Elisabeth West ( fl. 1690s – 1709) was a Scottish servant and memoirist in Edinburgh. She was inspired to create her record by Rev

George Meldrum George Meldrum (1634–1709) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly, the highest position in the Scottish Church. He was one of the prominent Scottish Covenanters. Life He was ...

of the

Tron Kirk The Tron Kirk is a former principal parish church in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is a well-known landmark on the Royal Mile. It was built in the 17th century and closed as a church in 1952. Having stood empty for over fifty years, it was used ...

, who would later become the Professor of Divinity 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 ...

. She was employed as a servant but she was also an early mistress at

The Mary Erskine School The Mary Erskine School, popularly known as "Mary Erskine's" or "MES", is an all-girls independent secondary school in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded in 1694 and has a roll of around 750 pupils. It is the sister school of the all-boys Stewa ...

. She was associated with the

Cameronian Cameronian was a name given to a radical faction of Scottish Covenanters who followed the teachings of Richard Cameron, and who were composed principally of those who signed the Sanquhar Declaration in 1680. They were also known as Society Me ...

s and she opposed the union with England.

Life

The details of her early life and parentage are unknown. The only details are that her father died in 1700 and she was taught well by her mother and an aunt. She is notable because she was a witness to an important time in Scottish political and religious history. She was first advised to keep a diary by George Meldrum who recommended it as a record of her soul. (George Meldrum who would become Edinburgh University's Professor of Divinity). The first record of her life covers her attendance at the

in Edinburgh. William Erskine was the minister and he died in May 1692. Erskine's replacement George Meldrum had a large effect upon West and she considered him to be her "Lord's messenger". Her parish church was the

Trinity College Kirk Trinity College Kirk was a royal collegiate church in Edinburgh, Scotland. The kirk and its adjacent almshouse, Trinity Hospital, were founded in 1460 by Mary of Gueldres in memory of her husband, King James II who had been killed at the ...

and the whole church was opposed to submitting to the authority of a bishop. Her parish minister was John Moncrieff and he had been charged for holding unauthorised religious non-conformist gatherings. After Meldrum it was John Flint who was another important influence. Flint was the

leaning minister at

Lasswade Lasswade is a village and civil parish in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River North Esk, nine miles (14.5 kilometres) south of Edinburgh city centre, contiguous with Bonnyrigg and between Dalkeith to the east and Loanhead to the west. Melville C ...

. He seconded the proposal to keep a memoir but he also encouraged her to move to the more strict covenants of the Church of Scotland. She formally became a Church of Scotland communicant in August 1694. She was associated with the

s and she opposed the union with England. The Trades Maiden Hospital was founded in 1704 by Mrs Mary Erskine in Argyle Square. In 1708 West became the mistress at what would become The Mary Erskine School where she was teaching young children.

Legacy

Her memoirs were published in 1766 (and 1798) as the ''Memoirs, or, Spiritual exercises of Elisabeth West, etc'' The memoirs were popular among the religious enthusiasm of the

Cambuslang Work The Cambuslang Work (or ''Wark'' in the Scots language; February to November 1742) was a period of extraordinary religious activity, in Cambuslang, Scotland. The event peaked in August 1742 when a crowd of some 30,000

. Elisabeth West's memoirs were first published in the US in 1817 by subscription.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:West, Elisabeth 1600s births 1700s deaths Scottish domestic workers Scottish memoirists Writers from Edinburgh Women memoirists