Archibald Douglas, 1st Duke of Douglas

Archibald Douglas, 1st Duke of Douglas (15 October 1694 – 21 July 1761) was a Scottish nobleman.

He was the second son of James Douglas, 2nd Marquess of Douglas, by his second marriage. His elder brother, William, died in infancy in 1694, and Archibald was thereafter styled Earl of Angus.

Douglas succeeded his father in 1700, and on 10 April 1703, was created Duke of Douglas, Marquess of Angus and Abernethy, Viscount of Jedburgh Forest, and Lord Douglas of Bonkill, Prestoun, and Robertoun. The bearer of the Crown of Scotland on state occasions, he conveyed it to Edinburgh Castle after the closing of the last Parliament of Scotland.

During the Jacobite rising of 1715, Douglas took the Hanoverian side, and led the volunteer horse at the Battle of Sheriffmuir. In maturity, Douglas grew eccentric, and perhaps insane, marrying Margaret of Mains (a fair match by some accounts^[1]); he slew Captain John Kerr (the natural son of his uncle, Lord Mark Kerr) at Douglas Castle, while the latter was guesting with him there, and was forced to flee for some time to Holland. His residence of Douglas Castle was plundered by Highlanders during the Rising of 1745.

He fell out with his sister, Lady Jane Douglas, when he discovered her secret marriage to John Stewart of Grantully, and treated her with great cruelty. In 1755, Douglas Castle burned, and he hired Robert Adam to rebuild it, although the work was never finished, being halted by the Duke's death. The Duke married Margaret Douglas, daughter of James Douglas of Mains, in 1758, who succeeded in reconciling him with Archibald, his nephew by Lady Jane (who had died in 1754). Ultimately, the Duke was persuaded to entail his estates upon Archibald, a decision which led to the celebrated Douglas Cause upon his death, when the Duke of Hamilton (who inherited the Marquessate of Douglas) and his kin unsuccessfully contested Archibald's legitimacy.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Archibald Douglas, 1st Duke of Douglas

16. William Douglas, 10th Earl of Angus               8. William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas                       17. Lady Elizabeth Oliphant               4. Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Ormond                             18. Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley               9. The Hon. Margaret Hamilton                       19. The Hon. Margaret Seton               2. James Douglas, 2nd Marquess of Douglas                                   20. Esmé Stuart, 1st Duke of Lennox               10. Esmé Stuart, 3rd Duke of Lennox                       21. Catherine de Balzac               5. Lady Anne Stuart                             22. Gervase Clifton, 1st Baron Clifton               11. Katherine Clifton, 2nd Baroness Clifton                       23. Katherine Darcy               1. Archibald Douglas, 1st Duke of Douglas                                         24. Robert Kerr, 1st Earl of Ancram               12. William Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian                       25. Elizabeth Murray               6. Robert Kerr, 1st Marquess of Lothian                             26. Robert Kerr, 2nd Earl of Lothian               13. Anne Kerr, 3rd Countess of Lothian                       27. Lady Annabella Campbell               3. Lady Mary Kerr                                   28. Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll               14. Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll                       29. Lady Agnes Douglas               7. Lady Jean Campbell                             30. William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton               15. Lady Margaret Douglas                       31. Lady Anne Keith

External Links

• Pedigree at Genealogics

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Douglas, Archibald (1694-1761)". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

1. Douglas Archives Accessed on 31 Aug 2010