Thomas Marjoribanks (1871–1947) was a Scottish minister 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 ...

and religious author who served as minister of the parish of

Colinton Colinton is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland situated southwest of the city centre. Up until the late 18th century it appears on maps as Collington. It is bordered by Dreghorn to the south and Craiglockhart to the north-east. To the north-w ...

, Edinburgh, Scotland and also served the role as Chief of

Clan Marjoribanks Clan Marjoribanks is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Lowlands. History Origins The story often told of the origins of the surname Marjoribanks, and even supported by respectable authorities, is that Marjorie Bruce, Marjorie, daughter of King ...

Life

He was born on 3 April 1871 the son of George Marjoribanks of

Stenton Stenton () is a parish and village in East Lothian, Scotland. It is bounded on the north by parts of the parishes of Prestonkirk and Dunbar, on the east by Spott and on the west by Whittingehame. The name is said to be of Saxon derivation. T ...

East Lothian East Lothian (; ; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a Counties of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In ...

(1842–1821), and his wife, Elizabeth Leslie (1841–1918). He was educated at Stenton Collegiate College then went to

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the town council under the authority of a royal charter from King James VI in 1582 and offi ...

where he graduated MA in 1891 and BD in 1894. His paternal grandfather was Rev Thomas Marjoribanks (1809–1868) also minister of Stenton. He was a descendent of the family of Sir John Leslie, mathematician and physicist. Thomas (1809–1868), his son Alexander (1840–1923) and his grandson Thomas (1871–1947), were successively Chief of

. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of

Dunbar Dunbar () is a town on the North Sea coast in East Lothian in the south-east of Scotland, approximately east of Edinburgh and from the Anglo–Scottish border, English border north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. Dunbar is a former royal burgh, and ...

in May 1894. His first role was as assistant in West Parish

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

then went to Edinburgh as assistant to Andrew Wallace Williamson at St Cuthbert's church. In December 1898 he was ordained as minister of Houndwood church, Berwickshire before being translated to

Callander Callander (; ) is a small town in the council area of Stirling (district), Stirling in Scotland, situated on the River Teith. The town is located in the historic county of Perthshire and is a popular tourist stop to and from the Highlands. De ...

in February 1903. In November 1910 he moved to the affluent Edinburgh suburb of

as minister of

Colinton Parish Church Colinton Parish Church is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. The church building is located in Dell Road, Colinton, Edinburgh, Scotland next to the Water of Leith. History St Cuthbert's Church, originally called the parish of Hailes, was ...

. He lived there in Colinton manse, a tranquil corner next to the

Water of Leith The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing through central Edinburgh, Scotland, that starts in the Pentlands Hills and flows into the port of Leith and then into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Name The ...

. After he left Colinton Parish in 1930 or 1932 he moved to

Morham Morham, East Lothian, sometimes spelt Moram, Morum, or Morhame in old records, is the smallest (agricultural) parish in Scotland, sandwiched between five other parishes: Haddington, East Lothian, Haddington, Garvald, East Lothian, Garvald, Yester ...

Parish church, East Lothian, where he was minister for eight years before retiring in 1941. He died in

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

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 ...

on 30 January 1947 aged 71.

Family

In January 1907 he married Mary Ord Logan (d 1946) daughter of William Logan of the Madras Civil Service. They had children: George Marjoribanks (1908–1955) later the Reverend George Marjoribanks; William Logan Marjoribanks (1910–1991); James Alexander Milne Marjoribanks (1911–2002) later Sir James Marjoribanks; and Anne Leslie Marjoribanks (1916–2008).

Publications

*Studies in the Life of Our Lord on Earth (1908) *In The Likeness of Men (1909) *The Fulness of the Godhead: Further Studies in the Life of Our Lord (1910) *The Sevenfold I am (1913) He was editor of the church magazine "In Far Fields" for many years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marjoribanks, Thomas 1871 births 1947 deaths Clergy from East Lothian Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 19th-century ministers of the Church of Scotland 19th-century Scottish Presbyterian ministers 20th-century ministers of the Church of Scotland 20th-century Scottish Presbyterian ministers