Sir Alexander Seton, 1st Viscount of Kingston (13 March 1620 – 21 October 1691), a

Cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

, was the first dignity Charles II conferred as King.

Family

Alexander was the son of

George Seton, 3rd Earl of Winton George Seton, 3rd Earl of Winton (December 1584 – 17 December 1650) was a notable Royalist and Cavalier, the second son of Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton and 6th Lord Seton, by his spouse Margaret, daughter of Hugh Montgomerie, 3rd Earl of Egl ...

(1584–1650) by Anna Hay, daughter to

Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll (30 April 156416 July 1631) was a Scottish nobleman. A convert to Catholicism, he openly conspired with the king of Spain to try to unseat the Protestant Queen Elizabeth. Biography He was the son of Andrew Hay, ...

(d.1631).

Child Knight

At the early age of twelve, he received King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

on a visit to Seton Palace, delivering himself of a Latin oration at the iron gates of the palace in the presence of His Majesty. There and then the King conferred upon him the honour of knighthood, remarking as he did so: "Now, Sir Alexander, see that this does not spoil your school; by the appearance you will be a scholar."

Excommunication

After extensive travels in foreign lands Sir Alexander came home in 1640. But, refusing to sign the Covenant in 1643, he was excommunicated in

Tranent Tranent is a town in East Lothian (formerly Haddingtonshire), in the south-east of Scotland. The town lies 6 miles from the boundary of Edinburgh, and 9.1 miles from the city centre. It lies beside the A1 road, the A1 runs through the parish ...

Church, and had to flee to France.

Cavalier

Upon returning he was entrusted with important State business by King Charles II, who created him Viscount of Kingston on 14 February 1651 with limitation to the heirs male of his body. His title was taken from a village of that name in

Dirleton Dirleton is a village and civil parish in East Lothian, Scotland approximately east of Edinburgh on the A198. It contains . Dirleton lies between North Berwick (east), Gullane (west), Fenton Barns (south) and the Yellowcraigs nature reserve, ...

parish, about two miles south-west of

North Berwick North Berwick (; gd, Bearaig a Tuath) is a seaside town A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on th ...

. On the day of his creation, Sir Alexander was, with a gallant little garrison, defending

Tantallon Castle Tantallon Castle is a ruined mid-14th-century fortress, located east of North Berwick, in East Lothian, Scotland. It sits atop a promontory opposite the Bass Rock, looking out onto the Firth of Forth. The last medieval curtain wall castle to ...

against

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

who had laid siege to it. Following twelve days and a "battering with grate canon" the defenders were compelled to surrender, but only after quarter had been granted to them in recognition of their bravery. In 1668 Lord Kingston was appointed, by the King, commander of the Haddingtonshire Militia.

Marriages

Lord Kingston married four times. Firstly to Jean Fletcher (d. August 1651), only daughter of Sir George Fletcher, Gentleman of the Privy Chamber in Ordinary to King Charles I, and brother of Sir

Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun (1655 – September 1716) was a Scottish writer and politician, remembered as an advocate for the non-incorporation of Scotland, and an opponent of the 1707 Act of Union between Scotland and England. Fletcher became ...

, a senator of the

College of Justice The College of Justice includes the Supreme Courts of Scotland, and its associated bodies. The constituent bodies of the national supreme courts are the Court of Session, the High Court of Justiciary, the Office of the Accountant of Court, an ...

, and had issue: *Ann, born at Seton House on 24 April 1651, who married

James Douglas, 3rd Lord Mordington James Douglas, 3rd Lord Mordington (born 1651), succeeded his father William Douglas, 2nd Lord Mordington, It is recorded in ''The Great Seal of Scotland'' (charter number 294) confirmed at Edinburgh on 2 August 1662, that James Douglas, Master o ...

(b.1651). Kingston married secondly Elizabeth Douglas (30 May 1632, Stoneypath Tower, near Garvald, - Wednesday 21 October 1668, Whittingehame) sister and heir of Archibald Douglas of Whittingehame, and had issue: *Charles Seton, Master of Kingston (1653-1682) *George Seton (1654-1678) *Alexander Seton (1655-1676) *

Archibald Seton, 2nd Viscount of Kingston Archibald is a masculine given name, composed of the Germanic elements '' erchan'' (with an original meaning of "genuine" or "precious") and '' bald'' meaning "bold". Medieval forms include Old High German and Anglo-Saxon . Erkanbald, bishop o ...

*Arthur Seton (1665-1691), died two days after his father. *John Seton (1666-1674) *

James Seton, 3rd Viscount of Kingston James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

*Isobel Seton (1656-1674) *Barbara Seton (1659-1679) *Elizabeth Seton (b.1668), married in 1695 to William Hay of

Duns, Scottish Borders Duns is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was the county town of the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Berwickshire. History Early history Duns Law, the original site of the town of Duns, has the remains of an Iron Age hillfor ...

and

Drumelzier Drumelzier (), is a village and civil parish on the B712 in the Tweed Valley in the Scottish Borders. The area of the village is extensive and includes the settlements of Wrae, Stanhope, Mossfennan and Kingledoors. To the north is Broughton an ...

Following the death of Elizabeth Douglas, Kingston married Elizabeth Hamilton, daughter of

John Hamilton, 1st Lord Belhaven and Stenton John Hamilton, 1st Lord Belhaven and Stenton (died 17 June 1679), known as Sir John Hamilton, 2nd Baronet from circa 1645 to 1647, was a Scottish peer. Hamilton was the son of Sir James Hamilton, 1st Baronet, and his wife Margaret (née Hamilton) ...

. Following her death he married fourthly, Lady Margaret Douglas, daughter of

Archibald Douglas, 1st Earl of Ormond Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus, 1st Earl of Ormond (1609–1655) was the eldest son of William Douglas, 1st Marquis of Douglas, from whom he obtained the courtesy title of Earl of Angus.Vian in the DNB spells the title Earl of Ormonde. Lee in ...

. He had no issue by his last two wives.

Burial

Lord Kingston was buried on 25 October 1691, within the parish church of

Whittingehame Whittingehame is a parish with a small village in East Lothian, Scotland, about halfway between Haddington and Dunbar, and near East Linton. The area is on the slopes of the Lammermuir Hills. Whittingehame Tower dates from the 15th century an ...

Haddingtonshire East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the histo ...

Works

Kingston wrote a continuation of his family history which was begun a century earlier by Sir

Richard Maitland Sir Richard Maitland of Lethington and Thirlstane (1496 – 1 August 1586) was a Senator of the College of Justice, an Ordinary Lord of Session from 1561 until 1584, and notable Scottish poet. He was served heir to his father, Sir William Maitl ...

; * Maitland, Richard, and Seton, Alexander
''The History of the House of Seytoun to 1559 by Sir Richard Maitland of Lethington continued by Alexnder Viscount Kingston'', Maitland Club (1829)

References

* ''The House & Surname of Setoun'', by Sir

, et al., reprinted 1830. * ''

The Scots Peerage ''The Scots Peerage'' is a nine-volume book series of the Scottish nobility compiled and edited by Sir James Balfour Paul, published in Edinburgh from 1904 to 1914. The full title is ''The Scots Peerage: Founded on Wood's Edition of Sir Robert ...

'' by Sir

James Balfour Paul Sir James Balfour Paul (16 November 1846 – 15 September 1931) was the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the officer responsible for heraldry in Scotland, from 1890 until the end of 1926. Life Paul was born in Edinburgh, the second son of the Rev J ...

, under 'Seton, Viscount of Kingston', page 196. * ''The Seven Ages of an East Lothian Parish - Whittingehame'', by the Reverend Marshall . Lang, T.D., Edinburgh, 1929, pps: 142–146. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kingston 1620 births 1691 deaths People excommunicated by Christian churches Scottish knights Scottish soldiers Viscounts in the Peerage of Scotland Peers of Scotland created by Charles II Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber Younger sons of earls

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...