James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Abercorn

James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Abercorn (c. 1604 – c. 1670) was a Catholic Scottish nobleman. He, his wife, his mother, and most of his family were persecuted by the kirk as recusants. Implementing his father's will, he gave his Irish title of Baron Hamilton of Strabane to his younger brother Claud. His younger brothers inherited his father's Irish lands, while he received the Scottish ones, which he squandered away, being deep in debt in his later days.

James Hamilton
Earl of Abercorn
Reign	1618 – c. 1670
Predecessor	James, 1st Earl of Abercorn
Successor	George, 3rd Earl of Abercorn
Born	c. 1604
Died	c. 1670
Spouse(s)	Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Lennox ​ ( m. 1627)
Detail Issue James, George, and others
Father	James Hamilton
Mother	Marion Boyd

Birth and origins

James was born about 1604,[1][lower-alpha 1] probably in Paisley, Scotland. He was the eldest son of James Hamilton and his wife Marion Boyd.[2] His father was an undertaker in the plantation of Ulster[3] and would be created 1st Earl of Abercorn by James VI and I in 1606. His paternal grandfather was Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord of Paisley. James's mother was the eldest daughter of Thomas Boyd, 6th Lord Boyd of Kilmarnock in Scotland.[4]

Family tree

James Hamilton with wife, parents, and other selected relatives. James 2nd Earl Arran c. 1516 – 1575 Margaret Douglas James 3rd Earl Arran 1537–1609 John 1st Marquess Hamilton 1540–1604 Claud 1st Ld Paisley 1546–1621 Margaret Seton d. 1616 James 1st Earl 1575–1618 Marion Boyd d. 1632 Recusant Claud of Shawfield d. 1614 Frederick 1590–1647 James 2nd Earl d. c. 1670 Katherine C. 2nd Baroness Clifton c. 1590 – 1637 Claud 2nd Baron Hamilton of Strabane d. 1638 George 1st Bt. Donalong c. 1607 – 1679 James Lord Paisley c. 1635 – bef. 1670 George 3rd Earl c. 1636 – bef. 1683 James 3rd Baron H. of Strabane 1633–1655 George 4th Baron H. of Strabane 1636/7 – 1668 James c. 1630 – 1673 Claud 4th Earl 1659–1691 Charles 5th Earl d. 1701 James 6th Earl c. 1661 – 1734 Elizabeth Reading d. 1754 Legend XXX James Hamilton XXX Earls of Abercorn This family tree is partly derived from the Abercorn pedigree pictured in Cokayne.[5] Also see the lists of siblings and children in the text.

He was one of the eight[6] or nine[7] siblings.

James listed among his brothers

He heads the list of his brothers as the eldest: James (c. 1604 – 1670); Claud (died 1638), who established himself in Ireland;[8] William (died 1681), who became Baronet Hamilton of Westport and represented Henrietta Maria, Charles I's widow, at the pope;[9][10][11] George (c. 1607 – 1679), who became Baronet Hamilton of Donalong;[12][13][14][lower-alpha 2] and Alexander (died before 1669), who became the founder of the German branch of the Hamiltons.[15]

James's sisters[lower-alpha 3]
Anne (1592–1620), who married Hugh, 5th Lord Sempill in 1611;[16] Margaret (married 1628), who married William Cunningham of Caprington;[17] Isobel; and Lucy, contracted to Randal MacDonnell, 1st Earl of Antrim who, however, never married her.[18]

His father had been a Protestant, but his mother, Marion Boyd, was a recusant, who brought him, like all his siblings, up as a Catholic. On 10 April 1606 his father was created Earl of Abercorn and Lord Paisley, Hamilton, Mountcastell and Kilpatrick.[19]

Baron Hamilton of Strabane

On 8 May 1617, when he was only about 12 years old, he was created Baron Hamilton of Strabane, in the peerage of Ireland, with remainder to the heirs male of the body of his father.[1] This title refers to the town in County Tyrone, Ulster, where his father had built a castle. The purpose of the creation was to give the family a seat in the Irish House of Lords.

Earl of Abercorn

He succeeded his father as the 2nd Earl of Abercorn in 1618,[20] and his grandfather, Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley, in 1621.[21] Since his father had entailed his Irish lands on his younger brothers, he resigned the title of Baron Hamilton of Strabane on 11 November 1633. Charles I, King of England and Scotland then regranted it to his brother Claud.[22] From his grandfather he inherited the Scottish estates of the family, notably Abercorn and Paisley, including Kilpatrick on the northern bank of the Clyde.

Grand tour

Sometime in the early 1620, Lord Abercorn, as he was now, went to the continent on "his travels" as the Grand Tour was called in his time. He spent several years travelling the continent and visited Catholic countries, France and Italy, which encouraged him in his Catholicism. He returned to Paisley in April 1627.[23]

Marriage and children

In 1627 he married Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Lennox.[lower-alpha 4][lower-alpha 5] He was 22, she was about 34, more than ten years older. She had been married to Lord Esmé Stewart and had had 11 children from him. Her first husband had died in 1624, being the 3rd Duke of Lennox. On November 1632 she obtained a royal license permitting her to retain her precedence as a dowager duchess.[27]

With Abercorn she had three sons but the first two predeceased their father:

1. James (c. 1635 – before 1670), who as the heir apparent held the courtesy title of Lord Paisley but predeceased his father without producing a male heir;[28]
2. William (died before 1670), who became a colonel but predeceased his father unmarried in the German wars;[29] and
3. George (c. 1636 – before 1683), who became the 3rd Earl of Abercorn.[30]

Persecution by the Kirk

Abercorn's problems with the Church of Scotland (the Kirk) began with the process engaged by the Paisley Presbytery against his mother and some of her servants. In June 1626 she fled to James Law, the Archbishop of Glasgow for protection. The Bishop obtained a letter from the King, written by William Alexander, 1st Earl of Stirling that directed the church not to trouble her as long as she kept quiet.[31] However, in April 1627 Abercorn returned from his travels on the continent and provoked the church by declaring himself openly a Catholic.[24] On 20 January 1628 his mother, the Dowager Countess, was excommunicated by the Paisley Synod of the Church of Scotland.[32] He escaped excommunication only by being absent at the royal court in London.[33] His wife similarly was excommunicated on 3 February.[25]

On 26 August 1632 his mother died in Edinburgh.[34] On 21 August 1637 his wife died at Paisley and was buried "without ceremony" on 17 September.[35] Like his mother she was a recusant. As Catholic, she was buried without religious ceremony. Her title as Baroness Clifton passed to James, her eldest son from her first marriage. At that time his father was deep in debt owing more than 400,000 merks (about £20,000 Sterling) to his creditors.[36][37][38][lower-alpha 6]

In 1649 Abercorn himself was excommunicated by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and ordered to leave Scotland.[39]

Heir male of Hamilton

On 11 September 1651, the male line of the dukes of Hamilton failed when William Hamilton, the 2nd Duke died from wounds received at the Battle of Worcester fighting for Charles II against Cromwell. As the Duke had no sons, he was succeeded by his niece Anne Hamilton according to the succession rule of his title. It was found however that James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Abercorn was the male heir, which was thought of no consequence at the time.[40] This status of the Abercorns being heir male later led to a dispute between the houses of Abercorn and Hamilton over the title of Duke of Châtellerault, when this title, which had belonged to James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran, was revived by Napoleon III of France in 1864 in favour of the Duke of Hamilton.[41]

Sale of Paisley

On 22 June 1652 Abercorn sold Paisley to the Earl of Angus for £13,333 6s 8d Scots (about £1100 Sterling).[42][lower-alpha 7] Angus sold it a year later for £160,000[43] to Lord Cochrane,[44] who would later become the 1st Earl of DunDonald. The 8th Earl of Abercorn would buy Paisley back in 1764.[45]

Death, succession, and timeline

Lord Abercorn died about 1670[46] and was succeeded by his son George as the 3rd Earl of Abercorn. George however died unmarried in Padua.[30] The earldom passed to the descendants of Claud Hamilton, 2nd Baron Hamilton of Strabane.

Timeline
As his birth date is uncertain, so are all his ages.
Age	Date	Event
0	1604, about[lower-alpha 1]	Born, probably at Paisley.
2	1606, 10 Apr	Father created Earl of Abercorn.[19]
6	1610, Apr	Father chosen as an undertaker in James's Plantation of Ulster.[3]
13	1617, 8 May	Created Baron Hamilton of Strabane.[1]
14	1618, 23 Mar	Father died in Monkton, Ayrshire, Scotland.[20]
17	1621	Grandfather died.[21]
21	1625, 27 Mar	Accession of King Charles I, replacing King James I.[47]
23	1627, Apr	Returned from his travels.[23]
23	1627	Married Katherine Clifton.[26]
24	1628, 20 Jan	His mother, the Dowager Countess, excommunicated in Paisley Abbey Church.[32]
24	1628, 3 Feb	His wife, the Countess, excommunicated in Paisley Abbey Church.[25]
28	1632, 26 Aug	His mother died in Edinburgh.[34]
29	1633, 11 Nov	Resigned his Irish Peerage in favour of his younger brother Claud.[22]
33	1637, 21 Aug	Wife died at Paisley.[35]
45	1649, 30 Jan	King Charles I beheaded.[48]
45	1649	Excommunicated and ordered to leave Scotland.[39]
47	1651, 11 Sep	Became heir male of the Hamiltons.
48	1652, 22 Jun	Sold Paisley.[42]
56	1660, 29 May	Restoration of King Charles II.[49]
66	1670, about	Died.[46]

Notes and references

1. His birth date is derived from Cokayne's statement that "he [James Hamilton], though only about 13 years of age, was, on 8 May 1617 ...",[1] which allows to calculate his approximate year of birth as 1604.
2. The baronetcy is in the baronetage of Ireland according to Millar (1890)[12] and to Burke, 31st (1869)[13] but in the baronetage of Scotland according to Burke, 99th (1949)[14] edition of Burke's Peerage.
3. There were four sisters according to Millar (1890)[7]
4. The date is constrained by his return from his travels in April 1627[24] and his wife's excommunication on 3 February 1628.[25]
5. Cokayne (1910) places the marriage "about 1632.[26]
6. The merk was worth 13s 4d or 2/3 of a £ Scots.[37] As there were 12 £ Scots to the £ Sterling,[38] the merk was worth about 1 English Shilling.
7. During the reign of James I, the £ Sterling was 12 £ Scots.[38]

1. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 7: "In the lifetime of his father and grandfather, he, though only about 13 years of age, was, on 8 May 1617 (...) cr. LORD HAMILTON, BARON OF STRABANE, co. Tyrone (I.), with rem. to the heirs male of the body of his father."
2. Millar 1890, p. 177, left column, line 22"Abercorn married Marion, eldest daughter of Thomas, fifth Lord Boyd ..."
3. Masson 1889, p. lxxx: "Undertakers for 3000 acres each: ... James Hamilton, Earl of Abercorn (in County Tyrone) ...
4. Burke 1869, p. 2, right column: "He [James Hamilton, 1st Earl] m. Marion eldest dau. of Thomas, 5th Lord Boyd, and dying vita patris, 16 March 1617, left issue ..."
5. Cokayne 1910, p. 4: "Tabular pedigree of the Earls of Abercorn"
6. Burke 1869, p. 2, right column, lines 57The list starts with James, 2nd Earl, and ends with Lucy on page 3, left column, line 39. It is interrupted by the indented list of Sir George's children.
7. Millar 1890, p. 177, left column, line 23"... by whom [Marion] he had five sons and four daughters."
8. Paul 1904, p. 50, line 7: "Dying 14 June 1638, he [Claude Hamilton] was buried in the church of Leckpatrick, County Tyrone."
9. Millar 1890, p. 177, line 32: "Sir William, the third son, represented Henrietta Maria, when queen dowager, at the papal court."
10. Burke 1869, p. 2, right column, line 80: "William (Sir), m. Jane dau. of Alexander Colquhoun, Laird of Luss, and widow of Alan, Lord Cathcart, but left no issue."
11. Paul 1904, p. 47: "Sir William died at South Shields, 25 June 1681"
12. Millar 1890, p. 177, left column, line 48: "On the Restoration he returned to England, was created a baronet of Ireland in 1660, and received other grants from Charles II in recompense for his services."
13. Burke 1869, p. 2, right column, bottom: "George (Sir) of Donalong, co. Tyrone, and Nenagh, co. Tipperary, created a baronet of Ireland, in 1660, for his services to the royal cause."
14. Burke 1949, p. 3, right column, line 1: "George (Sir) of Donalong, co. Tyrone, and Nenagh, co. Tipperary, created a baronet of Scotland, about 1660;"
15. Paul 1904, p. 47, line 28: "Sir Alexander Hamilton of Holborn, London married Elizabeth ..."
16. Paul 1910, p. 555: "He [Hugh Sempill] married in 1611 (...) first Anne Hamilton, eldest daughter of James, 1st Earl of Abercorn."
17. Paul 1904, p. 48, line 9: "Margaret, married 1628 to Sir William Cunningham of Caprington in the County of Ayr ..."
18. Paul 1904, p. 48, line 15: "Lucy or Lucrece, contracted by her father when very young to Randal, Lord Dunluce, afterward Marquess of Antrim, but he not abiding the contract ..."
19. Cokayne 1910, p. 2, line 11: "On 10 July 1606, he was cr. EARL OF ABERCORN, LORD PAISLEY, HAMILTON, MOUNTCASTELL, and KILPATRICK [S.] to him and his heirs male whatsoever."
20. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 1: "He [James Hamilton, the 1st Earl] d. v.p. at Monkton 23 Mar. and was bur. 29 Ap. 1618 in the Abbey Church, Paisley, aged 43."
21. Holmes 2004, p. 778, right column: "Lord Claud lived in retirement for over twenty years, dying in 1621, and was buried in Paisley Abbey"
22. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 13: "On 11 Nov. 1633 he resigned his Irish Peerage in favour of his yr. br., Claud Hamilton, on whom the Irish estates were settled."
23. Metcalfe 1909, p. 236: "... but in April 1627, her son the Earl had returned and had openly declared himself a Catholic ..."
24. Metcalfe 1909, p. 236, line 16: "... but in April 1627, her son the Earl had returned and had openly declared himself a Catholic ..."
25. Metcalfe 1909, p. 236, line 33: "On February 3 the Countess was excommunicated."
26. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 20: "He m. about 1632, Catherine, Dowager Duchess of LENNOX da. and h. of Gervase (CLIFTON) LORD CLIFTON OF LEIGHTON BROMSWOLD, by Catherine dau. and h. of Sir Henry Darcy of Leighton afsd."
27. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 23: "... who by Royal Lic., 28 Nov 1632, was entitled, nonwith standing her marriage, to retain her title, rank and precedency as DUCHESS OF LENNOX [S.]"
28. Paul 1904, p. 49, line 21: "James ... who died before his father ... had only a daughter."
29. Paul 1904, p. 49, line 30: "William ... died before his father, being killed in the wars in Germany, without issue."
30. Paul 1904, p. 49, line 34: "GEORGE, third Earl of Abercorn, succeeded his father but died unmarried in Padua ..."
31. Stirling 1885, p. 70: "A Letter from Sir William Alexander to the Archbishop of Glasgow by his Majesteis Directions [16 August 1626]. Most reverend father in God, and my verie good Lord – Thogh the earle of Abercorne in the tyme of his travells abroad, being a young man, hath beene seduced to the Romish religion, yet his Majestie hath conceaved so good ane opinion of his disposition ytherwyse, that he thinks he may be reclaymed be fair meanes; and therfor is is his Majestie's pleasur, so long as he by his cariage giveth no publict scandell, that yow suffer none to trouble him ..."
32. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 3: "His widow, a prominent Rom. Cath., who was excommunicated in the kirk of paisley on 20 Jan. 1628 ..."
33. Metcalfe 1909, p. 236, line 28: "In November, 1627, they were reported to the synod and on January 20, 1628, sentence of excommunication was pronounced against the Dowager Countess, and would have been against the Earl but he 'had taken a journey to the Court for his necessary and lawful business.'"
34. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 4: "[Marion Boyd] d. in the Canongate, Edinburgh, 26 Aug., and was bur. 13 Sep. 1632 with her husband."
35. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 25: "[she] d. in Scotland and was bur. 'without ceremony' 17 Sep 1637, aged about 45."
36. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 26a: "He was then [about 1640] living, but 'more than 400,000 merks in debt'."
37. Meikle 2015, p. xi: "The Scots merk was worth 13s 4d."
38. Meikle 2015, p. 60: "... after the union of the crowns in 1603 ... the Scots pound was set at a fixed rate of twelve to every English pound sterling."
39. Metcalfe 1909, p. 250, line 7: "At length, in 1649, the General Assembly, which, as we have seen, had long since taken the case out of the hands of the Presbytery, pronounced the sentence of excommunication and banishment against him."
40. Paul 1904, p. 49, line 6: "On the death of William, 2nd Duke of Hamilton, of his wounds on the battle of Worcester, 11 September 1651, his Lordship became male representative of the family of Hamilton, but the estates and titles of that house evolved on Anne, Duchess of Hamilton."
41. Picamilh 1874, p. 234: "Maintien et confirmation du titre de duc de Châtellerault en faveur du duc d'Hamilton (D. 20 avril 1864, s. XI, b. 1234, t. XXIV, p260)"
42. Metcalfe 1909, p. 310, line 6: "On June 22, 1652, the Earl of Abercorn signed a disposition, by which, for the sum of £13,333 6s 8p. Scots, he sold to the Earl of Angus 'the Lordship and barony of Paisley, comprehending ..."
43. Paul 1904, p. 65, line 27: "William, Earl of Dundonald, had bought it in 1653 for £160,000 Scots from Archibald, Earl of Angus ..."
44. Metcalfe 1909, p. 310, line 13: "The following year, August 3, 1653, the Earl of Angus parted with his purchase to William, Lord Cochrane of DunDonald ..."
45. Paul 1904, p. 65, line 24: "In 1764 he acquired the paternal inheritance of his ancestors, the lordship of Paisley, in the county of Renfrew ..."
46. Cokayne 1910, p. 3, line 26b: "He [the 2nd Earl] died about 1670."
47. Smyth 1839, p. xiii, line 18: "Charles I. . [Accession] 27 March, 1625"
48. Burke 1949, p. cclxvii, line 9: "… after the decapitation of CHARLES I at Whitehall, 30 Jan. 1649 ..."
49. Seaward 2004, p. 127, right column: "… he sailed to England and on 29 May [1660] he entered London in triumph."

• Burke, Bernard (1869), A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire (31st ed.), London: Harrison
• Burke, Bernard (1949), A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire (99th ed.), London: Burke's Peerage Ltd.
• Cokayne, George Edward (1910), Gibbs, Vicary (ed.), The complete peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, extant, extinct, or dormant, 1 (2nd ed.), London: St Catherine Press – Ab-Adam to Basing (for Abercorn)
• Holmes, Peter (2004), "Hamilton, Claud, first Lord Paisley (1546?–1621)", in Matthew, Colin; Harrison, Brian (eds.), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, 24, New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 776–778, ISBN 0-19-861374-1
• Masson, David, ed. (1889), Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, 9, Edinburgh: H. M. General Register House - 1610–1613
• Meikle, Maureen M. (2015), The Scottish People 1490–1625, Morrisville, N. C.: Lulu.com, ISBN 978-1-291-51800-9
• Metcalfe, William Musham (1909), A History of Paisley, Paisley: Alexander Gardner
• Millar, Alexander Hastie (1890), "Hamilton, James, first Earl of Abercorn (d.1617)", in Lee, Sidney (ed.), Dictionary of National Biography, 24, New York: MacMillan and Co., pp. 176–177
• Paul, James Balfour (1904), The Scots Peerage, 1, Edinburgh: David Douglas – Abercorn to Balmerino (for Abercorn)
• Paul, James Balfour (1910), The Scots Peerage, 7, Edinburgh: David Douglas – Panmure to Sinclair (for Sempill)
• Picamilh, Charles de (1874), Table décennale du bulletin des lois, partie principale, depuis le 1er janvier 1864 jusqu'au 31 décembre 1873 (in French), Paris: Imprimerie Nationale
• Seaward, Paul (2004), "Charles II", in Matthew, Henry Colin Gray.; Harrison, Brian (eds.), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, 11, New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 122–145, ISBN 0-19-861361-X
• Smyth, Constantine (1839), Chronicle of the Law Officers of Ireland, London: Henry Butterworth (table of reigns)
• Stirling, The Earl of, ed. (1885), The Earl of Stirling's Register of Royal Letters Relative to the Affairs of Scotland and Nova Scotia from 1615 to 1635, 1, Edinburgh: Burness & Company

Further reading

• Mac Cuarta, Brian (2015), "Scots Catholics in Ulster", in Edwards, David (ed.), The Scots in Early Stuart Ireland, Manchester: Manchester University Press – Can be paged and searched but lacks page numbers.

External links

• Genealogy of James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Abercorn on The Peerage website

Peerage of Scotland
Preceded by James Hamilton	Earl of Abercorn 1618 – c. 1670	Succeeded by George Hamilton
Preceded by Claud Hamilton	Lord Paisley 1621 – c. 1670
Peerage of Ireland
New creation	Baron Hamilton of Strabane 1617–1633	Succeeded by Claud Hamilton