Francis Nicoll (1771–1835) was a senior

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

who served both as Principal of

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

and

Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states th ...

of the Church of Scotland in 1809, the highest position in the

Life

He was born in

Lossiemouth Lossiemouth ( gd, Inbhir Losaidh) is a town in Moray, Scotland. Originally the port belonging to Elgin, it became an important fishing town. Although there has been over 1,000 years of settlement in the area, the present day town was formed over ...

in 1771 the third son of John Nicoll, a merchant. He was educated at

King's College, Aberdeen King's College in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, the full title of which is The University and King's College of Aberdeen (''Collegium Regium Abredonense''), is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the Universi ...

graduating MA in 1789. He was licensed to preach as a

minister by the Presbytery of Elgin in 1793, but, failing to find a patron (as was then required) he acted as a tutor to the family of Sir James Grant of Grant. In September 1797 he was ordained as minister of

Auchtertool Auchtertool (; gd, Uachdar Tuil) is a small village in Fife, Scotland. It is 4 miles west of Kirkcaldy. The name is from the Gaelic ''uachdar'', meaning ''upland'' or ''heights'' above the Tiel burn (from Gaelic ''tuil'' meaning ''torrent''). ...

, translating to the parish of Mains and Strathmartine in September 1799. He was award a

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

(DD) in 1807. In 1809 he succeeded Rev Dr Andrew Grant as

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the ministers and elders of the Church of Scotland, minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week i ...

. In 1819 he was appointed Principal of

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

in place of Rev Prof James Playfair, resigning in September 1824. He died on 8 October 1835.

Artistic Recognition

He was portrayed by Robert Moore Hodgetts.

Family

In October 1814 he married Anne Ramsay of Edinburgh (d.1842). They had two daughters and a son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicoll, Francis 1771 births 1835 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Principals of the University of St Andrews Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland