[95] See Chapter Six, p. 39. The following is reproduced from a pamphlet in my possession. It bears no author's name, date, or place of publication.
This noble and ancient family is descended from Gilchrist, a man of the first rank, and a great favourite of King Malcolm Canmore, who was created Earl of Angus by that prince; and was amongst the first who enjoyed the title of earl in Scotland. He lived after the year 1120, having married Finebella, sister of thane of Mearns, by whom he had a son.
Gilibrede, second Earl of Angus, who succeeded him, and is mentioned by many of our historians as a great warrior. He lived in the reigns of King David I., King Malcolm IV., and King William the Lion. He was one of the chief commanders of the Scotch army (though then but a young man) with the Earls of March and Menteith, when they invaded England in King Stephen's reign, and fought a bloody battle against the English, near Northallerton, about the year 1138. He was one of the Scotch nobles appointed to settle and adjust all differences between King William the Lion and King Henry II. of England, in 1174. He was witness to a charter of King William the Lion, together with Joceline, Bishop of Glasgow, and Matthew, Bishop of Aberdeen, and is there designed Gilibredus comes de Agnus, &c. in 1176. He married —, a daughter of Patrick, Earl of March, by whom he had six sons. First, Gilchrist: second, Magnus, created Earl of Caithness, by King Alexander II. in 1222: third, Gilbert, ancestor of the present family of Finlater: fourth, Adam; fifth, William.
Gilbert, the third son, was a man of great abilities. He assumed his name from the lands of Ogilvie, as was the custon of those early times; and from him we proceed to deduce the descent of this noble family. He had a son,
Alexander de Ogilvie, who succeeded him. He was succeeded by his son, Patrick de Ogilvie, who was one of the great barons of Scotland that, with many others, were forced to swear fealty to King Edward I. of England, for his lands in the shire of Forfar, in the year 1296. He left issue two sons. First, Sir Patrick, his heir: second, Sir Robert de Ogilvie, who, according to Abercrombie, was one of King Robert Bruce's firmest friends.
[96] Sir Patrick Ogilvie succeeded his father, and was a man of singular merit and fortitude. He adhered always firmly to the interest of King Robert Bruce, and, for his loyalty and faithful services, obtained from that great monarch a grant of the lands of Ketins. He left issue two sons. First, Alexander, his heir: second, Patrick de Ogilvie, of Wester-Pourie.
Patrick de Ogilvie, of Wester-Pourie, second son of Sir Patrick, who obtained from his nephew, Sir Patrick Ogilvie, of Ogilvie, son of his brother, Alexander, to him, and Margery his wife, the lands of Wester-Pourie. His marriage with the above Margery, only daughter, and at length sole heiress of Sir Robert Ramsay, of Auchterhouse. He was succeeded by his son,
Walter Ogilvie, of Wester-Pourie, afterwards of Auchterhouse, hereditary sheriff of Forfar, who came to the possession of that great estate and dignity, upon the death of his uncle Sir Malcolm Ramsay, of Auchterhouse, about the year 1365. He left two sons. First, Sir Walter, his heir: second, Patrick. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
Sir Walter Ogilvie, of Auchterhouse, high sheriff of Forfar, who was a man of great worth and merit, and lost his life in the following manner. Duncan Stuart, natural son of Alexander, Earl of Buchan, having entered the shire of Angus, at the head of a lawless gang of robbers, in order to plunder the country; the sheriff, accompanied by his uterine brother, Walter Lighton, ancestor of the family, and a numerous posse of country people, overtook the robbers, at a place called Glenbrerith, in Angus; where, after a smart skirmish, Sir Walter and his brother, with about sixty of their followers, were killed on the spot, in 1391. He left issue three sons. First, Sir Alexander, his heir: second, Sir Walter, of Lintre than: third, Sir John, first of the family of Innercanty.
Sir Walter Ogilvie, of Lintrethan, second son of Sir Walter, of Auchterhouse, was a man of eminent parts and merit. He was one of the privy-council to King James I. and lord high treasurer of Scotland, in 1425; master of the king's household, in 1430; and one of the commissioners for renewing the truce with England. He married Isabel de Dureward, heiress of Lintre than, with whom he got that barony; and he and his posterity were designed by that title, till they were raised to the dignity of the peerage: by her he had issue two sons and one daughter: first, Sir John, his heir; second, Sir Walter, ancestor of the Earls of Finlater: his daughter Giles was married to Robert Arbuthnot, of Arbuthnot, Esq. He died in 1441, and was succeeded by his eldest son.
Sir Walter Ogilvie, the second son, flourished in the reigns of King James I. and II. In 1437, he married Margaret, daughter and heiress of Sir John Sinclair, Lord Ogilvie, of Deskford and Finlater, with whom he got both these baronies, which afterwards became the chief titles of his family; and, in consequence of this marriage, he added the arms of Sinclair, of Deskford, to that of Ogilvie, (argent, a cross engrailed sable). He then got two charters, under the great [97] seal, of the lands and baronies of Deskford, Finlater, &c., the first dated in January, and the other in August, 1440. He obtained from King James II. a licence to fortify his castle of Finlater, with an embattled wall, and all other necessaries for a place of strength, by a writ under the great seal, in 1455. By the said Margaret Sinclair, he left issue two sons and one daughter. First, James, his heir: second, Sir Walter Ogilvie, of Boyne, of whom the Lord Banff, and William Ogilvie, of Strathearn, lord high treasurer of Scotland, and others, were descended. His daughter, Elizabeth, married to Nicholas Dun, of Rathey, which appears by a charter, under the great seal, to them in 1487. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
Sir James, who was promiscuously designed of Finlater and Deskford, and had the honour of knighthood conferred upon him by King James III. He married Mary, daughter of Sir Robert Innes, by whom he had four sons and five daughters. First, Sir James, his heir: second, Gilbert Ogilvie, of Glashaugh: third, Alexander, who was killed at the battle of Flodden, in 1513: fourth, George, who was bred to the church. First daughter, Margaret, married to James Abercrombie, of Birkenbog: second, Marian, married to Patrick Gordon, of Haddo, ancestor of the Earl of Aberdeen: third, Catherine, married to William Crawfurd, of Federat, in the shire of Aberdeen: fourth, Elizabeth, married to John Grant, of Freugh: fifth, Mary, married to Alexander Urquhart, sheriff of Cromarty. He died before the year 1490, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
Sir James Ogilvie, who married Lady Agnes Gordon, daughter of George, Earl of Huntly, by whom he had five sons and two daughters. First, Alexander, his heir: second, James: third, John: fourth, Patrick: fifth, George. The above four sons are all mentioned in an entail hereafter narrated. His first daughter, Elizabeth, was married to Sir James Dunbar, of Westfield: second, married, first, to the laird of Macintosh; secondly, to Monro, of Foulis; and, thirdly, to a son of the Lord Lovat, and had children to them all. He died in 1510, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
Alexander Ogilvie. He got a charter, whereby the lands and baronies of Finlater, Deskford, Kethmore, Glenfudich, Auchindoun, and many others, the constabulary of Cullen, &c. in the shires of Banff and Aberdeen, and the lands of Ballhall, and others in the shire of Forfar, were all erected into one free barony, to be called the barony of Ogilvie, "to and in favour of the heirs male of his own body; which failing, to James, John, Patrick, and George Ogilvies, his brothers-german; which failing, to Gilbert Ogilvie, his uncle; which all failing, to his own nearest heirs male whatever, dated May 22, 1517." He married, first, Janet Abernethy, daughter of Alexander, Lord Saltoun, by whom he had a son, James Ogilvie, of Cardell; and a daughter, Elizabeth, married to Alexander Irvine, of Drum, Esq. He married, secondly, Elizabeth Gordon, sister to the Earl of Huntly. By her he had only one daughter, Margaret Ogilvie, married to John Gordon, third son of Alexander, Earl of [98] Huntly, upon who, by evil counsel, and the instigation of his wife, he was prevailed upon to settle his whole estates of Deskford, Finlater, &c. in prejudice of his son, James, of Cardell, the said John Gordon being obliged to carry the name and arms of Ogilvie. The substitution runs thus: "To himself and Elizabeth Gordon, his wife, in life-rent, and in fee to the said John Gordon, and the heirs male of his body; which failing, to James and Adam Gordons, his brothers; then to Walter Ogilvie, of Boyne; then to Walter, of Dunlugas; then to Lord Ogilvie, in 1546."
John Gordon having been engaged at the battle of Corrichie, where his father was killed, in 1562, was beheaded at Aberdeen, and forfeited; the estates of Deskford, &c. and were claimed by the Gordons, in virtue of the deed of settlement of Alexander before-mentioned; but Queen Mary, out of her great goodness and love to justice, restored the whole estate to James Ogilvie, of Cardell, the rightful owner, and confirmed it to him by a charter under the great seal.
James Ogilvie, of Cardell, though deprived as above of the family estate, in his father's life-time, got the baronies of Broadlands, &c. in Inverness-shire,; upon which he got a charter, under the great seal, "to James Ogilvie, son and apparent heir of Alexander Ogilvie, and Janet Gordon, his wife, dated February 16, 1534."
Upon the death of John Gordon, as before-mentioned, this James, of Cardell, who then served Queen Mary, as steward of her household, came over from France to recover the estate, which belonged to him by birthright, but had been claimed by the Gordons. At this time there appears to have been a submission to Queen Mary of Lorraine, then regent, who pronounced a decreet-arbitral betwixt the parties. This decreet-arbitral is not now to be found; but it is mentioned in the second decreet-arbitral which restored the estate to the right owner. This first decreet-arbitral, it would appear, was unfavourable for James, of Cardell, who, upon Queen Mary's coming over from France, raised a reduction thereof in the courts of law. These proceedings caused great animosities betwixt the families of Gordon and Ogilvie, in which the friends of both were nearly all embarked. To this was owing the scuffle that happened in the streets of Edinburgh betwixt John Gordon and the above James, who is there designed Lord Ogilvie, of Airly.
When Queen Mary made a tour into the north of Scotland, she was attended by James Ogilvie, of Cardell, who was extremely active and instrumental in bringing the Macintoshes, and others of his friends, as well as the Ogilvies from Angus, to her assistance.
On February 8, 1563, Queen Mary, out of her regard to James, of Cardell, granted him a charter, under the great seal, of the lands and baronies of Deskford, Finlater, &c. "to James Ogilvie, of Cardell, son and heir of Alexander Ogilvie. Notwithstanding this charter, it seems the Gordons still claimed part of the Ogilvie estates; but at last all differences between the families were ended [99] by a submission to the following persons as arbiters, James, Earl of Bothwell, and Sir John Ballenden, justice-clerk, on the part of the Earl of Huntly; James and Adam Gordons, his brothers, and William Maitland, younger, of Leithing- ton, and Mr. John Spence, his majesty's advocate, for James Ogilvie, Esq. the queen being to decide if the arbiters did not agree; and by their decreet-arbital, which is dated March 23, 1566, the lands and barony of Deskford, &c. as contained in the charter, were affirmed to the said James Ogilvie, and the lands of Auchindoun and Kethmore to the said Adam Gordon.
The lands and superiorities in Strathearn and Strathnaven, and the other lands in the shires of Nairn and Inverness, had been seized by the Gordons, at the same time they took possession of the rest of the estate of this family. These lands and superiorities came soon thereafter into the hands of the regent, Earl of Murray, and have been possessed by that family ever since; but there is no distinct, or at least certain, account of the cause of the regent's getting possession of them.
He was one of those Scotch barons who entered into an association to stand by and support the queen with their lives and fortunes, in 1568.
He married, first, Janet, daughter of Sir Robert Gordon, of Lochinvar, without issue. He married, secondly, Marian Livingston, of the family of Linlithgow, one of the ladies who attended Queen Mary to France; and it is from her the family was continued. By the said Marian Livingston, his second wife, he had a son,
Alexander, who married Barbara Ogilvie, daughter of Sir William Ogilvie, of Boyne. He died before his father, leaving issue, by his wife, a son,
Sir Walter Ogilvie, of Finlater and Deskford, who succeeded his grandfather. He being a man of abilities and learning, was highly esteemed by King James VI., who conferred the honour of knighthood upon him, in 1590; and being possessed of an opulent fortune, and in great favour with his majesty, he was raised to the dignity of the peerage by the title of Lord Ogilvie, of Deskford, October 4, 1616. He married, first, Agnes, daughter of Robert, Lord Elphing- stone, by whom he had only one daughter, Christian, married to Sir John Forbes, of Pitsligo. He married, secondly, Lady Mary Douglas, daughter of William, Earl of Morton, by whom he had a son, James, his heir; and two daughters. First, Margaret, married, first, to James Douglas, Earl of Buchan; secondly, to Andrew, eighth Lord Gray: second, Mary, married to Sir John Grant. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
James, second Lord Ogilvie. He was afterwards created Earl of Finlater by King Charles I., February 20, 1638, by patent, to the heirs male of his body. He got charters, under the great seal, of a great many lands and baronies, in 1641.
He appears to have been deeply engaged on the parliament's side, and was by them made a privy counsellor for life, and one of the committee for stating the debts of the nation, in November, 1641.
[100] He got a ratification of the bailiary of Strathislay, and was appointed one of the committee of the north for prosecuting the malignants, in 1644; one of the committee of estates, in 1645; and one of the commissioners for selling malignants lands, in 1646.
He married Lady Elizabeth Leslie, daughter of Andrew, Earl of Rothes, by whom he had two daughters. First, Lady Elizabeth, afterwards Countess of Finlater, who married Sir Patrick Ogilvie, of Inchmartin, of whom more here- after: second, Lady Anne, married to William, Earl of Glencairn. Having no male issue, he obtained a new patent from King Charles I., conferring the honours of Finlater, after his death, upon his daughter, Lady Elizabeth, and her husband, Sir Patrick, of Inchmartin, to them and the heirs male of their bodies, and they succeeded accordingly.
This Sir Patrick being one of the oldest cadets of the family of Ogilvie, we shall here briefly deduce his descent from his immediate ancestor, Sir Walter Ogilvie, of Auchterhouse, who flourished in the reigns of King Robert II. and III., was the sixth generation from the first of the family of Ogilvie, in a direct male line, and left issue two sons. First, Sir Walter, of Auchterhouse, his successor; second, Patrick.
This Patrick, ancestor of the family of Inchmartin, left issue a son and successor, Sir Walter Ogilvie, who married Margaret, daughter and coheiress of Sir John Glen, Knight, by Isabel, his wife, daughter and coheiress of Sir Alan Erskine, of Inchmartin, whose ancestors got these lands, by marrying the daughter and heiress of Sir Patrick Inchmartin, secretary to King Robert Bruce, who was afterwards killed at the battle of Duplin, in 1332. He got with her the lands and barony of Inchmartin, which afterwards became the chief title of his family, and by her left issue a son,
Sir Andrew Ogilvie, of Inchmartin, who was knighted by King James II. in 1442; and by Margery, his wife, left issue a son,
Sir David, who succeeded him. He married Marian Hay, daughter of _____ by whom he had issue two sons, and one daughter. First, Alexander, who died before his father, without issue; second, James, who became his father's heir. His daughter, Christian, was married to Patrick, fourth Lord Gray, but had no issue. He was succeeded by his son,
James, who married Isabel, a daughter of Lord Oliphant, by whom he had a son,
Sir Patrick Ogilvie, of Inchmartin, who succeeded him. He married, first, Marian Stewart, daughter of Thomas, Lord Innermeath, by whom he had a son, William. He married, secondly, Janet, daughter of Patrick, fourth Lord Gray, by whom he had two daughters. First, Margaret, married to Patrick Hay, of Megginch, ancestor of the Earl of Kinnoul; second, Janet, married to John Kinnaird.
William, only son and apparent heir of Sir Patrick, of Inchmartin, married Elizabeth, daughter of Patrick Kinnaird, of Inchture, ancestors of Kinnaird, [101] and died before his father, in 1558, leaving issue by the said Elizabeth Kinnaird a son,
Sir Patrick, who succeeded his grandfather, in 1593, He married Margaret, daughter of Sir George Haliburton, of Pitcur, by whom he had two sons. First, Sir Patrick, his heir; second, William. He was succeeded by his eldest son,
Sir Patrick, who died before the year 1642, leaving issue, by Anne, daughter of Sir Duncan Campbell, a son,
Sir Patrick Ogilvie, who succeeded him, and got a charter, under the great seal, of the lands and barony of Inchmartin, and several others, in Perthshire, dated July 1, 1624. He married Lady Elizabeth Ogilvie, eldest daughter of James, first Earl of Finlater, who, with the approbation of the crown succeeded to the honours, and was the second Earl of Finlater. He was a man of great honour and merit, a steady loyalist, and suffered many hardships on account of his attachment to the interest of the royal family. He was excepted from pardon by Oliver Cromwell, and fined in fifteen hundred pounds sterling, in 1654. He died in 1658, leaving issue, by the said Lady Elizabeth, Countess of Finlater, a son and successor,
James, third Earl of Finlater, who married, first, Lady Anne Montgomerie, only daughter of Hugh, seventh Earl of Eglinton, by Lady Anne, daughter of James, second Marquis of Hamilton, by whom he had three sons, and one daughter. First, Walter, Lord Deskford, who died before his father, unmarried; second, James, his heir; third, Colonel Patrick Ogilvie, of Lonmay, who married Elizabeth, daughter of Francis Montgomerie, of Giffen, Esq., and had issue. His daughter, Lady Anne, married George Allardice, of Giffen, Esq., and had issue. He married, secondly, Lady Mary, daughter of William, second Duke of Hamilton, by whom he had no issue. He died in 1711, and was succeeded by his second son,
James, fourth Earl of Finlater, born in 1664, a man of extraordinary abilities and high accomplishments, and great knowledge of the laws.
Immediately after his return from his travels he entered advocate with great applause, in 1685, and was chosen member to the convention of estates for the burgh of Cullen, in 1689, where he made a remarkable speech in favour of King James VII., and was one of the five members that dissented from the act for forfeiting him; but his firmness and fidelity to his former sovereign did not injure him, for after the government was settled under King William, he went into all the measures of the court, and soon became a favourite of his majesty; and, being an eminent lawyer, was made solicitor for the crown, sheriff of Banff, and knighted, in 1693.
In the beginning of 1695 he was appointed secretary of state, in conjunction with the Earl of Tullibardin, afterwards Duke of Athol, who having resigned, he acted as sole secretary until Lord Carmichael was joined with him. In the year 1698 he was appointed president of the parliament, and he was at the same time created Viscount Seafield. In 1700 he was appointed his majesty's [102] high commissioner to the general assembly of the church of Scotland, and was thrice preferred to the same high dignity afterwards, in 1703, 1724, and 1727. In 1701 he was created Earl of Seafield. He continued secretary of state all King William's reign; and upon Queen Anne's accession, that office was continued to him until November, 1702, when he was made chancellor. In 1703 he was made a knight of the thistle; and in 1704 he was again made secretary of state, in conjunction with the Duke of Roxburgh, and at the same time he presided in parliament. In the same year, 1704, he was again appointed chancellor: in which office he continued till the Union was completed, having been first commissioner for Scotland at the treaty of Union, and presided in the Scotch parliament that ratified it. In 1708 he was appointed chief baron of the court of exchequer in Scotland, with a salary of 3000l. per annum.
After the Union took place, he was appointed one of the privy council in England, and continued to be one of that number all his life. He was chosen one of the sixteen Scotch peers to the first British parliament, and was re-elected to the second, third, sixth, and seventh. In 1713 he was again appointed chancellor, and keeper of the great seal of Scotland; and during all the periods in which he enjoyed the office of chancellor, he presided in the court of session. In which learned court he remarkably displayed his eloquence and great abilities in the law, and a peculiar talent of dispatch in business, and shortening law suits.
The family estate having been previously reduced by becoming security, and other incidents, so low as to be almost bankrupt, he paid all his father's debts without composition; and though he always lived in a manner suitable to his high station, yet by a prudent economy he greatly increased his family estate. This Earl of Finlater and Seafield married Anne, daughter of Sir William Dunbar, of Durn, Baronet, by whom he had two sons, and two daughters. First, James, Earl of Finlater; second, George Ogilvie, who being bred to the law, acquired great knowledge in that profession, and entered advocate, but died without issue. First daughter, Lady Elizabeth, married to Charles, Earl of Lauderdale, and had issue; second, Lady Janet, married, first, to Hugh Forbes, Esq. son and heir apparent of Sir William Forbes, of Craigyvar, Baronet, of the county of Aberdeen; she married, secondly, William Duff, of Braco, Esq. afterwards Earl of Fife, of the kingdom of Ireland, to whom she had no issue. He died in 1730, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
James, fifth Earl of Finlater and Seafield. In the year 1734 he was chosen one of the sixteen peers, and made one of the lords of police. In the year 1737 he was promoted to be vice-admiral of Scotland, in which office he continued to his death. He was chosen one of the sixteen peers for Scotland to all the successive parliaments until 1761, when, by reason of his age, he chose to retire from public business; but because of the zeal he had shewn upon every occasion for the service of the present royal family, and the preservation of the constitution, his majesty was graciously pleased to continue him in the [103] office of vice-admiral. He married, first, Lady Elizabeth Hay, daughter of Thomas, Earl of Kinnoul, by whom he had a son, James, Lord Ogilvie; and two daughters. First, Lady Margaret, married to Sir Ludovick Grant, of Grant, Baronet, who had issue; second, Lady Anne, married to John, Earl of Hope- toun, and had issue. He married, secondly, Lady Sophia Hope, daughter of Charles, Earl of Hopetoun, by whom he had no issue.