Alexander Edward (10 June 1651 – 16 November 1708) was a priest of the

Scottish Episcopal Church The Scottish Episcopal Church (; ) is a Christian denomination in Scotland. Scotland's third largest church, the Scottish Episcopal Church has 303 local congregations. It is also an Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, ecclesiastical provi ...

who later became a draughtsman, architect and

landscape designer Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and garde ...

. He was a stylistic follower of

Sir William Bruce Sir William Bruce of Kinross, 1st Baronet (c. 1630 – 1710), was a Scottish gentleman-architect, "the effective founder of classical architecture in Scotland," as Howard Colvin observes.Colvin, p.172–176 As a key figure in introducing the Pa ...

, and planned several gardens in the grand French axial manner.

Early life

Alexander Edward was the eldest son of Robert Edward, minister at

Murroes Murroes is a parish in Angus, Scotland, situated approximately north of Dundee city centre. Places of interest * The parish church was built in 1848 * Ballumbie House * Powrie Castle * Wedderburn Castle Notable residents * In the reign of C ...

in Angus, who was related by marriage to the Maule family, and as such enjoyed the patronage of the Maule Earls of Panmure. Alexander's diary records that his family had to hide from Cromwell's

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...

troops in the 1650s, and also that he had a

squint Squinting is the action of looking at something with partially closed eyes. Squinting is most often practiced by people who suffer from Refractive error, refractive errors of the eye who either do not have or are not using their glasses. Squint ...

. He graduated from the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

in 1670.Colvin, p. 283. Edward was not ordained until 1679, and his activities during the 1670s are unknown. At this time, his father was writing a description of Angus, and preparing a map to accompany the book, entitled ''Angusia, Provincia Scotiae''. The work was commissioned by George Maule, 2nd Earl of Panmure, and published in 1678. John Lowrey has suggested that Alexander assisted with ''Angusia'', acquiring skills as a draughtsman and cartographer. Lowrey also speculates that he may have come into contact with Sir William Bruce at this time, as Bruce designed new gates for Panmure House in 1672. Edward was one of the

pallbearer A pallbearer is one of several participants who help carry the casket at a funeral. They may wear white gloves in order to prevent damaging the casket and to show respect to the deceased person. Some traditions distinguish between the roles o ...

s at the funeral of Archbishop Sharp, the churchman murdered by

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

Covenanter Covenanters were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. It originated in disputes with James VI and his son C ...

s in 1679. From 1681 he was minister of

Kemback Kemback (Scottish Gaelic: ''Ceann Bac'') is a village and parish in Fife, Scotland, located east of Cupar. The present village was developed in the 19th century to house those working the flax mills on the nearby Ceres Burn. From 1681 the minis ...

in Fife, until 1689 when he was deprived of his parish as a non-juror, following the establishment of the Presbyterian

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

. Despite this, he was still minister in 1694, despite his

manse A manse () is a clergy house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and other Christian traditions. Ultimately derived from the Latin ''mansus'', "dwelling", from '' ...

being attacked by a mob in 1691.

Architectural works

In around 1685, apprenticed to the

Alloa Alloa (Received Pronunciation ; Scottish pronunciation /ˈaloʊa/; , possibly meaning "rock plain") is a town in Clackmannanshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is on the north bank of the Forth at the spot where some say it ceases to ...

master mason Tobias Bauchop, he prepared plans and elevations of

Kinross House Kinross House is a late 17th-century country house overlooking Loch Leven, near Kinross in Kinross-shire, Scotland. History Construction of the house began in 1685, by the architect Sir William Bruce as his own home. It is regarded as one of hi ...

, designed by the King's architect Sir William Bruce as his own country house. He worked as Bruce's draughtsman again on an unexecuted scheme for the house and gardens of Kinnaird Castle, Angus. He drew up plans for Melville House in Fife, where Bruce was also involved, and where James Smith served as main contractor and designer. In 1699, he made a drawing of

Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, who took refuge there from political and religious turmoil of her times. Today it is under th ...

for its keeper, the 2nd Marquis of Atholl. Edward's first architectural commission came from

James Maule, 4th Earl of Panmure James Maule, 4th Earl of Panmure (c. 1658 – 11 April 1723) was a Scottish peer. Biography Born in Monifieth, Scotland, James Maule lived at Ballumbie and became the 4th Earl of Panmure in 1686 on the death of his brother, George Maule, the ...

, for the reconstruction of

Brechin Castle Brechin Castle is a castle in Brechin, Angus, Scotland. The castle was constructed in stone during the 13th century. Most of the current building dates to the early 18th century, when extensive reconstruction was carried out by architect Alex ...

as a country seat, on which he worked from 1696 to 1708. This remains his only known substantial work, and shows the stylistic influence of William Bruce. In 1700, he was involved in the building of Rossie House in Angus for Patrick Scott (now demolished), and he also oversaw interior works at Kellie Castle, Angus, another Maule property. He may have been responsible for the designs of Careston Castle, which was extended from an L-plan to a symmetrical U-plan shape in 1702. He made a survey of the Castlestead or Nether Palace at

. In 1704, he designed the monument to John Murray, 1st Marquess of Atholl in

Dunkeld Cathedral Dunkeld Cathedral is a Church of Scotland place of worship which stands on the north bank of the River Tay in Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. Built in square-stone style of predominantly grey sandstone, the cathedral proper began in 1260 a ...

Travels to Europe

He was sent on a fact-finding mission in 1701–02 by a group of Jacobite-leaning nobles, led by the Earls of Mar and Panmure. Edward was charged with visiting country seats in England, including Chatsworth and

Castle Howard Castle Howard is an English country house in Henderskelfe, North Yorkshire, north of York. A private residence, it has been the home of the Earl of Carlisle, Carlisle branch of the House of Howard, Howard family for more than 300 years. Castle ...

, before meeting various well-known craftsmen in London. He was then to travel to Paris and the low countries, visiting

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

, Marly and St Cloud. His main aim was to collect material on the most up-to-date architectural styles, as well as observing land improvements, water works, mines and other projects. He bought plans, made sketches and took notes, building up a large collection of material, which several of his patrons attempted to secure on Edward's death. Another, more secret, purpose to his journey was to convey coded letters from the

Duke of Hamilton Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Duke of Rothesay, Dukedom of Rothesay held by the sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the pr ...

to James Stuart, the "Old Pretender", at his court-in-exile at Saint-Germain.

Landscape gardening

Edward assisted William Bruce with the layout for the gardens at

Hopetoun House Hopetoun House is a country house near South Queensferry owned by the Hopetoun House Preservation Trust, a charity established in 1974 to preserve the house and grounds as a national monument, to protect and improve their amenities, and to pre ...

, as well as at Kinross. In 1708 Edward prepared drawings for the "Great Design" of the landscape around

Hamilton Palace Hamilton Palace was a country house in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It was the seat of the Dukes of Hamilton and is widely acknowledged as having been one of the grandest houses in the British Isles.Duchess Anne Hamilton. The enormous scheme included plantations, forest rides, and mounds in the shape of the cinquefoils of the Hamilton arms. It was never fully realised, due to the deaths of Edward that year, and of Anne in 1716, and due to the expense of the proposals. However, the Nethertoun area of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

was demolished, and a great avenue laid out, later terminated by William Adam's Chatelherault.Marshall, p. 216.

Death

Alexander Edward died in Edinburgh, and was buried in

Greyfriars Kirkyard Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 1 ...

. The antiquary

Robert Sibbald Sir Robert Sibbald (15 April 1641 – August 1722) was a Scottish physician and antiquary. Life He was born in Edinburgh, the son of David Sibbald (brother of Sir James Sibbald) and Margaret Boyd (January 1606 – 10 July 1672). Educated at t ...

described him as a "great master in architecture, and contrivance of avenues, gardens and orchards".

References

*Colvin, Howard (1978) ''A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600–1840'', James Murray *Gifford, John (1989) ''William Adam 1689–1748'', Mainstream Publishing / RIAS *Glendinning, Miles, MacInnes, Ranald and Mckechnie, Aonghus (1996) ''A History of Scottish Architecture'', Edinburgh University Press *Lowrey, John (1987) ''A Man of Excellent Parts: Alexander Edward, Minister, Architect, Jacobite'', University of St Andrews *Marshall, Rosalind K. (1973) ''The Days of Duchess Anne'', Collins {{DEFAULTSORT:Edward, Alexander Scottish landscape architects Landscape and garden designers 17th-century Scottish architects 17th-century Scottish Episcopalian priests 1651 births 1708 deaths Alumni of the University of St Andrews People from Angus, Scotland