William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton (1582 – 7 August 1648) was a grandson of the
6th Earl of Morton. He was
Treasurer of Scotland, and a zealous
Royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gov ...
.
Life
He was the son of Robert Douglas, Master of Morton, and
Jean Lyon, daughter of
John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis.
There was a rumour in the summer of 1602 that he, the "young Earl of Morton", would marry Elizabeth Stewart, the eldest daughter of the exiled
Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell, who was described as "a very gallanr lady".
In May 1617 he was travelling in France, and met up in
Bourges with Henry Erskine, the son of the
Earl of Mar and his French-born second-wife
Marie Stewart. One of their companions fell sick, and Morton asked if the doctors had
bezoar
A bezoar is a mass often found trapped in the gastrointestinal system, though it can occur in other locations. A pseudobezoar is an indigestible object introduced intentionally into the digestive system.
There are several varieties of bezoar, s ...
stones, and they scorned him for believing in such things. Morton left Bourges for
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...
with the
Earl of Angus, and was thinking of visiting the court of the
Elector Palatine
The counts palatine of Lotharingia /counts palatine of the Rhine /electors of the Palatinate (german: Kurfürst von der Pfalz) ruled some part of Rhine area in the Kingdom of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire from 915 to 1803. The title was a kin ...
.
Morton himself became ill at Paris of a "dangerous" and "irrecoverable and deadly disease." King James wrote to the
Earl of Mar from
Theobalds on 26 March 1618 asking him take measures to protect Morton's son's inheritance. However, Morton recovered.
Morrton offended decorum at court at the time of the death of
James VI and I
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
. In April 1625, when the body of the king was bought from Theobalds, it was noticed that the Earls of Morton and
Roxburghe were not in attendance, but had gone to be "merry" at
More Park with
Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford
Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford ( Harington; 1580–1627) was a major aristocratic patron of the arts and literature in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras, the primary non-royal performer in contemporary court masques, a letter-writer, and a ...
.
Morton was Treasurer of Scotland from 1630 to 1636. He extended his home at
Aberdour Castle
Aberdour Castle is in the village of Easter Aberdour, Fife, Scotland. Parts of the castle date from around 1200, making Aberdour one of the two oldest datable standing castles in Scotland, along with Castle Sween in Argyll, which was built ...
in Fife, with a
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
-style east wing, with a long gallery overlooking a formal terraced garden.
On the outbreak of the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were a series of related conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland, then separate entities united in a personal union under Charles I. They include the 1639 to 1640 Bi ...
in 1642, he provided £100,000 for the Royalist cause by selling his
Dalkeith estates to the
Earl of Buccleuch.
Family
In June 1602 there was a rumour he would marry one of the
Earl of Bothwell's daughters, who was "a very gallant lady". On 28 March 1604, he married Lady Anne Keith, a daughter of
George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal, and they had ten children:
[(douglasshistory.co.uk)]
*Margaret Douglas (1610–1678), married
Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll and had issue.
*Anne Douglas (d. 1667), married the
George Hay, 2nd Earl of Kinnoull and had issue.
*
Robert Douglas, 8th Earl of Morton (d. 1649), married
Anne Villiers, their son was
William Douglas, 9th Earl of Morton (d.1681).
*Lady Mary Douglas, married
Charles Seton, 2nd Earl of Dunfermline and had issue.
*
James Douglas, 10th Earl of Morton (d. 1686) He succeeded his nephew as earl in 1681.
*Isabel Douglas (d. 1650), who married
James Graham, 2nd Marquess of Montrose
James Graham, 2nd Marquess of Montrose ( – February 1669) was a Scottish nobleman and judge, surnamed the "Good" Marquess.
Early life
He was the second son of James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, by his wife, Lady Magdalene Carnegie, daught ...
and had issue.
*Nicholas Douglas (d. 1686).
*Jean Douglas, who married
James Home, 3rd Earl of Home
James Home, 3rd Earl of Home (died 1666) was a Scottish courtier and landowner.
He was the son of Sir James Home of Whitriggs and Anne Home, daughter of George Home, 1st Earl of Dunbar and Elizabeth Gordon, daughter of Alexander Gordon of Gight an ...
.
*Agnes Douglas
Claimant to the earldom
John Maxwell, 9th Lord Maxwell
John Maxwell, 9th Lord Maxwell ( – 21 May 1613) was a Scottish Catholic nobleman. He escaped from Edinburgh Castle in 1607, and in 1608 shot the Laird of Johnstone. For these crimes, he was executed and his titles were forfeit.
Biography
The n ...
(c. 1586–1613), a descendant of the 3rd Earl, also claimed the earldom of Morton, but was attainted in 1609 and his rights then failed. His titles and estates were restored in 1618 to his brother Robert, with the title of
Earl of Nithsdale (1620) in lieu of Morton.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, William Douglas, 7th Earl Of
1582 births
1648 deaths
Earls of Morton
Knights of the Garter
William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton
17th-century Scottish politicians
17th-century Scottish people
Lord High Treasurers of Scotland
Cavaliers
1582 in Scotland
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1617
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1621
Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1621
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1625
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1630
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1643–44
Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1644–1647