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James, the first Earl of Callendar, was a
staunch adherent of King Charles, and became a commander in the army
which marched to relieve him when a prisoner in the Isle of Wight, being
attended by a body of his Falkirk retainers. His army having been
discomfited, the earl retired to Holland; but his Falkirk troops
valiantly forced their way through the victorious republicans.
Alexander, the second earl, was a zealous covenanter, and a copy of the
Solemn League is still preserved, bearing his signature, with that of
many others. On two different occasions, the troops of government took
possession of his house; but, in the last of these, in 1678, a mob from
Falkirk put the intruders to flight. The other branch of the Livingstone
family adhered to the royal cause, and members of it were engaged at the
battle of Bothwell Bridge, and otherwise against the covenanters.
The powerful race of Seton was the parent
stock of the Edmonstone family. In the middle of the fourteenth century,
Sir John Edmonstone of Edmonstone appears a person of considerable
importance, and was appointed by David II. coroner to the shire of
Edinburgh in fee, accompanied by grants of lands in the county of Banff.
His son, of the same name, was a person of still greater eminence, and
was named a commissioner for negotiating with England, on three
different occasions, during the captivity of James I. in 1407. He
married the Lady Isabel, daughter of Robert II., and widow of James,
Earl of Douglas and Mar, who was killed at the battle of Otterburne. By
the marriage he had two sons, Sir David, who succeeded him, and Sir
William Culloden, ancestor of the family of Duntreath. Sir David left
two sons, of whom Sir James, the elder, died without male issue, and
John, the younger, in whom the elder line of the family was continued,
till the middle of the last century, when it became extinct by the death
of the last male heir. This branch of the family continued in possession
of Edmonstone, in Mid-Lothian, till late in the seventeenth century,
when it was sold to the family of Wauchope; it resided, likewise, at
Ednam, in Roxburghshire, a grant of Robert III.
To revert to the family of Duntreath, Sir
William Edmonstone of Culloden, second son of Sir John, as above,
married the Lady Mary, daughter of King Robert III., who had been
married three times previously; first, to George Douglas, Earl of Angus;
secondly, to Sir James Kennedy of Dunure, ancestor to the Earls of
Cassilis; thirdly, to Sir William Graham of Kincardine, ancestor to the
Duke of Montrose; and, lastly, to Sir William Edmonstone. By all four
marriages she had issue; and, from the last, the present family of
Duntreath are lineally descended. For the next century, the house of
Duntreath continued in the highest degree prosperous. Its wealth and
possessions had considerably increased, and appanages were bestowed on
many of its junior branches, nearly all of which are now extinct. A
succession of honourable alliances, too, had greatly tended to keep up
its respectability. Sir William (the fourth in descent from the first
Sir William of Duntreath), who was killed at the battle of Flodden, with
James IV., and the flower of the Scottish nobility and gentry, had been
appointed steward of Menteith, and constable of the castle of Doune. His
son, of the same name, was continued in the same offices by the Regent,
John Duke of Albany, which he held for eighteen years; but an heritable
grant of them having been conferred by James V. on Sir James Stewart
(ancestor of the Earl of Moray), Sir William and his brother Archibald
were much irritated at being thus deprived of what had now for so many
years been in possession of their family, and a fray ensued in the High
Street of Dunblane, in which Sir James was killed. This event occurred
on Whitsunday, 1543. A pardon for this offence was afterwards granted to
the two brothers under the Great Seal by the Regent, Duke of
Chatelherault, and being connected with the royal family, in consequence
of his marriage with Lady Agnes Stewart, daughter to Matthew Earl of
Lennox (grandfather to Henry Lord Darnley, the unfortunate husband of
Queen Mary), Sir William was made one of the Privy Council during the
queen’s minority.
His son, Sir James, was appointed
justice-deputy under the Earl of Argyll, justice-general, and in 1582
was named one of the assessors on the trial of the Earl of Gowrie, for
the celebrated conspiracy against the liberty of James VI., called the
Raid of Ruthven; but he appears himself implicated in a similar plot
soon after. He was accused, together with three others of the names of
Douglas, Cunningham, and Hamilton, of a design to convey the king to
some place of confinement, till those lords who had left the country in
consequence of their concern in the above conspiracy should be
advertised. It was believed to have been little more than an idle
conversation; however, the four were seized and indicted for high
treason. Sir James pleaded guilty, and threw himself on the king’s
mercy. The others convicted of having held this treasonable design were
executed. Sir James seems to have acted an unworthy part in this
business; and, being pardoned, he retired to Duntreath, which he
considerably enlarged. A stone with his arms and cipher, but without a
date, mark this. The estate, however, was mortgaged by his son and
successor, William, to Sir William Livingstone of Kilsyth, and
considerable estates purchased in the counties of Down and Antrim, in
the north of Ireland. But, fortunately, his next successor, Archibald,
resold part of the Irish purchases and redeemed the estate of Duntreath,
though the family residence continued to be, for above a century,
chiefly at Red Hall, in a district called Broadisland, in the county of
Antrim. This Archibald was a strict Presbyterian, and being returned
member for the county of Stirling in the parliament which met at
Edinburgh in 1633, in presence of Charles I., he strongly opposed every
effort made by that monarch for the establishment of Episcopacy in
Scotland. He had two sons, William and Archibald. Of these the elder,
known as the Dumb Laird of Duntreath, was disinherited, and put under
the tutelage of his brother, on account of having been born deaf and
dumb. He was, however, a person of great vivacity and cheerfulness, with
a very retentive memory; and, according to a portrait which exists of
him, of a handsome and intelligent countenance. It is recorded,
moreover, that he had a strong sense of religion; and a tradition is
preserved that he was endowed with the faculty of second-sight. He lived
to a very advanced age. A tower at Duntreath, which he is said to have
occupied, still preserves his name. The inheritance, in consequence of
the infirmity of the elder, devolved upon the younger brother,
Archibald. This gentleman followed the same line as his father, in
opposing the tyrannical acts of the government in their endeavour to
establish Episcopal jurisdiction, and was fined and imprisoned for
holding a conventicle in the private chapel of his house at Duntreath.
After his release he retired to Ireland, and died in consequence of his
exertions in defending the fort of Culmore, contiguous to Londonderry,
at the famous siege of that city by James II., in 1689. He was succeeded
by his son and namesake, who appears to have resided chiefly at Red
Hall, so that Duntreath fell into decay. He married, first, The
Honourable Anne Erskine, daughter to David, Lord Cardross, ancestor to
the Earl of Buchan, by whom he had one daughter; and secondly, Anne,
daughter of the Honourable John Campbell of Mammore, second son of the
unfortunate Earl of Argyll who was beheaded in 1685. Her brother, John,
succeeded to the dukedom of Argyle, on the death of his cousin,
Archibald. By this marriage he had three sons and three daughters, and
was succeeded by his eldest son.
Sir Archibald, created a baronet in 1774,
married, first, Susanna, daughter to Roger Harenc, of Footscray Place,
in Kent, by whom he had five sons and three daughters; and secondly,
Hester, daughter to Sir John Heathcote of Normanton, in Rutlandshire, by
whom he had no issue. Sir Archibald sat for above twenty years in
Parliament for the county of Dumbarton and the Ayr and Irvine district
of burghs. He very judiciously sold the estate in Ireland, and purchased
that of Kilsyth, in 1783, which had been forfeited by the Livingstons,
Viscounts of Kilsyth, in 1715, and thus established and concentrated the
family in their native country. He likewise began a liberal system of
improvement upon his estates, which was carried on to a greater extent
and completed by his successor. Sir Archibald died at the advanced age
of eighty-nine, in 1807, and was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,
Sir Charles, who married, first, Emma, daughter of Richard Wilbraham
Booth, Esq. of Lathorn House, in the county of Lancaster. By her he had
a son and daughter. His second marriage was with the Honourable Louisa
Hotham, daughter to Beaumont, second Lord Hotham, by whom he had four
sons and two daughters. Sir Charles represented the county of Stirling
in parliament for several years previous to his death, which took place
on the 1st April, 1821, in the fifty-eighth year of his age.
He was succeeded by his eldest son, Sir Archibald, the late baronet, who
married, in October, 1832, his cousin Emma, daughter of Randle
Wilbraham, Esq. of Red Hall. Sir William, the present baronet, to whom
we have already referred, is thirteenth in lineal descent from Sir
William of Culloden, the first of the branch of Duntreath.
The founder of the family of Buchanan was
Anselan, a native of Ireland, who is said to have arrived in the
eleventh century. His descendants originally bore the name of M’Aslan,
a corruption of Anselan, and were chamberlains to the Earls of Lennox.
At an early period, they obtained a grant of part of the lands of
Buchanan, which afterwards became the family name. In 1225, they
received from Maldwin, Earl of Lennox, a charter for Clarinch, an islet
in Lochlomond, which was adopted as the war-cry of the clan. In 1296,
"Malcolm of Boughcanian" appears in the list of proprietors in
Stirlingshire who swore fealty to Edward I. of England. In 1482, a
younger son founded the house of Drumnahill, from which sprung, in 1506,
the celebrated George Buchanan. In 1519, "Walterus Bucquhanan de
eodem" conveyed to his son, Walter, the lands of Spittal. In 1682,
the direct line of male succession became extinct; and, in the absence
of other competitors, the late Dr. H. Buchanan, of Spittal and Lenny,
claimed, in 1826, to be chief of the family. The Buchanans are a
numerous clan in the Lennox and adjacent counties. Beside the M’Aslans,
already mentioned, they recognize as clansmen some other branches, whose
names are common in the district, particularly the Zuils and the Risks
– originally soubriquets of individuals, but afterwards surnames of
their descendants. The one was so called from the day of his birth, Yule
(Christmas); Risk (a bare knoll) of Drymen. Many of the Buchanans have
settled and prospered in Glasgow, where they have established a
charitable society for the poor members of the clan, which distributes
the interest of their capital, amounting to upwards of 500 pounds per
annum, among all their branches, whatever be their name. The family of
Buchanan, though it flourished for upwards of 500 years, while Scotland
remained a separate kingdom, was never distinguished in political
transactions. One evident cause was the smallness of the family estate,
which included only the lower part of the present parish. Their fame
rests on their literary eminence. Besides the classical Buchanan, they
can boast of Dr. Buchanan, already mentioned, celebrated for his
valuable works on the civil and natural history of India (obiit 15th
June, 1829); and Dr. Claudius Buchanan, who is entitled to respect and
gratitude for having, by his writings and labours, excited the British
nation to send the blessing of education and religion to their Indian
empire. Dr. Claudius died 9th February, 1815.
At the death of the last Buchanan of that
ilk, in 1682, the estate was sold by his creditors, and purchased by the
family of Montrose. They, too, claim high antiquity. Without asserting
the existence of the Caledonian who, in the fifth century, is said to
have broken down the wall of Antoninus, and to have given it his own
name of Graham’s Dyke, it may be stated that the present Duke of
Montrose is the twenty-first lineal descendant from Sir Patrick de
Graham, who fell, regretted by friend and foe, at the battle of Dunbar,
in 1296. This family, unlike their predecessor, is famed for their
military achievements; and numbers among their sons, Sir John de Graham,
the companion of Wallace; the Marquis of Montrose, who flourished in the
civil wars; the Viscount Dundee, who fell bravely, though vainly,
attempting to support the tottering throne of James II.; and the late
Lord Lynedoch, who distinguished himself by his chivalrous exertions in
the wars of the French Revolution. The late duke, who died 30th
December, 1836, must be mentioned as an able and persevering patron of
agriculture. During a long life, he was unwearied in embellishing his
residence at Buchanan, in improving and extending his plantations, and
in introducing superior breeds of farm stock.
According to tradition, the founder of
the ancient and noble house of Drummond was a Hungarian, named Maurice,
who came over from Hungary in the train of Margaret, queen of Malcolm
Canmore, and obtained, in reward of his services, a grant of certain
lands, and, among others, of Drymen, in Stirlingshire. It is not
certainly known in what part of that parish the Drummonds had their
residence, but it was probably somewhere near the Endrick. It is equally
uncertain how, or at what period, the family ceased to be connected with
the county. In the year 1360, in consequence of a feud which had long
subsisted between them and the Earls of Menteith, a compact was entered
into at a meeting on the banks of the Forth, in presence of the
justiciaries of Scotland, by which Sir John Drummond resigned certain
lands in the Lennox, and obtained in lieu of them others of greater
value in Perthshire. Shortly after this, and probably in consequence of
it, their residence seems to have been transferred to Stobhall, in
Perthshire, which, along with other extensive estates in that county,
had some years before come into possession of the family by marriage.
Previous to this change of residence, however, Annabella, daughter of
Sir John Drummond, married Robert, Earl of Carrick, high steward of
Scotland, who afterwards succeeded to the throne by the title of Robert
III. The fruit of this marriage was two sons, one of whom afterwards
became James I. Thus Drymen parish may lay claim to the honour of having
produced a lady from whom descended the royal House of Stuart; and who
was not more distinguished for rank and station, than for the many
virtues which adorned her character.
The estate of Alva was anciently
possessed by the Stirlings of Calder in Clydesdale. According to Nisbet,
in his first volume of Heraldry, "Sir J. Menteith, son of
Sir Walter Menteith, of Rusky, married Marion Stirling, daughter and
co-heir to Sir John Stirling, of Calder in Clydesdale, and with her he
got ye lands of Kerse and Alveth (Alva), for which ye family carried ye
buckler for the name of Stirling, and flourished for many years."
Sir William Menteth or Menteath, of Alva, married Helen Bruce, daughter
of the laird of Airth, and his son, Sir William Menteth, married Agnes
Erskine, daughter to Alexander, Lord Erskine, whose successors
afterwards, through right of their mother, inherited the earldom of Mar.
The Countess of Mar and Kelly is a descendant of the family of Menteth
of Rusky. By the intermarriage before alluded to, it is highly probably
that the Alva property went to the Bruce, and afterwards to the Erskine
family. In 1620 it went to Sir Charles Erskine, fifth son of John, sixth
Earl of Mar. His great grandson, Sir Henry Erskine of Alva, father to
the late Earl of Rosslyn, sold it in 1759 to his uncle, lord justice
clerk, called Lord Tinwald, whose son, James Erskine, a senator of the
College of Justice, inherited it, with the title of Lord Alva. He was
one of the most energetic proprietors, with the exception of the Bruces,
who founded the present mansion and church. Lord Alva sold the estate in
1775 to John Johnstone, Esq., son of Sir James Johnstone, Bart. of
Westerhall, Dumfriesshire, brother to Sir William Pulteney. Sir John and
Sir Charles Erskine, two of the Alva proprietors, were both killed when
abroad in 1746.
There are several very old families in
Campsie parish, the principal of which are the Lennoxes of Woodhead, the
Kincaids of Kincaid, the Stirlings of Craigbarnet, the Stirlings of
Glorat, and the M’Farlans of Kirkton, who are derived, by the female
line, from the same stock from which the Lennoxes of Woodhead claim
descent. M’Farlan of Kirkton, or Bancleroche, came into possession of
that estate in 1624. Antermony was purchased by Captain John Lennox, a
younger son of the Woodhead family. The claim of this family to the
Lennox peerage has been brought down to her own time by Margaret Lennox,
late of Woodhead; from which case it appears that Askill, a powerful
Northumbrian baron of that age of William the Conqueror, having found it
necessary, with many other northern barons, to flee into Scotland, was
kindly received by Malcolm III., and his son, Alwyne, was by Malcolm VI,
created Earl of Lennox, the name being derived from the river Leven, and
the estate extending over Dumbartonshire, great part of Stirlingshire,
and parts of the counties of Perth and Renfrew. The earldom continued in
this family down to the time of Earl Duncan, who, with the Duke of
Albany and his two sons, was executed at Stirling, May 1425. After this,
Isabella, his eldest daughter, enjoyed it many years, and she having
died without issue in 1459, the earldom, without any forfeiture having
taken place, but by reason of the feudal incident of non-entry, fell
into the hands of the sovereign as superior. Donald, son of Earl Duncan,
by a second marriage, was the ancestor of the Lennoxes of Ballcorach.
John, the sixth of Ballcorach, came into possession of the lands of
Woodhead about 1520.
The Kincaids were in possession of
Kincaid in 1280, as is proved by a charter extant. In 1421, Duncan, Earl
of Levenax, conveyed to his son, Donald, ancestor of the Woodhead
family, the lands of Balcorrach, Balgrochyr, Bencloich, Thombay, and
others in the parish of Campsie. His son, John, was served heir of his
father in said lands in 1454, and seems to have been also proprietor of
the estates of Kilmordining and Caillie. The estate of Bencloich was
sold to Edmonstone of Duntreath in 1660, and was by Sir Archibald
Edmonstone sold to Charles Macintosh, Esq., and William Macfarlan, Esq.,
in 1834. Glorat was a part of the earldom of Levenax, and Isabella,
Duchess of Albany, eldest daughter of the last earl of the old line, was
in possession of it, as appears from the Exchequer Rolls, in 1456. John,
Earl of Lennox, in the Darnley line, gave a grant of the lands of
Inchinnan in Renfrewshire, "delecto consanguineo suo Gulielmo
Stirling de Glorat et Margaretae Houstoun sposae suae," in 1525,
which is the first trace to be found of the family; but very probably
Glorat was acquired by the Stirlings about 1470, after the death of
Isabella. In 1550, George Stirling of Glorat was captain and
governor-in-chief of Dumbarton castle. The arms and motto, "semper
fidelis," were granted to the family for their loyalty to their
sovereigns Charles I. and II., and in the year 1666, the family was
honoured with the dignity of knight baronet. Both the Glorat family and
the Stirlings of Craigbarnet are descended from the Stirlings of Calder
or Cadder, whose name appears in the Ragman’s Roll, 1279. John
Striveling or Stirling of Craigbernard (Craigbarnet) is witness to a
deed in 1468. Kincaid, "Laird of Kincaid of Stirlingshire,"
for his valiant services in recovering Edinburgh Castle from the
English, in the time of Edward I., was made constable of the castle, and
his posterity enjoyed that office for a long period, carrying the castle
in their armorial bearings. There is an old broad sword belonging to a
branch of the family, upon which are the arms, gules on a fesse ermine,
between two mullets-in-chief or, and a castle triple towered in
base argent, with these words, -
"Wha will pursew, I
will defend
My life and honour to the end"
The ancestor of the Macfarlanes of
Kirkton was George Macfarlane of Markinch, second son to Andrew
Macfarlane of that ilk, in the reign of James V. George having sold the
aforesaid lands of Markinch, went afterwards and settled in the north
Highlands amongst his namesakes the Macfarlanes, promiscuously called in
the Irish language, M’Allans, Allanich, or Clan-Allan – i.e., the
posterity of Allan, because of their descent from Allan Macfarlane,
younger son to one of the lairds of Macfarlane, who settled in
Strathdown, Aberdeenshire, several centuries ago. From him are descended
the families of Auchorrachan, Balnengown, Lismurdie, &c., as also
several others in Braemar and Strathspey. His posterity continued in the
north for several generations, until the time of Patrick Macfarlane, the
fourth descendant in a direct line, who, returning again to the south,
purchased the lands of Kirkton. He married Christian Blair, daughter to
– Blair, commissary of Glasgow, who was younger son to – Blair of
that ilk, an ancient family in the shire of Ayr, by whom he had James
Macfarlane of Kirkton, his successor, and a daughter, Christian, married
to Sir Hugh Wallace of Wolmet. James married Mary Keith, daughter to
John Keith, younger son to the Earl Marischal, by whom he had Hugh, his
successor, who married Elizabeth Doig, daughter, and ultimately sole
heiress to Paul Doig of Ballingrew, a very ancient Perthshire family.
Hugh, by this marriage, had, besides William his heir, a numerous issue
both of sons and daughters. The armorial bearing of the family is
quarterly – first and fourth, argent, a saltier wavey, cantoned
with four roses, gules, as a cadet of Macfarlane of that ilk;
second and third, gules, a cheveron between two cinquefoils in
chief and a sword pale-ways, argent, hilted and pommelled, or, in
base, for Doig of Ballingrew; crest, a demi-savage proper, holding in
his right hand a sheaf of arrows, and pointing with his left hand to an
imperial crown, or. Motto – "This I’ll defend."
The Dunmore family is a branch of the
house of Athole, springing from John, first Marquess of Athole, and his
wife Ameliana-Sophia, daughter of James, seventh Earl of Derby, through
their second son, Lord Charles Murray, master of the horse to Queen Mary
II. of England, who was elevated to the peerage of Scotland 16th
August, 1686, in the dignities of Lord Murray, of Blair. Monlin, and
Tellymot, Viscount Fincastle, and Earl of Dunmore. His lordship married
Katherine, daughter of Robert Watts, Esq., and had three sons and three
daughters. He died in 1719, and was succeeded by his eldest surviving
son, John, one of the representative peers in 1713, and colonel of the 3rd
regiment of footguards, a general officer in the army, and governor of
Plymouth. His lordship died unmarried, 18th April, 1752, when
the honours devolved upon his brother, William. This nobleman married
Catherine, daughter of his uncle, Lord William Murray (who became Lord
Nairne by marrying the heiress of that family), by whom he had two sons
and two daughters. His lordship having been involved in the rebellion of
1745, was arraigned at the court held at Southwark for high treason, in
1746, and pleaded guilty, but obtained the king’s most gracious
pardon. He died in December, 1756, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
John, one of the representative peers from 1761 to 1784. His lordship
married, 21st February, 1759, lady Charlotte Stewart,
daughter of Alexander, sixth Earl of Galloway, by whom he had two sons.
We have referred in a following chapter to the later members of this
noble family, the fifth Earl of which was created Baron of the United
Kingdom in 1831. Their motto is "Furth fortune and fill the
fetters." The present earl, in addition to his excellent qualities
as a landlord and country gentleman, is a man of distinguished gallantry
and bravery. A year ago near Harris he, at great risk, when a very heavy
gale was blowing, put out in a boat, which other three men and himself
pulled for eight hours, and rescued the crew of a yacht. Nobody would
face the storm but the earl and the three men who went out along with
him, and but for their heroic assistance the ladies, gentlemen, and
children in the yacht must have perished. For this act of bravery, the
noble earl was awarded the medal of the Royal Humane Society; while a
sum of money was distributed amongst the three men who courageously
accompanied him. His lordship is also well known as an accomplished
musician, both in theory and practice. His concerts in London attract
great attention. The Prince of Wales is generally present, and the earl
conducts the music himself. These concerts are the most select
gatherings that society furnishes. They are, moreover, the only
respectable ones at which smoking is permitted, and where good wine is
given to the audience free of charge. They usually break up about two o’clock;
and are, of course, the occasion of all the gossip of the week.
The Bruce family of Stenhouse claims a
common ancestor with the noble house of Elgin. Sir Alexander Bruce, of
Airth, lineally descended from Sir Robert Bruce, Knt., of Clackmannan,
married Janet, daughter of Alexander, the fifth Lord Livingstone, and
had several sons, of whom the eldest, William, was ancestor of the
Bruces of Airth, now extinct. Robert, the youngest, became progenitor of
the Bruces of Kinnaird; and William, the second son, obtained from his
father the lands of Stenhouse, &c., in a charter, dated 28th
June, 1611. This gentleman, who was created a baronet of Nova Scotia,
with remainder to his heirs male whatsoever, 26th June, 1629,
married, first, the heiress of Lothian, by whom he had an only daughter;
and secondly, Rachael, daughter of Joseph Johnston, Esq., of Hiltoun, by
whom he had two sons, and was succeeded at his decease, in 1630, by the
elder, William. As we have stated elsewhere, the present representative
of this house is Sir William Cunningham Bruce.
The family of Livingston has figured in
the history of Scotland. Sir Alexander Livingston of Callendar became
governor to James II. on the death of the late king. Sir Alexander and
the Chancellor Crichton are accused of confining the queen mother, for
the sake of usurping the power committed to her by her deceased lord.
Both were concerned in that act of cruelty to which, in the presence of
the youthful monarch, William sixth Earl of Douglas fell a victim in
Edinburgh castle; by which James was trained to the assassination of
another of the Douglasses; and which brought down on the two principal
actors the vengeance of the house of Douglas. Livingston was,
afterwards, at the instigation of the eighth Earl of Douglas, impeached,
sentenced to the loss of his estate, and imprisoned in Dumbarton castle.
He was afterwards restored to the royal favour, recovered his estate,
was a member of the Privy Council, ambassador to England, and justice
general. His son and successor, James, was created Lord Livingston, was
master of the household, and, afterwards, lord great chamberlain. Sir
Alexander’s younger brother, Sir William, had founded the house of
Kilsyth, having got the estate from his father. His representative in
the sixth generation, Sir William of Darnchester, who, at Prince Henry’s
baptism, had been knighted during his father’s lifetime, was eminent
as a lawyer; and, in 1609, was appointed a senator of the College of
Justice, and, afterwards, a member of the Privy Council and
Vice-Chancellor. He died in 1627, and was succeeded by his son and
grandson, but at length, in 1647, by his brother, Sir James Livingston
of Barncleugh, who, having maintained his loyalty during the civil wars
and usurpation, was, on the restoration of the House of Stuart, created
Viscount Kilsyth, Lord Campsie, &c. His second son, William third
Viscount Kilsyth, having engaged in the insurrection of 1715, was
forfeited. He married first, Jean, daughter of William Lord Cochran, and
widow of the Viscount Dundee, who brought him a son; secondly, Barbara,
daughter of Macdougal of Mackerston, by whom he had a daughter. Both
children died early, and were buried in the family mausoleum at Kilsyth.
Neither the Airths or the Mores have
attained to the dignity of the peerage. The first had the baronies of
Airth, Carnock, and Plean; which, in the reign of James I., came to
heirs female, and, by marriage, to the Bruces, Drummonds, and
Somervilles.
The Napiers of Ballikenrain were an
ancient family; but the male line is now extinct. They are treated under
the head of Eminent Men. |
