The title Earl of Kellie or Kelly is a

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

in the

Peerage of Scotland The Peerage of Scotland (; ) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union 1707, Treaty of Union, the Kingdom of Scots and the ...

, created in 1619 for Sir Thomas Erskine, who was

Captain of the Guard The Captain of the Guard is a position for a military force. It is also a position within jail and prison staffing. Uses Military use A Captain of the Guard is the commanding position of a military security force. The position of Captain of the ...

and

Groom of the Stool The Groom of the Stool (formally styled: "Groom of the King's Close Stool") was the most intimate of an English monarch's courtiers, initially responsible for assisting the king in excretion and hygiene. The physical intimacy of the role natur ...

for

James VI James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

. It is named after Barony of Kellie 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 ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Since 1875, it has been held jointly with the

Earldom of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. Th ...

(1565 creation). The family seat is Hilton Farm, near

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 ...

Clackmannanshire Clackmannanshire (; ; ), or the County of Clackmannan, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, Council areas of Scotland, council area, registration counties, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland ...

History

The Earldom of Kellie was united with the Earldom of Mar in 1835, when the 26th

Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. Th ...

became also the 11th Earl of Kellie. At the death of that Earl in 1866, the Earldom of Kellie and the family's estates passed to Walter Erskine, the cousin of the late Earl, and his heir-male. Meanwhile, it was assumed that the Earldom of Mar passed to John Francis Goodeve, the late Earl's nephew, and his heir-general. Goodeve changed his name to Goodeve Erskine; his claim was agreed upon by most individuals. He even participated in the election of

Scottish representative peer This is a list of representative peers elected from the Peerage of Scotland to sit in the House of Lords after the Acts of Union 1707 abolished the unicameral Parliament of Scotland, where all Scottish Peers had been entit ...

s for the Peerage of Scotland. However, the Earl of Kellie submitted a petition to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

asking that the Earldom of Mar be declared his, dying before it could be considered. His son, the 13th Earl of Kellie, renewed the petition, and the Lords decided the matter in 1875, determining that the Earldom of Mar properly belonged to the Earl of Kellie. However, due to a sentiment that the Lords had decided wrongly, the ''Earldom of Mar Restitution Act'' was passed. That Act declared that there were ''two'' Earldoms of Mar — one that would belong to the Earl of Kellie, and another that would belong to John Goodeve Erskine. The subsidiary titles belonging to the Earl of Mar and Kellie are: ''Viscount of Fentoun'' or Fenton (created 1606), ''

Lord Erskine The Lordship of Parliament of Erskine (Lord Erskine) was created around 1426 for Sir Robert Erskine. The sixth lord was created Earl of Mar in 1565, with which title (and the earldom of Kellie) the lordship then merged. Lords Erskine (c. 1426) * ...

'' (1429) and ''Lord Erskine of Dirleton'' (1603), the former of which is used as a

courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but is rather used by custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some context ...

for the eldest son and heir of the Earl. Both titles are in the Peerage of Scotland. The Earl is Hereditary Keeper of

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland. The castle sits atop an Intrusive rock, intrusive Crag and tail, crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill ge ...

. The family seat was

Kellie Castle Kellie Castle is a castle just outside Arncroach and below the dominant hill in the area, Kellie Law. It is about 4 kilometres north of Pittenweem in the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. Early history The earliest records of Kellie go back to ...

, near

Pittenweem Pittenweem ( ) is a fishing village and civil parish in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 1,747. Etymology The name derives from Pictish and Scottish Gaelic. "Pit-" represents Pictish ''pett'' 'pl ...

Earls of Kellie (1619)

: Also Viscount Fentoun (1606) and

Lord Erskine of Dirleton The title Earl of Kellie or Kelly is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1619 for Sir Thomas Erskine, who was Captain of the Guard and Groom of the Stool for James VI. It is named after Barony of Kellie in Fife, Scotland. Since 1875, it ...

(1603) * Sir Thomas Erskine (1566–1639), 1st Earl of Kellie, 1st Viscount Fentoun, 1st Lord Erskine of Dirleton * Thomas Erskine (), 2nd Earl of Kellie, 2nd Viscount Fentoun, 2nd Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's grandson) * Alexander Erskine (), 3rd Earl of Kellie, 3rd Viscount Fentoun, 3rd Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's brother) * Alexander Erskine (), 4th Earl of Kellie, 4th Viscount Fentoun, 4th Lord Erskine of Dirleton * Alexander Erskine (), 5th Earl of Kellie, 5th Viscount Fentoun, 5th Lord Erskine of Dirleton * Thomas Alexander Erskine (1732–1781), 6th Earl of Kellie, 6th Viscount Fentoun, 6th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's son) * Archibald Erskine (1736–1795), 7th Earl of Kellie, 7th Viscount Fentoun, 7th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's brother) * Charles Erskine (1765–1799), 8th Earl of Kellie, 8th Viscount Fentoun, 8th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's third cousin once removed). In 1791 he succeeded to the Erskine of Cambo Baronetcy which merged with the Earldom until its extinction in 1829. * Thomas Erskine (–1828), 9th Earl of Kellie, 9th Viscount Fentoun, 9th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's brother) * Methven Erskine (–1829), 10th Earl of Kellie, 10th Viscount Fentoun, 10th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's uncle) * John Francis Miller Erskine (1795–1866), 11th Earl of Kellie, 11th Viscount Fentoun, 11th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (succeeded to Earldom of Kellie 1829, confirmed 9th/26th

1835) * Walter Coningsby Erskine (1810–1872), 12th Earl of Kellie, 12th Viscount Fentoun, 12th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (recognized posthumously as 10th Earl of Mar) * Walter Henry Erskine (1839–1888), 13th Earl of Kellie, 13th Viscount Fentoun, 13th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's son). Recognised 11th Earl of Mar 1875) * Walter John Francis Erskine (1865–1955), 12th Earl of Mar, 14th Earl of Kellie, 14th Viscount Fentoun, 14th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's son) * John Francis Hervey Erskine (1921–1993), 13th Earl of Mar, 15th Earl of Kellie, 15th Viscount Fentoun, 15th Lord Erskine of Dirleton (predecessor's grandson) * James Thorne Erskine (), 14th Earl of Mar, 16th Earl of Kellie, 16th Viscount Fentoun, 16th Lord Erskine of Dirleton, 16th Lord Erskine of Dirleton, Baron Erskine of Alloa Tower (

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

) The

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

is the present holder's brother Alexander David Erskine, Master of Mar and Kellie (). The heir presumptive's

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

is his only son Alexander Capel Erskine ().

Family tree

References

External links

*
''The Great Historic Families of Scotland — The Erskines of Kellie'' (1887)
by

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. Taylor achieved his breakthrough in 1970 with the single "Fi ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kellie Earldoms in the Peerage of Scotland Fife Lists of Scottish people

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

Noble titles created in 1619

History

Earls of Kellie (1619)

Family tree

See also

References

External links