The Right Hon. Andrew Rutherfurd, Lord Rutherfurd, (born Andrew Greenfield; 21 June 1791 – 13 December 1854) was a Scottish advocate, judge and politician.

Early life

Rutherfurd was born at Bristo Port (near

Greyfriars Kirkyard Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century, and a num ...

) in Edinburgh on 21 June 1791 to Janet Rutherfurd Bervie, and Reverend William Greenfield. In 1799, after his father was disgraced in a sex scandal, the family changed their name to Rutherfurd, his maternal grandmother's maiden name. His main house was

Lauriston Castle Lauriston Castle is a 16th-century tower house with 19th-century extensions overlooking the Firth of Forth, in Edinburgh, Scotland. It lies on Cramond Road South, between Cramond, Davidson's Mains, and Silverknowes. The substantial grounds, La ...

near

Cramond Cramond Village (; gd, Cathair Amain) is a village and suburb in the north-west of Edinburgh, Scotland, at the mouth of the River Almond where it enters the Firth of Forth. The Cramond area has evidence of Mesolithic, Bronze Age and Roman ac ...

just north-west of the city. His sister married John Gordon

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

, father of

John Thomson Gordon John Thomson Gordon FRSE (1813-1865) was a Scottish advocate who served as Rector of Marischal College 1849-50 and Sheriff of Aberdeen 1847-48 and Edinburgh 1848–>1852. Life He was born on 19 March 1813 at 14 Buccleuch Place in Edinburgh t ...

. He was educated at the

High School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

in Edinburgh then studied law at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. He became an

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

in 1812.

Career

In the 1830s he is listed as an advocate living at 9, St Colme Street, on the Moray Estate in Edinburgh's west end. His house was remodelled by

William Notman William Notman (8 March 1826 – 25 November 1891) was a Scottish-Canadian photographer and businessman. The Notman House in Montreal was his home from 1876 until his death in 1891, and it has since been named after him. Biography Notman ...

in 1835, whilst working in the offices of

William Henry Playfair William Henry Playfair FRSE (15 July 1790 – 19 March 1857) was a prominent Scottish architect in the 19th century, who designed the Eastern, or Third, New Town and many of Edinburgh's neoclassical landmarks. Life Playfair was born on 15 ...

. He was appointed

Solicitor General for Scotland , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png , incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , department = Crown Office and ...

from 1837, becoming

Lord Advocate , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Dorothy Bain QC.png , incumbent = Dorothy Bain KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , appointer = Monarch on the advice ...

in 1839 and

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Leith burghs in the same year. He resigned office in September 1841 on William Peel's accession to power. He was appointed Rector of the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 1844.Omond, George William Thomson: ''The Lord Advocates of Scotland: 2d Series, 1834–1880", A. Melrose Ltd, 1914, pp. 47–49. He played an active part in parliamentary proceedings relating to Scotland, and proposed the repeal of the

Corn Laws The Corn Laws were tariffs and other trade restrictions on imported food and corn enforced in the United Kingdom between 1815 and 1846. The word ''corn'' in British English denotes all cereal grains, including wheat, oats and barley. They were ...

in 1846. He was reappointed Lord Advocate in 1846, and was responsible for legislation amending the law of entail in Scotland in 1848. He served on the

Royal Commission on the British Museum The Royal Commission on the British Museum (RCBM) was set up to review the activities of the British Museum particularly in relation to its Library. The Commission was set up following an approach made by a number of eminent scientists to Lord Jo ...

(1847–49). On 2 January 1849 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

, his proposer being John Russell. He was appointed a

Senator of the College of Justice The senators of the College of Justice are judges of the College of Justice, a set of legal institutions involved in the administration of justice in Scotland. There are three types of senator: Lords of Session (judges of the Court of Session); ...

, as Lord Rutherfurd and a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the British monarchy, sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises Politics of the United King ...

in May 1851. From 1851 to 1854 he was a Lord of Session.

Personal life

In 1822, Rutherfurd married Sophia Frances Stewart, one of three daughters and two sons born to Mary Susanna ( Whaley) Stewart (a daughter of Richard Chapell Whaley, MP of

Whaley Abbey Ballinaclash (A. D. Mills, 2003, ''A Dictionary of British Place-Names'', Oxford University Press) is a village in east County Wicklow centred on a bridge that carries the R753 regional road across the River Avonbeg. The village is mentione ...

) and

Sir James Stewart, 7th Baronet Sir James Stewart, 7th Baronet ( – 20 May 1827) was an Irish politician. Early life Stewart was born the eldest son and heir of Sir Annesley Stewart, 6th Baronet of Fort Stewart, County Donegal, and Mary ( Moore) Stewart. His father was an MP ...

, MP for

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

. They had no children. His wife died in 1852 and was buried with him. He died on 13 December 1854 at 9 St Colme Street, his Edinburgh townhouse. He is buried at

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...

in western Edinburgh.

Legacy

At Dean Cemetery, he was buried on Lord's Row, against the western wall, beneath a red granite pyramid designed by

and built by Stewart McGlashan. The monument is inscribed: Uxori desideratissimae contra votum superstes moerens posuit Andreas Rutherfurd, et sibi, MDCCCLII. ("Andrew Rutherfurd, surviving against his will, placed this tomb in mourning to his most beloved wife, and to himself, 1852".)

Galley

File:Sir John Watson Gordon - Andrew Rutherfurd, Lord Rutherfurd, 1791 - 1854. Judge - PG 710 - National Galleries of Scotland.jpg, Portrait of Lord Rutherfurd, by Sir

John Watson Gordon Sir John Watson Gordon (1788 – 1 June 1864) was a Scottish portrait painter and president of the Royal Scottish Academy. Life and work Gordon was born John Watson in Edinburgh, the eldest son of Captain Watson, R.A., a cadet of the family ...

, File:Grave of Andrew, Lord Rutherford, Dean Cemetery Edinburgh.jpg, Grave in the Dean Cemetery File:Andrew Rutherfurd and his wife, Sophia.jpg, Andrew Rutherfurd and his wife, Sophia File:Bust of Andrew Rutherfurd, Lord Rutherfurd, by William Theod Rome (1837) Old College, Edinburgh University.jpg, Bust of Rutherfurd, by William Theod Rome (1837) Old College, University of Edinburgh File:9 St Colme Street, Edinburgh.JPG, Rutherfurd's home at 9 St Colme Street, Edinburgh (centre: blue door)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rutherfurd, Andrew 1791 births 1854 deaths Rutherfurd Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Edinburgh constituencies Members of the Faculty of Advocates Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 People associated with the British Museum Burials at the Dean Cemetery Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Solicitors General for Scotland Lord Advocates Politics of Edinburgh Rectors of the University of Glasgow Scottish Liberal Party MPs