James Sievewright
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James Sievewright (1783–1852) was a Scottish minister of the Free Church of Scotland and who served as
Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the Chair (official), chairperson of a General Assembly (presbyterian church), General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Calvinism, Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbytery (church pol ...
1847/48.


Life

He was born the third son of James Sievewright at Drumdelgie in the parish of
Cairnie Cairnie, also written Cairney, () is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is in the district of Huntly Huntly ( or ''Hunndaidh'') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, formerly known as Milton of Strathbogie or simply Strathbogie. It h ...
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 ...
and was baptised on 19 March 1783. He graduated MA from
Marischal College, Aberdeen Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has been the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. The building was constructed for and is on long-term lease fr ...
in April 1807 and became tutor to the children of Rev Dr Alexander Stewart of
Dingwall Dingwall (, ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest castle north ...
. He was licensed to preach by the Church of Scotland's Presbytery in
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in 1812. In 1815 he was ordained by 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 ...
at
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in the north of England. He must have been well-connected as he was presented to the church by his patron, George the Prince Regent (later known as King George IV). In 1818 he translated to St Drostan's in
Markinch Markinch (, Scottish Gaelic: Marc Innis) is both a village and a parish in the heart of Fife, Scotland. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the village has a population of 2,420. The civil parish had a population of 16,530 (in 2011).Census ...
in
Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...
and remained there for the rest of his life. He added a clock to the spire in 1839. In the
Disruption of 1843 The Disruption of 1843, also known as the Great Disruption, was a schism in 1843 in which 450 evangelical ministers broke away from the Church of Scotland to form the Free Church of Scotland. The main conflict was over whether the Church of Sc ...
he (and a large part of his congregation) left the established church and joined the Free Church of Scotland. The new church, designed by Robert Hutchison who specialised in churches and schools, was built in 1844 and was known as the Brunton Church. It was paid for by Mrs Paxton and Miss Arthur, both of Markinch. A new manse was also built. In 1847 he succeeded Rev Robert James Brown as
Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the Chair (official), chairperson of a General Assembly (presbyterian church), General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Calvinism, Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbytery (church pol ...
, the highest position within the Free Church. He was succeeded in turn in 1848 by Rev
Patrick Clason Patrick Clason (13 October 1789 – 30 July 1867) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly to the Free Church of Scotland in 1848/49. Life He was born on 13 October 1789 in the manse at Dalziel near the Rive ...
. He died in Markinch on 29 November 1852 and was buried in Markinch parish churchyard (his original church). His position was filled there by Rev Ninian Jamieson. The Brunton Church transferred to the
United Free Church of Scotland The United Free Church of Scotland (UF Church; , ) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (or UP) and the Free Church of Scotland (1843–1900), majority of the 19th-cen ...
in the Union of 1900. It was renamed St Marks in 1929 and converted to flats in 1994.


Family

In June 1815 he married Jessie Mellis (1795-1864). She died at 4 Findhorn Place in Edinburgh.Edinburgh Post Office directory 1864 Her brother David Barclay Mellis (1800-1861) was also a Free Church minister.


Publications

*''Five Occasional Sermons'' (1816) *''Memoirs of Rev Alexander Stewart DD'' (1822) *''Thoughts on Sanctification'' (1825) *''Sermons'' (1826) *''A Protestor's Apology for Quitting the Established Church'' (1843) *''Memorials of a Ministry'' (1856 - posthumous)


References


Citations


Sources

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See also

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sievewright, James 1783 births 1852 deaths Clergy from Aberdeenshire Alumni of the University of Aberdeen 19th-century ministers of the Free Church of Scotland 19th-century Scottish Presbyterian ministers