time he was given the earldom, also in the Peerage of Scotland. All three titles were created with remainder, in default of male issue of his own, to the heirs male of his father. His father James Dalrymple
James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair
James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair , Scottish lawyer and statesman, was born at Drummurchie, Barr, South Ayrshire.-Biography:...
was also a prominent lawyer and served as Lord President of the Court of Session
Lord President of the Court of Session
The Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General of Scotland and head of the High Court of Justiciary, the offices having been combined in 1836...
. He was created a Baronet, of Stair in the County of Ayr, in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia in 1664, and in 1690 he was raised to the Peerage of Scotland as Lord Glenluce and Stranraer and Viscount of Stair.
The first Earl of Stair was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Earl. He was a prominent soldier and served as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
The Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, or just the Commander-in-Chief , was the professional head of the British Army from 1660 until 1904, when the office was replaced by the Chief of the General Staff, soon to become Chief of the Imperial General Staff . From 1870, the C-in-C was subordinate to...
. In 1707 Lord Stair surrendered all his honours to the Crown, and obtained a new charter empowering him to name as his successor any male descendant of the first Viscount of Stair. In 1747, shortly before his death, he nominated his nephew John Dalrymple (d. 1789), second son of his third brother George Dalrymple (d. 1745). This was mostly because his second brother Colonel the Hon. William Dalrymple (d. 1744) (heir presumptive to the peerages from 1707 to 1744) had married Penelope Crichton, 4th Countess of Dumfries, a peeress in her own right. This nomination was contested and the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
decided in favour of James Dalrymple (d. 1760), the second son of the aforementioned Colonel the Hon. William Dalrymple by his wife the Countess of Dumfries. The House of Lords decided in 1748 in this case that the power of nomination could not be validly exercised after the Union
Treaty of Union
The Treaty of Union is the name given to the agreement that led to the creation of the united kingdom of Great Britain, the political union of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, which took effect on 1 May 1707...
. On his uncle's death in 1747 James succeeded as third Earl of Stair.
He was childless and was succeeded by his elder brother, the fourth Earl, who had already succeeded his mother as fifth Earl of Dumfries. He was also childless and on his death in 1769 the two earldoms separated. He was succeeded in the earldom of Dumfries by his nephew Patrick Macdonnell-Crichton (see the Earl of Dumfries
Earl of Dumfries
Earl of Dumfries is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was originally created for William Crichton, 9th Lord Crichton of Sanquhar, in 1633, and stayed in the Crichton family until the death of the fourth earl in 1758, at which point the title passed to first the Dalrymple and then the McDouall...
for later history of this title). The earldom of Stair and its subsidiary titles were passed on to his cousin, the aforementioned John Dalrymple, the fifth Earl, who in 1747 had been nominated for the earldom by his uncle the second Earl. He was succeeded by his son, the sixth Earl. He sat in the House of Lords as a Scottish Representative Peer
Representative peer
In the United Kingdom, representative peers were those peers elected by the members of the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of Ireland to sit in the British House of Lords...
from 1793 to 1807 and from 1820 to 1821 and also served as Ambassador to Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
.
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Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Edinburgh
Edinburgh (UK Parliament constituency)
Edinburgh was a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 until 1885. Originally a single member constituency, representation was increased to two members in 1832...
. In 1841 he was created Baron Oxenfoord, of Cousland in the County of Edinburgh, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
, with remainder to his brother. This peerage gave the Earls an automatic seat in the House of Lords. The Oxenfoord title was in honour of his property Oxenfoord Castle
Oxenfoord Castle
Oxenfoord Castle is a country house in Midlothian, Scotland. It is located north of Pathhead, and south-east of Dalkeith, above the Tyne Water. Originally a 16th-century tower house, the present castle is largely the result of major rebuilding in 1782, to designs by the architect Robert Adam....
, and the title held by his wife's family, the Viscounts of Oxfuird
Viscount of Oxfuird
Viscount of Oxfuird is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1651 for Sir James Makgill, 1st Baronet, along with the subsidiary title of Lord Makgill of Cousland, also in the Peerage of Scotland, with remainder to his "heirs male of tailzie and provision whomsoever"...
(or Oxenfoord). He was succeeded by his younger brother (in the barony of Oxenfoord according to the special remainder), the ninth Earl.
His son, the tenth Earl, represented Wigtownshire
Wigtownshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Wigtownshire, was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918. It was represented by one Member of Parliament....
in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
as a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and served as Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire and Wigtownshire
Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire
This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire, Scotland.*Archibald Montgomerie, 11th Earl of Eglinton 17 March 1794 – 30 October 1796*Hugh Montgomerie, 12th Earl of Eglinton 23 November 1796 – 14 December 1819...
. His grandson, the twelfth Earl, also sat as Conservative Member of Parliament for Wigtownshire and served as Lord Lieutenant of Wigtownshire. On his death the titles passed to his son, the thirteenth Earl. He was also Lord Lieutenant of Wigtownshire. As of 2007 the titles are held by his eldest son, the fourteenth Earl, who succeeded in 1996. In May 2008 the fourteenth Earl was elected to sit as a Hereditary Cross-Bench Peer in the House of Lords following the death of Baroness Darcy de Knayth
The Dalrymple Baronetcy, of Killock, was created in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia in 1698 for James Dalrymple, second son of the first Viscount of Stair. His great-grandson, the fourth Baronet, was a Baron of the Court of Exchequer in Scotland. He married his cousin Elizabeth Macgill, the heir and representative of the Viscounts of Oxfuird (or Oxenfoord). Their son, the aforementioned fifth Baronet, succeeded his kinsman as Earl of Stair in 1840. See above for further history of the baronetcy.
Another member of the Dalrymple family was Hew Dalrymple
Hew Dalrymple, Lord North Berwick
Sir Hew Dalrymple, Lord North Berwick was a Scottish judge and politician.The third son of James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair, he was Commissary of Edinburgh; Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland for New Galloway burgh from 1690, and for North Berwick burgh from 1702.Dalrymple was Dean...
, third son of the first Viscount of Stair. He served as Lord President of the Session under the judicial title Lord North Berwick. In 1697 he was created a Baronet, of North Berwick in the County of Haddington, in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia. His second son Hew Dalrymple was the great-grandfather of Robert Dalrymple-Horn-Elphinstone, who was created a Baronet, of Horn, and Logie Elphinstone in the County of Aberdeen, in 1828. See Dalrymple Baronets
Dalrymple Baronets
There have been several baronetcies created for people with the surname Dalrymple.-Creations:All creations were in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia unless otherwise mentioned.The first creation was on 2 June 1664, for James Dalrymple of Stair...
for more information on these branches of the family.
The title of the earldom comes from the hamlet of Stair, the ancestral home of the Dalrymple family who settled there in the 12th century. To facilitate the original title, in 1653 James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount Stair, had a portion of Ochiltree
Ochiltree
Ochiltree, spelt Uchletree in the Middle Ages, is a village in East Ayrshire, Scotland near Auchinleck and Cumnock. It is one of the oldest villages in East Ayrshire with archaeological remains indicating Stone Age and Bronze Age settlers....
severed so as to create the Parish of Stair.
The family seat is Lochinch Castle, near Stranraer
Stranraer
Stranraer is a town in the southwest of Scotland. It lies in the west of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire.Stranraer lies on the shores of Loch Ryan on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland...
, Wigtownshire
Wigtownshire
Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown is a registration county in the Southern Uplands of south west Scotland. Until 1975, the county was one of the administrative counties used for local government purposes, and is now administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway...
.
Viscounts of Stair (1690)
- James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of StairJames Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of StairJames Dalrymple, 1st Viscount of Stair , Scottish lawyer and statesman, was born at Drummurchie, Barr, South Ayrshire.-Biography:...
(1619–1695) - John Dalrymple, 2nd Viscount of StairJohn Dalrymple, 1st Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple the Master of Stair was a Scottish noble who played a crucial role in the 1707 Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, that created the Kingdom of Great Britain....
(created Earl of Stair in 1703)
Earls of Stair (1703)
- John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 1st Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple the Master of Stair was a Scottish noble who played a crucial role in the 1707 Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England, that created the Kingdom of Great Britain....
(1648–1707) - John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of StairField Marshal John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair KT PC was a Scottish soldier and diplomat.-Military career:Despite being born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Dalrymple spent his early life mostly in the Netherlands and he studied at Leiden University...
(1679–1747) - James Dalrymple, 3rd Earl of StairJames Dalrymple, 3rd Earl of StairJames Dalrymple, 3rd Earl of Stair , was the son of Colonel Hon. William Dalrymple of Glenmure and Penelope Crichton, Countess of Dumfries. He succeeded his uncle John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair, but was required to bring a legal action to establish his right to the title, as his uncle had...
(d. 1760) - William Dalrymple-Crichton, 4th Earl of Stair (1699–1769)
- John Dalrymple, 5th Earl of Stair (1720–1789)
- John Dalrymple, 6th Earl of Stair (1749–1821)
- John William Henry Dalrymple, 7th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 7th Earl of StairJohn William Henry Dalrymple, 7th Earl of Stair was the son of General William Dalrymple and Marianne Dorothy Harland. He incurred great scandal over his complicated marital life.-Marriages:...
(1784–1840); most notable for having his 1808 marriage to Lady Laura MannersJohn Manners (MP)John Manners was an English politician, and the eldest natural son of Lord William Manners.In 1754, he replaced his father as Member of Parliament for Newark, which he represented until 1774....
ended by divorce in 1809 annulled when a previous marriage contract in 1804 to another woman was revealed. That first marriage was annulled in 1820, but the Earl, who succeeded his cousin in 1821 never remarried. He was succeeded by a distant cousin. - John Hamilton Dalrymple, 8th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 8th Earl of StairGeneral John Hamilton Dalrymple, 8th Earl of Stair KT , known as Sir John Dalrymple, 5th Baronet, between 1810 and 1840, was a British soldier and politician.-Background:...
(1771–1853) - North Hamilton Dalrymple, 9th Earl of StairNorth Dalrymple, 9th Earl of StairNorth Hamilton Dalrymple, 9th Earl of Stair was the son of Sir John Hamilton-Dalrymple-Macgill, 4th Bt. and Elizabeth Hamilton....
(1776–1864) - John Hamilton Dalrymple, 10th Earl of Stair (1819–1903)
- John Hew North Gustav Henry Hamilton-Dalrymple, 11th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 11th Earl of StairJohn Hew North Gustav Henry Hamilton-Dalrymple, 11th Earl of Stair , was the son of John Hamilton Dalrymple, 10th Earl of Stair and his wife, Louisa Jane Henrietta Emily de Franquetot.-Family:...
(1848–1914) - John James Dalrymple, 12th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 12th Earl of StairJohn James Hamilton Dalrymple, 12th Earl of Stair, KT, DSO, DL was the son of the 11th Earl of Stair.He fought in the Boer War, and World War I, was captured by the Germans....
(1879–1961) - John Aymer Dalrymple, 13th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 13th Earl of StairJohn Aymer Dalrymple, 13th Earl of Stair, KCVO, MBE, DL , the son of John James Dalrymple, 12th Earl of Stair and Violet Evelyn Harford. He served as Lord-Lieutenant of Wigtownshire from 1961 to 1983.-Family:...
(1906–1996) - John David James Dalrymple, 14th Earl of StairJohn Dalrymple, 14th Earl of StairJohn David James Dalrymple, 14th Earl of Stair is a British politician who, since 2008, has been a crossbench member of the House of Lords.-Biography:...
(b. 1961)
The Heir Apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
is the present holder's son, John James Thomas Dalrymple, Viscount Dalrymple (b. 2008).