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DALHOUSIE,
earl and marquis of, the former a title in the Scottish peerage, and the
latter in that of the united kingdom, (conferred on the tenth earl in
1849) possessed by a family of the name of Ramsay, of German origin, the
first of whom in Scotland was Simon de Ramsay, who settled in Lothian
under King David the First; and which, previous to its being ennobled, on
several occasions made a conspicuous figure in Scottish history. [See
RAMSAY, surname of.] A descendant of the above Simon, Sir Alexander Ramsay
of Dalhousie, who lived in the fourteenth century, is celebrated as one of
the bravest warriors of that age. He was appointed warden of the middle
marches, and in 1342 constable of the castle of Roxburgh, which he had
taken by escalade. Having been by David the Second nominated sheriff of
Teviotdale, an office held by Douglas of Liddesdale, he was, out of envy,
treacherously seized by that baron, and starved to death within the walls
of Hermitage Castle.
The title is
taken from the lands and barony of Dalwolsey, a name which may imply
Del-Wolsey, of Wolsey, an English name. Wolsey, or Woolsea,
the island of wool, is nearly similar in signification to Ramsey or
Ramsea, the island of Rams. This title was first conferred on
William, second Lord Ramsay, (see RAMSAY, lord,) in 1629, who was created
Earl Dalhousie of Dalhousie castle, and Lord Ramsay of Kerington in Mid
Lothian, by Charles the First, on 29th of June 1633, to himself
and his heirs male. He had the office of high sheriff of the county of
Edinburgh 24th October 1646, and on May 4th 1648, he
was nominated colonel of horse for Mid Lothian, for “the Engagement,” in
the duke of Hamilton’s ill-appointed and hastily-levied army for the
relief of Charles the First, but does not appear to have accepted the
commission, as he sat in the parliament of the following January in which
a severe act was passed against all who had joined in it. For his loyalty
to the king, however, a fine of fifteen hundred pounds was imposed upon
him by Cromwell’s act of grace and pardon, 12th April 1654. He
died 11th February 1674. He was twice married, and had four
sons and three daughters. His first wife, Lady Margaret Carnegie, eldest
daughter of David, first earl of Southesk, died in April 1661, and at her
funeral, as appears from a curious Confession of one “Jonet Watsone,”
accused of witchcraft, (inserted in the Appendix to Pitcairn’s Criminal
Trials, vol. iii.) “Ther was ane rix-dollar given to Jean Bughane, to
be pairted (divided) among a certain number of poore folks, wherof she was
one,” but Jean Bughane having run away with the money, to have amends on
her for so doing, she gave herself over to the devil, &c.
His eldest son,
George, second earl, only enjoyed the title one year, as he died in 1675.
He had seven children. His third son, the Hon. George Ramsay of Carriden,
entered the army, and in his youth served in Holland and the Low
Countries. In 1690 he had the rank of brigadier-general, after the action
at Valcour, and was appointed colonel of the Scottish regiment of guards.
After the battle of Landen in 1693, he was promoted to the rank of
major-general, and in 1702 to that of lieutenant-general, and appointed
commander-in-chief of the forces in Scotland. He died at Edinburgh 2d
September 1705. Maky, in his Memoirs, describes him as a “gentleman of a
great deal of fire, and very brave; of a sanguine complexion, well-shaped,
a thorough soldier, and towards fifty years old.” He had a daughter, who
did not long survive him.
The eldest son,
William, third earl, was, in 1678, appointed captain of the Edinburghshire
militia. On 23d February 1682, he was sworn a privy councillor, and, soon
after, constituted high sheriff of the county of Edinburgh, but died the
same year (1682). He had three sons and a daughter, Lady Elizabeth,
married to Lord Hawley.
George, the
fourth earl, his eldest son, was under age at his father’s death, and it
appears from Fountainhall’s Memoirs that the earl of Perth, then
chancellor, who was a roman Catholic, endeavoured, but without success, to
get him sent to Douay, to be educated in the Popish religion. The young
earl, who was unmarried, was killed in Holland, by one Mr. Hamilton, in
1696.
His next
brother, William, fifth earl, who succeeded him, took the oaths and his
seat in parliament, 29th October 1700, and was appointed high
sheriff of the county of Edinburgh, 24th February 1703. He
steadily supported the union, and voted in favour of that measure in every
division. On the breaking out of the war of the Spanish succession, he was
colonel of the Scots guards in the forces sent to the assistance of the
Archduke Charles of Austria (afterwards the emperor Charles the Sixth), in
his competition with Philip of Bourbon, for the crown of Spain, and had
the rank of brigadier-general, 1st January 1710. He died in
Spain, unmarried, in October following. His younger brother, the Hon.
James Ramsay, died young, and the earl had been persuaded by his mother to
execute a disposition of his estate and honours in favour of his sister,
the Lady Hawley; but it was found to be ineffectual as regards the honours,
and not valid as to the estate. Her ladyship, however, succeeded to his
personal property.
The title
descended to William Ramsay, son of the Hon. Captain John Ramsay, (second
son of the first earl) by his wife Miss Sinclair. The sixth earl, who was
a colonel in the army, was served heir to the fifth earl, 9th
February, 1711, and died at Dalkeith 8th December 1739, in the
seventy-ninth year of his age. He was twice married, and by his first wife
had three sons and two daughters, who all, except the eldest son, died
unmarried. George, Lord Ramsay, the eldest son, died in the lifetime of
his father, at Dalhousie, 25th May 1739, aged about forty. By
Jean, second daughter of the Hon. Harry Maule of Kelly, brother of James
fourth earl of Panmure, he had seven sons, of whom four died young, two of
them poisoned by eating the berries of the ivy. The survivors were,
Charles, seventh earl; George, eighth earl; and the Hon. Malcolm Ramsay,
lieutenant-colonel in the army, and deputy adjutant-general to the forces
in North Britain, who died, unmarried, at Edinburgh on 18th
July 1783.
Charles, the
seventh earl, succeeded his grandfather in 1739, and on 22d December 1753,
was appointed captain of a company in the 3d regiment of foot guards, with
the rank of lieutenant-colonel in the army. He died, unmarried, at
Edinburgh, 29th January 1764, and was succeeded by his brother,
George, the eighth earl, who had been admitted a member of the faculty of
advocates in 1757. At the general election of 1774, the eighth earl was
chosen one of the sixteen representatives of the Scots peerage, and
rechosen in 1780 and 1794. On 25th February 1775, he was
appointed one of the lords of police, an office which he held till the
suppression of that board in 1782. In 1777 he was lord high commissioner
to the General Assembly of the church of Scotland, and every year
thereafter till 1783. On the death of his uncle, William, earl of Panmure,
in 1782, without issue, the extensive estates of that nobleman devolved
upon him in liferent, in virtue of a settlement executed by Lord Panmure
in 1775, with remainder to his son, the Hon. William Ramsay. Lord
Dalhousie died at Abbeville in France, 4th November 1787. A
high eulogium of his lordship, in Latin, by his old preceptor, Professor
George Stuart, is recorded in Douglas’ peerage, Wood’s edition, vol. i. p.
407. His lordship married, 30th July 1767, Elizabeth, daughter
of Andrew Glen, Esq., and niece and heiress of James Glen, Esq. of
Longcroft, Linlithgowshire, by whom he had seven sons and five daughters.
George, the eldest son, became ninth earl. The second son, the Hon.
William Ramsay, on his father’s death, succeeded to the large possessions
of the Panmure family, and in consequence assumed the name and arms of
Maule of Panmure. In 1831, he was created Lord Panmure of Brechin and
Navar, in the peerage of the United Kingdom [See MAULE, surname of, and
PANMURE, lord.] James, the third son, was a lieutenant-general in the
army, born 1st October 1772, died 15th November
1837. John, fourth son, also a lieutenant-general in the army, was on the
general staff in India, born in 1775, and died 28th June 1842,
leaving issue. The fifth son was named Andrew. The sixth son, Henry, was
in the naval service of the East India Company; and David, the seventh
son, a captain in the army, died in 1801.
George, ninth
earl, a distinguished military commander, the eldest son of the eighth
earl, was burn 22d October 1770. He received his education at the High
School and university of Edinburgh, and was a school companion and
fellow-student of Sir Walter Scott. He entered the army as a cornet in the
3d dragoon guards, July 2, 1788, and soon after was appointed captain in
the independent company raised by himself. On 4th January 1791,
he was made captain in the 2d battalion of the royals, which he joined at
Gibraltar. In June 1792 he became, by purchase, major in the 2d foot, and
went in command of that regiment to Martinique. In August 1794 he
succeeded to the lieutenant-colonelcy; and in 1795, having been severely
wounded, he returned to England. He served in Ireland during the rebellion
of 1798. In 1799 he accompanied the expedition to the Helder, and was
present in all the actions of the campaign in Holland. On 1st
January 1800, he received the brevet of colonel, and in that year he was
employed under General Maitland before Belie-Isle. He afterwards proceeded
to Egypt, and was present in the actions of the 6th and 21st
of March 1801. He commanded a detachment sent to reduce the forts of
Aboukir and Rosetta, and subsequently advanced to Cairo. In 1802, he was
placed in garrison at Gibraltar, and in 1803 appointed brigadier-general
on the staff in Scotland. He received the rank of major-general, April 25,
1805. In May 1808 he was appointed to the staff in England, and afterwards
served in the expedition to the Scheldt, and was latterly in command of
Flushing.
On the
evacuation of Walcheren in Dec. 1809, he returned to England, and was
subsequently appointed to the staff in the Peninsula. During the
peninsular war he commanded the seventh division. He received a medal and
clasp for the battles of Vittoria and the Pyrenees, and was one of the
general officers to whom the thanks of parliament were voted. On June 4,
1813, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general, and on 11th
Sep. following was made a military knight grand cross of the bath. He had
been for some years a representative peer of Scotland, but Aug. 11, 1815,
he was created a peer of the United kingdom as Baron Dalhousie of
Dalhousie castle. In Aug. 1816, he was appointed to the command of Nova
Scotia, and in 1819, he succeeded the duke of Richmond as captain-general
and governor-in-chief of the forces in North America. He attained the full
rank of general in 1830. He was also captain-general of the royal company
of Archers or Queen’s body-guard in Scotland. He died at Dalhousie Castle,
March 21, 1838. By his countess, Christian, only child and heiress of
Charles Broun, Esq. of Coalstoun, East Lothian, he had 3 sons; George,
Lord Ramsay, born 1806, died unm. 1832; Charles, born in 1807, died
in 1817; and James Andrew Broun, tenth earl.
The latter,
created in 1849, marquis of Dalhousie, of Dalhousie Castle and of the
Punjaub, peerage of United kingdom, was born April 22, 1812, and educated
at Oxford university, where in 1838 he took the degree of M.A. In June
1843 he was appointed vice-president of the board of trade, and sworn of
the privy council. From Feb. 1845 to July 1846 he was president of that
board. In 1845 he was constituted lord clerk register and keeper of the
signet in Scotland, and the same year was made constable of Dover Castle,
and lord warden, keeper and admiral of the Cinque Ports. In Aug. 1847, he
was appointed governor-general of India, and he remained in that high
office till July 1855. A knight of the Thistle, 1848. He m. January 21,
1836, Susan Gerogiana, eldest daughter of George marquis of Tweeddale,
issue 2 daughters, Lady Susan Georgiana, born 1837, and Lady Edith
Christian, born 1839, the latter married in 1859, Sir James Fergusson of
Kilkerran, bart. He died Dec. 19, 1860, when his title of marquis became
extinct.
The Scottish
titles of earl of Dalhousie, and Baron Ramsay, devolved on his cousin,
Fox, 2d Lord Panmure, 11th earl (see PANMURE, Baron). |
