George Ferguson (April 1788 – 15 March 1867) was a Scottish officer of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. He served during the French Revolutionary and

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

, and rose to the rank of

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

. He was also a

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

from 1832 to 1837. He was the fifth

laird Laird () is a Scottish word for minor lord (or landlord) and is a designation that applies to an owner of a large, long-established Scotland, Scottish estate. In the traditional Scottish order of precedence, a laird ranked below a Baronage of ...

of Pitfour in

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

from 1821 until his death in 1867.

Family

Ferguson was the illegitimate son of George Ferguson (1748–1820) the fourth Laird of Pitfour, a large estate in the

Buchan Buchan is a coastal district in the north-east of Scotland, bounded by the Ythan and Deveron rivers. It was one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It is now one of the six committee areas of Aberdeenshire. Etymology The ge ...

area of north east Scotland. His father was usually referred to as "the Governor" and Ferguson inherited the sizeable estate, money and also property in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

and

Tobago Tobago, officially the Ward of Tobago, is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger islan ...

. As he shared the same name as his father, to help differentiate the two, he is generally known as the "Sailor" or the "Admiral", an acknowledgement of his naval career. Ferguson was the fifth laird of Pitfour and held the title from 1821 until 1867. He enjoyed a lavish lifestyle and squandered much of his inheritance gambling. In 1812 he married the heiress Elizabeth Holcombe and received an annuity from her wealthy father, John Woodhouse of Aramstone in Hereford. She died a few weeks after giving birth to their only child, a daughter, in early 1814. His second marriage was on 7 April 1825. This was to Elizabeth Jane Rowley, the eldest daughter of

Clotworthy Rowley, 1st Baron Langford Clotworthy Rowley, 1st Baron Langford (31 October 1763 – 13 September 1825), known as Hon. Clotworthy Taylor until 1796 and as Hon. Clotworthy Rowley from 1796 to 1800, was an Irish peer. Langford was the fourth son of Thomas Taylor, 1 ...

and a niece of the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

. The couple had five children: four daughters – Frances Harriet, Georgina Harriet, Elizabeth Ann and Emily Ann – and a son, George Arthur.

Career

In 1798, aged ten, Ferguson volunteered to join the navy but never actually served on . He was

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

on , a 38-gun frigate before continuing his career on HMS ''Loire''. At 17 years of age he was promoted to lieutenant. He continued to rise through the ranks until he left the service in September 1815, at age 27. In November 1811, Ferguson was commander of the sloop . Together with , the ''Pylades'' had towed two damaged ships to

Peterhead Peterhead (; , ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is the council area's largest settlement, with a population of 19,060 at the 2022 Census for Scotland, 2022 Census. It is the largest fishing port in the United Kingdom for total landi ...

harbour. Ferguson then went to visit his father at Pitfour. However, early the next morning while Ferguson was still ashore, the ''Pylades'' broke anchor and was grounded on rocks. Local inhabitants helped throw all the guns overboard and cut away the mast, which successfully re-floated it. The

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

refused Ferguson's request for a

court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...

to clear his name. Ferguson went back to sea after his first wife died shortly after giving birth in spring of 1814 and served on . He rose to the rank of

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

in 1849,

vice-admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

at the beginning of 1856 and

in February 1861 by which time he was 72 years of age. Electoral reforms were scheduled to be enacted in 1832; Ferguson sought election for the Banffshire constituency in 1831 when only landowners were eligible. The seat was, however, retained by the sitting candidate. At the 1832 general election Ferguson was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for

Banffshire Banffshire (; ; ) is a historic county in Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. The historic county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since 1996 the area has been spli ...

. He held the seat until 1837. According to the '' Legacies of British Slave-Ownership'' at the

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, Ferguson was awarded a payment as a slave trader in the aftermath of the

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which abolished slavery in the British Empire by way of compensated emancipation. The act was legislated by Whig Prime Minister Charl ...

with the

Slave Compensation Act 1837 The Slave Compensation Act 1837 ( 1 & 2 Vict. c. 3) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, signed into law on 23 December 1837. Together with the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 73), it authorized the Commissione ...

. The British Government took out a £15 million loan (worth £ in ) with interest from

Nathan Mayer Rothschild Nathan Mayer Rothschild (16 September 1777 – 28 July 1836), also known as Baron Nathan Mayer Rothschild, was a British-German banker, businessman and finance, financier. Born in Free City of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, he was the third of ...

and

Moses Montefiore Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1784 – 28 July 1885) was a British financier and banker, activist, Philanthropy, philanthropist and Sheriffs of the City of London, Sheriff of London. Born to an History ...

which was subsequently paid off by the British taxpayers (ending in 2015). Ferguson was associated with "T71/891 Tobago no. 67", he owned 299 slaves in

and received a £5,724 payment at the time (worth £ in ). Retrieved on 20 March 2019.

Death and legacy

Ferguson died in March 1867 at 37 Charles Street, in

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Kent, ...

, London, a mansion he had purchased from the

Marquess of Bute Marquess of the County of Bute, shortened in general usage to Marquess of Bute, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1796 for John Stuart, 4th Earl of Bute. Family history John Stuart was the member of a family that ...

a number of years earlier despite his financial difficulties. He is buried in a family vault at

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of North Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in P ...

. His second wife and two unmarried daughters are also buried there. His estate passed to his son, George Arthur.

References

Footnotes Bibliography * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, George Military personnel from Edinburgh Royal Navy admirals Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 Tory MPs (pre-1834) Scottish Tory MPs (pre-1912) 1788 births 1867 deaths Lairds Scottish slave owners Recipients of payments from the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery 19th-century British businesspeople