Lord Lovat
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...
. It was created in 1458 for Hugh Fraser
Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat
Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat , was a Scottish peer, and the Chief of the Clan Fraser.Fraser was the son of Thomas Fraser, 5th laird of Lovat, and Lady Janet Dunbar. His grandfather, Hugh Fraser , was one of the hostages for the ransom of King James I of Scotland in 1424...
. The title descended in a direct line for nine sequential generations until the death of the ninth Lord in 1696. He was succeeded by his great-uncle, the tenth Lord. In 1697 the latter's son, Simon Fraser
Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat
Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat , was a Scottish Jacobite and Chief of Clan Fraser, who was famous for his violent feuding and his changes of allegiance. In 1715, he had been a supporter of the House of Hanover, but in 1745 he changed sides and supported the Stuart claim on the crown of Scotland...
, known as Simon "the Fox", kidnapped and forcefully married the late ninth Lord's widow, the former Lady Amelia Murray, only daughter of John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl
John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl
John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl, KT was a leading Scottish royalist and defender of the Stuarts during the English Civil War of the 1640s, until after the rise to power of William and Mary in 1689...
. However, Lady Lovat's powerful family, the Murrays, were angered, and prosecuted Fraser, who fled the country. Fraser was convicted in absentia, attainted
Attainder
In English criminal law, attainder or attinctura is the metaphorical 'stain' or 'corruption of blood' which arises from being condemned for a serious capital crime . It entails losing not only one's property and hereditary titles, but typically also the right to pass them on to one's heirs...
, and sentenced to death. In 1715, however, Fraser supported the Government against the 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...
uprising and was rewarded by being pardoned for his crimes. In 1730, he won litigation seeking to confirm his title of Lord Lovat. In 1745, however, Lord Lovat participated in The '45
Jacobite rising
The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...
against the Crown and was therefore sentenced to death. He was beheaded on 9 April 1747, aged 80, on Tower Hill
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is an elevated spot northwest of the Tower of London, just outside the limits of the City of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Formerly it was part of the Tower Liberty under the direct administrative control of Tower...
in London, becoming the last man to die in this manner. His titles, furthermore, were forfeit. (Fraser was also created Duke of Fraser, Marquess of Beaufort, Earl of Stratherrick and Upper Tarf, Viscount of the Aird and Strathglass and Lord Lovat and Beaulieu in the Jacobite Peerage of Scotland
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...
by James Francis Edward Stuart
James Francis Edward Stuart
James Francis Edward, Prince of Wales was the son of the deposed James II of England...
(titular King James III of England and VIII of Scotland) in 1740.)
His eldest son and namesake Simon Fraser became a General in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
. He obtained a full pardon but was not restored to the title. His younger brother Archibald Campbell Fraser
Archibald Campbell Fraser of Lovat
Colonel the Hon. Archibald Campbell Fraser of Lovat, 20th MacShimidh was the second son of Simon "the Fox" Fraser. Upon the death of his brother, Simon Fraser, in 1782, Archibald assumed the Chiefship of Clan Fraser, using the Gaelic patronym MacShimidh. Archibald died 8 December 1815, at the age...
was a Colonel in the Army and would have succeeded but for the attainder. On his death in 1815 the title was claimed by his kinsman Thomas Fraser, a descendant of Thomas Fraser, second son of the fourth Lord. In 1837 he was created Baron Lovat, of Lovat in the County of Inverness, 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...
. However, it was not until 1854 that the attainder of the eleventh Lord was reversed, and Thomas Fraser became the twelfth Lord Lovat. He was succeeded by his son, the thirteenth Lord, who served as Lord Lieutenant of Inverness
Lord Lieutenant of Inverness
The Lord-Lieutenant of Inverness, is the British monarch's personal representative in an area which has been defined since 1975 as consisting of the local government districts of Inverness, Badenoch and Strathspey, and Lochaber, in Scotland, and this definition was renewed by the Lord-Lieutenants ...
. His eldest son, the fourteenth Baron, was a soldier and politician and notably held office as Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs
Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs
The position of Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs was a British ministerial position, subordinate to that of Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs, created in 1925 to deal with British relations with the Dominions — Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Newfoundland, and the...
from 1926 to 1927. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the fifteenth Baron. He was a prominent soldier and distinguished himself during the Second World War. the titles are held by his grandson, the sixteenth Lord, who succeeded in 1994.
The 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...
politician Sir Hugh Fraser
Hugh Fraser (politician)
Major Sir Hugh Charles Patrick Joseph Fraser MBE was a British Conservative politician and first husband of the author Lady Antonia Fraser.-Youth and military career:...
was the younger son of the fourteenth Lord. Another member of the family was Sir Ian Fraser, Chairman of Rolls-Royce Motors
Rolls-Royce Motors
Rolls-Royce Motors was created from the de-merger of the Rolls-Royce car business from Rolls-Royce Limited in 1973. The original Rolls-Royce Limited had been nationalised in 1971 due to the financial collapse of the company, caused in part by the development of the RB211 jet engine...
. He was the son of Hon. Alastair Thomas Joseph Fraser, younger son of the thirteenth Lord.
Clan Fraser
The Lordship of Lovat has for some time been linked to the Chiefship of Clan FraserClan Fraser
Clan Fraser is a Scottish clan of French origin. The Clan has been strongly associated with Inverness and the surrounding area since the Clan's founder gained lands there in the 13th century. Since its founding, the Clan has dominated local politics and been active in every major military conflict...
. The former family seat was Beaufort Castle
Beaufort Castle, Scotland
Beaufort Castle is a castle in northern Scotland, near Beauly. It is the traditional seat of the chiefs of the Clan Fraser.-History:The original castle was built by the Byset family. The castle came into the hands of the Fraser's in the late 13th century...
in northern Scotland
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...
. The numbering of the Scottish Lordship used by Clan Fraser differs from the legal numbering in that it ignores the attainder of 1747—1854, with the result that the 16th Lord is termed by them "18th Lord Lovat".
Lords Lovat (1458); Barons Lovat (1837)
- Hugh Fraser, 1st Lord LovatHugh Fraser, 1st Lord LovatHugh Fraser, 1st Lord Lovat , was a Scottish peer, and the Chief of the Clan Fraser.Fraser was the son of Thomas Fraser, 5th laird of Lovat, and Lady Janet Dunbar. His grandfather, Hugh Fraser , was one of the hostages for the ransom of King James I of Scotland in 1424...
(d. c. 1460) - Thomas Fraser, 2nd Lord Lovat (d. 1524)
- Hugh Fraser, 3rd Lord Lovat (d. 1544)
- Alexander Fraser, 4th Lord Lovat (d. 1558)
- Hugh Fraser, 5th Lord Lovat (d. 1577)
- Simon Fraser, 6th Lord Lovat (c. 1572–1633)
- Hugh Fraser, 7th Lord Lovat (d. 1646)
- Hugh Fraser, 8th Lord Lovat (1643–1672)
- Hugh Fraser, 9th Lord Lovat (1666–1696)
- Thomas Fraser, 10th Lord LovatThomas Fraser, 10th Lord LovatThomas Fraser, 10th Lord Lovat, was the 17th Chief of the Clan Fraser. Thomas was chief during Bonnie Dundee's Jacobite rising of 1689, and initially tried to hold his clan from joining the effort. However, the Clan marched without him, and fought at the Battle of Killiecrankie...
(1636–1699) - Simon Fraser, 11th Lord LovatSimon Fraser, 11th Lord LovatSimon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat , was a Scottish Jacobite and Chief of Clan Fraser, who was famous for his violent feuding and his changes of allegiance. In 1715, he had been a supporter of the House of Hanover, but in 1745 he changed sides and supported the Stuart claim on the crown of Scotland...
(c. 1667–1747) (Lordship forfeited in 1747) - Simon Fraser (d. 1782)
- Archibald Campbell FraserArchibald Campbell Fraser of LovatColonel the Hon. Archibald Campbell Fraser of Lovat, 20th MacShimidh was the second son of Simon "the Fox" Fraser. Upon the death of his brother, Simon Fraser, in 1782, Archibald assumed the Chiefship of Clan Fraser, using the Gaelic patronym MacShimidh. Archibald died 8 December 1815, at the age...
(d. 1815) - Thomas Alexander Fraser, 12th Lord Lovat, 1st Baron LovatThomas Fraser, 12th Lord LovatThomas Alexander Fraser, 12th Lord Lovat and 1st Baron Lovat KT , was a Scottish peer. He was also the 21st MacShimidh, the traditional Gaelic Patronym for the Chiefs of the Clan Fraser....
(1802–1875) (Lordship restored in 1854; Barony Lovat created in 1837) - Simon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat, 2nd Baron LovatSimon Fraser, 13th Lord LovatSimon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat and 2nd Baron Lovat , was a Scottish peer. While legally the 13th Lord, he was referred to as the 15th Lord Lovat....
(1828–1887) - Simon Joseph Fraser, 14th Lord Lovat, 3rd Baron LovatSimon Fraser, 14th Lord LovatBrigadier-General Simon Joseph Fraser, 14th Lord Lovat and 3rd Baron Lovat KT, GCVO, KCMG, CB, DSO , was a leading Roman Catholic aristocrat, landowner, soldier, politician and the 23rd Chief of Clan Fraser. He was the son of Simon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat, and Alice Mary Weld-Blundell...
(1871–1933) - Brigadier Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat, 4th Baron LovatSimon Fraser, 15th Lord LovatBrigadier Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat and 4th Baron Lovat DSO, MC, TD was the 25th Chief of the Clan Fraser and a prominent British Commando during the Second World War...
(1911–1995) - Simon Fraser, 16th Lord Lovat, 5th Baron LovatSimon Fraser, 16th Lord LovatSimon Fraser, 16th Lord Lovat and 5th Baron Lovat has been the chief of Clan Fraser since the death of his grandfather in 1995.-Titles:...
(b. 1977)
The 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...
is the present holder's younger brother: Hon. Jack Fraser, Master of Lovat (b. 1984)