James Drummond, 4th Earl of Perth
Encyclopedia
Order of the Thistle
The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the Order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland who asserted that he was reviving an earlier Order...
PC
Privy Council of England
The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England...
(1648 – 11 May 1716), also 4th Earl of Perth and 7th Lord Drummond, was a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
statesman, and Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
.
Family
The eldest son of James Drummond, 3rd Earl of PerthEarl of Perth
The title Earl of Perth was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1605 for James Drummond, 4th Lord Drummond.The Drummond family claim descent from Maurice, son of George, a younger son of King Andrew I of Hungary...
by his spouse Lady Anne, daughter of George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly
George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly
George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly , styled Earl of Enzie from 1599 to 1636, eldest son of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly by Lady Henrietta Stewart, daughter of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, was brought up in England as a Protestant, and later created Viscount Aboyne by Charles I.On...
, he was educated at the University of St Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
, and succeeded his father 2 June, and was served heir to him 1 October 1675.
Political career
In 1678 he was appointed a member of the Scottish Privy Council and supported Lauderdale's policy of giving up the disaffected western shires of Scotland to highland raids, before joining Hamilton's faction. He was appointed Lord Justice General in 1682 and an Extraordinary Lord of SessionExtraordinary Lord of Session
Extraordinary Lords of Session were lay members of the Court of Session in Scotland from 1532 to 1762.When the Court of Session was founded in 1532, it consisted of the Lord President, 14 Ordinary Lords and three or four Extraordinary Lords. The Extraordinary Lords were nominees of the King, not...
on 16 November the same year. He introduced the use of the thumbscrew in Scotland. He was also Lord Chancellor of Scotland
Lord Chancellor of Scotland
The Lord Chancellor of Scotland was a Great Officer of State in pre-Union Scotland.Holders of the office are known from 1123 onwards, but its duties were occasionally performed by an official of lower status with the title of Keeper of the Great Seal...
, 1684 - 1688.
New Jersey
He was a partner with William PennWilliam Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
in the settlement of East New Jersey
East Jersey
The Province of East Jersey and the Province of West Jersey were two distinct, separately governed parts of the Province of New Jersey that existed as separate provinces for 28 years, between 1674 and 1702. East Jersey's capital was located at Perth Amboy...
in 1681. As one of 24 proprietors of a large parcel of property that took up much of what is now the State of New Jersey, Perth sponsored an expedition in 1684 to establish a settlement there. The City of Perth Amboy
Perth Amboy, New Jersey
Perth Amboy is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The City of Perth Amboy is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 50,814. Perth Amboy is known as the "City by the Bay", referring to Raritan Bay.-Name:The Lenape...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, which sits on the waterfront facing Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and which was once a port city in its own right, is named in his honor — a statue of Lord Perth stands in front of City Hall (the "Amboy" comes from an Algonquian word meaning "valley").
Roman Catholicism
In 1685 the 4th Earl of Perth converted to Roman Catholicism, along with his brother, the 1st Earl of MelfortJohn Drummond, 1st Earl of Melfort
John Drummond, 1st Earl and titular 1st Duke of Melfort KG KT PC was a Scottish nobleman.He joined the army and was captain of the Scottish Footguards in 1673. He secured the post of deputy governor of Edinburgh Castle in 1679, followed by Lieutenant-General and Master of the Ordnance in 1680...
. In 1686, Perth and his brother opened a Catholic chapel in 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...
, and their public attendance there resulted in a riot. Perth and his brother suggested to King James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
that the Scottish Parliament would approve a repeal of the Test Act
Test Act
The Test Acts were a series of English penal laws that served as a religious test for public office and imposed various civil disabilities on Roman Catholics and Nonconformists...
and penal laws against Catholics and Protestant dissenters, but this was later proved untrue. On 29 May 1687, nonetheless, he was made a Knight of the Thistle
Order of the Thistle
The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the Order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland who asserted that he was reviving an earlier Order...
, being one of the eight original knights of that Order.
He is said to have had a novodamus
Charter of novodamus
A charter of novodamus, in Scottish feudal land law, is a fresh grant of lands to the grantee. It is usually granted to make some change in the incidents of tenure of land already granted, or to resolve doubts about the grant or its terms....
, 17 December 1687, (on resignation) of his dignities, creating him Earl of Perth, Lord Drummond, Stobhall, and Montefex (Scotland), with remainder, failing heirs-male of his and of his brother's body, to the heirs-male of the second Earl.
Upon the Glorious Revolution
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, is the overthrow of King James II of England by a union of English Parliamentarians with the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau...
, the Earl of Perth was imprisoned in 1689, first at Kirkaldy, then in Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep...
, and not released until 4 August 1693 on condition of a bond to leave the kingdom under penalty of £5000.
St. Germain
He joined the exiled King at St GermainChâteau de Saint-Germain-en-Laye
The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a royal palace in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in the département of Yvelines, about 19 km west of Paris, France. Today, it houses the Musée d'Archéologie Nationale ....
, by whom he was, on 19 August 1696, appointed Governor to the young Prince of Wales, and by whose testamentary directions he was, before 17 October 1701, created by King James III and VIII
James Francis Edward Stuart
James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales was the son of the deposed James II of England...
, Duke of Perth, Marquess of Drummond, Earl of Stobhall, Viscount Cargill, and Baron Concraig, all proclaimed as 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...
(but in reality in the Jacobite peerage
Jacobite peerage
After the deposition by the English parliament in February 1689 of King James II and VII from the thrones of England and Ireland , he and his successors continued to create peers and baronets, which they believed was their right...
), with remainder to his heirs-male whatsoever. In 1701 he was recognised as a Duke 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...
by King Louis XIV.
On 14 February 1703, he was made a Gentleman of the Bedchamber, and on 21 June 1706 he was appointed a Knight of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
. He was afterwards Chamberlain to Queen Mary of Modena
Mary of Modena
Mary of Modena was Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the second wife of King James II and VII. A devout Catholic, Mary became, in 1673, the second wife of James, Duke of York, who later succeeded his older brother Charles II as King James II...
, and is said to have been created a Knight of the Golden Fleece by the King of Spain.
During James's exile, the Duke of Perth acted as the his Ambassador to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and after the King's death, Perth erected a monument to him in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Marriage and death
He married- (1) 18 January 1670, Lady Jane, daughter of William Douglas, 1st Marquess of DouglasWilliam Douglas, 1st Marquess of DouglasWilliam 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...
by his second wife Lady Mary, daughter of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 1st Marquess of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly was a Scottish nobleman who took a leading role in the political and military life of Scotland in the late 16th century and around the time of the Union of the Crowns.-Biography:... - (2) Lilias (d. c. 1685), Dowager Countess of Tullibardine and daughter of Sir James Drummond of Machany
- (3) Lady Mary (1646 - 1726), daughter of Lewis Gordon, 3rd Marquess of HuntlyLewis Gordon, 3rd Marquess of HuntlyLewis Gordon, 3rd Marquess of Huntly was a Scottish nobleman.He was the third son of George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly.-Biography:...
by his spouse Mary, daughter of Sir John Grant of Freuchie. Lady Mary had been a Lady of the Bedchamber in Ordinary to Queen Mary of ModenaMary of ModenaMary of Modena was Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the second wife of King James II and VII. A devout Catholic, Mary became, in 1673, the second wife of James, Duke of York, who later succeeded his older brother Charles II as King James II...
. Her heart was buried with her husband.
Death
The Duke of Perth died at St GermainChâteau de Saint-Germain-en-Laye
The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a royal palace in the commune of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, in the département of Yvelines, about 19 km west of Paris, France. Today, it houses the Musée d'Archéologie Nationale ....
, was interred in the Scots Chapel, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and was succeeded by his son and heir by his first wife:
- James Drummond, 2nd Duke of PerthJames Drummond, 2nd Duke of PerthJames Drummond, 2nd Duke of Perth, etc., of the Peerage created for his father, James Drummond, 4th Earl of Perth by the exiled Stuart monarchs at St Germain....
(ca. 1674 - 1720).