Andrew Crichton (1790–1855) was a Scottish

biographer Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography. Biographers Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...

and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

. Crichton, youngest son of a small landed proprietor, was born in the parish of

Kirkmahoe Kirkmahoe is a civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway. The parish contains the settlements Kirkton, where the parish church is located, Dalswinton and Duncow. It is bounded by the parishes of Dumfries to the south, Holywood and Dunscore to th ...

Dumfriesshire Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries () is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the hi ...

, December 1790, and educated at

Dumfries Academy Dumfries Academy is one of four secondary schools in Dumfries in south west Scotland. It is a state funded secondary school for both girls and boys. The schools moto is "doctrina promovet" which translates from Latin to "learning promotes" which ...

and at the

university of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. After becoming a licensed preacher he was for some time engaged in teaching in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

and

North Berwick North Berwick (; ) is a seaside resort, seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable holi ...

. In 1823 he published his first work, the ''Life of the Rev. John Blackadder'', which was followed by the ''Life of Colonel J. Blackadder'', 1824, and ''Memoirs of the Rev. Thomas Scott'', 1825. To ''

Constable's Miscellany ''Constable's Miscellany'' was a part publishing serial established by Archibald Constable. Three numbers made up a volume; many of the works were divided into several volumes. The price of a number was one shilling. The full series title was '' ...

'' he contributed five volumes, viz. ''Converts from Infidelity'', 2 vols. 1827, and a translation of Christoph Wilhelm von Koch's ''Revolutions in Europe'', 3 vols. 1828. In the ''

Edinburgh Cabinet Library The ''Edinburgh Cabinet Library'' was a series of 38 books, mostly geographical, published from 1830 to 1844, and edited by Dionysius Lardner. The original price was 5 shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of ...

'' he wrote the ''History of Arabia'', 2 vols. 1833, and ''Scandinavia, Ancient and Modern'' (written with

Henry Wheaton Henry Wheaton (November 27, 1785 – March 11, 1848) was an American lawyer, jurist and diplomat. He was the third reporter of decisions for the United States Supreme Court, the first U.S. minister to Denmark, and the second U.S. minister to P ...

), 2 vols. 1838. He commenced his connection with the newspaper press in 1828 by editing (at first in conjunction with De Quincey) the '' Edinburgh Evening Post''. In 1830 he conducted the ''

North Briton North Britain is a term which has been used, particularly between the 17th and 19th centuries, for either the northern part of Great Britain or Scotland, which occupies the northernmost third of the island. "North Britains" could also refer to B ...

'', and in 1832 he undertook the editorship of the '' Edinburgh Advertiser'', in which employment he continued till June 1851. He contributed extensively to periodicals, among others to the ''

Westminster Review The ''Westminster Review'' was a quarterly United Kingdom, British publication. Established in 1823 as the official organ of the Philosophical Radicals, it was published from 1824 to 1914. James Mill was one of the driving forces behind the libe ...

'', '' Tait's Edinburgh Magazine'', the ''

Dublin University Magazine The ''Dublin University Magazine'' was an independent literary cultural and political magazine published in Dublin from 1833 to 1882. It started out as a magazine of political commentary but increasingly became devoted to literature. The magazine ...

'', ''

Fraser's Magazine ''Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country'' was a general and literary journal published in London from 1830 to 1882, which initially took a strong Tory line in politics. It was founded by Hugh Fraser and William Maginn in 1830 and loosely direc ...

'', the '' Church Review'', and the '' Church of Scotland Magazine and Review''. In 1837 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 oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, following the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, t ...

conferred on him the degree of

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

. He was a member of the

presbytery of Edinburgh The Presbytery of Edinburgh was one of the Presbyterian polity, presbyteries of the Church of Scotland, being the local presbytery for Edinburgh.Church of Scotland Yearbook, 2010-2011 edition, Its boundary was almost identical to that of the City ...

, being ruling elder of the congregation of

Trinity College Church Trinity College Kirk was a Scottish monarchy, royal collegiate church in Edinburgh, Scotland. The kirk and its adjacent almshouse, Trinity Hospital, were founded in 1460 by Mary of Guelders in memory of her husband, King James II of Sco ...

, and sat in the general assembly of the

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 ...

as elder for the

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

of Cullen for three years previous to his decease. He died at 33 St. Bernard's Crescent, Edinburgh, 9 Jan. 1855. He married first, in July 1835, Isabella Calvert, daughter of James Calvert, LL.D. of Montrose, she died in November 1837; and secondly, December 1844, Jane, daughter of the Rev. John Duguid, minister of Erie and Kendall. He was a good friend of Leitch Ritchie, who was his neighbour at St Bernards Cresecent.

Notes

References

;Attribution

External links

Works by Andrew Crichton at Google Books
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Crichton, Andrew 1790 births 1855 deaths Scottish biographers 19th-century Scottish historians Elders of the Church of Scotland People from Dumfries and Galloway Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of the University of St Andrews