George Dempster of

Dunnichen Dunnichen ( gd, Dùn Neachdain, meaning the "Fort of Neachdan/Nechtan") is a small village in Angus, Scotland, situated between Letham and Forfar. It is close to Dunnichen Hill, at which the Battle of Dun Nechtain is popularly believed to have b ...

and Skibo FRSE

FSA (Scot) The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body of Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh. The Society's aim is to promote the cultural heritage of Scotland. The usua ...

(1732–1818) was a Scottish advocate, landowner, agricultural improver and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

between 1761 and 1790. Dempster founded the bank George Dempster & Co. (also known as the Dundee Banking Company) in 1763, was a Director of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

from 1769, and served as Provost of St Andrews (1780) and a Director of the Highland Society of Scotland (1789). Dempster, nicknamed Honest George, was a key figure of the Scottish Enlightenment and respected as an "independently minded, incorruptible and moderately radical MP". He dedicated the later years of his life to improving Scottish fishing and agriculture and improving the living conditions of his tenants. He was a lifelong friend of the philosopher

Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment. Ferguson was sympathet ...

and the minister

Alexander Carlyle Alexander Carlyle MA DD FRSE (26 January 172228 August 1805) was a Scottish church leader, and autobiographer. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1770/71. Life He was born on 26 January 1722 in the m ...

Life and work

George Dempster was born in 1732 in Dundee, the son of John Dempster 2nd Laird of Dunnichen (near Forfar), a Dundee merchant, and Isabel Ogilvie. George's date of birth is unclear, and has alternatively been given as 8 February or 8 December. He was educated at

Dundee Grammar School The High School of Dundee is an independent, co-educational, day school in Dundee, Scotland, which provides nursery, primary and secondary education to just over one thousand pupils. Its foundation has been dated to 1239, and it is the only priv ...

(c1739–c1748) and possibly also at the small parish school at

Leuchars Leuchars (pronounced or ; gd, Luachar "rushes") is a small town and parish near the north-east coast of Fife in Scotland. The civil parish has a population of 5,754 (in 2011) Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Popula ...

, Fife. On 24 February 1748 he entered the

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

and studied there until about 1750, when he left without taking a degree and moved on to study 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 also studied at the Académie Royale in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

. Dempster was admitted to the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constit ...

in 1755; and about the same time became a member of the Select Society, later becoming a director of this pre-eminent literary and intellectual society of the Scottish Enlightenment. In 1762 he joined the

Poker Club The Poker Club was one of several clubs at the heart of the Scottish Enlightenment where many associated with that movement met and exchanged views in a convivial atmosphere. History The Poker Club was created in 1762 out of the ashes of The ...

of Edinburgh, and may have been a co-founder of this influential body, He, Andrew Erskine, and

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the English writer ...

were joint authors and a "triumvirate of wit", although he later regretted at least one of their attacks, the ''Critical Strictures on the New Tragedy of Elvira'', as he believed the tragedy was better than anything he or his co-authors could have done. He served as Member of Parliament for the Perth Burghs (1761-8 and 1769–90). Dempster was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1788, upon the proposal of Dr Thomas Anderson,

Henry Duncan Henry Duncan may refer to: * Henry Duncan (minister) (1774–1846), Scottish minister, geologist and social reformer; founder of the savings bank movement * Henry Duncan (naval officer, born 1735) (1735–1814), Naval captain and Deputy Comptroller ...

and

John Playfair John Playfair FRSE, FRS (10 March 1748 – 20 July 1819) was a Church of Scotland minister, remembered as a scientist and mathematician, and a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his book ''Illu ...

. He died at

, Angus, on 13 February 1818, and was interred at Restenneth Priory,

Forfar Forfar ( sco, Farfar, gd, Baile Fharfair) is the county town of Angus, Scotland and the administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million pound office complex located on the outskirts of the town. As of 2021, the town has a pop ...

References

* The Introduction to ''Critical Strictures on the New Tragedy of Elvira, Written by Mr. David Malloch (1763)'', by Frederick A. Pottle (Augustan Reprint Society, 1952).

External links

* ''Letters of George Dempster to Sir Adam Fergusson, 1756-1813''. The Grimsay Press, 2004. * *
George Dempster
at James Boswell – a Guide
The Poker Club
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dempster, George 1732 births 1818 deaths 18th-century Scottish businesspeople 19th-century Scottish businesspeople 18th-century Scottish lawyers 19th-century Scottish lawyers People from Dundee People from Angus, Scotland People associated with Fife People educated at the High School of Dundee Alumni of the University of St Andrews Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Provosts in Scotland Directors of the British East India Company Members of the Faculty of Advocates Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies People of the Scottish Enlightenment Scottish agronomists Scottish antiquarians Scottish bankers Scottish landowners Scottish non-fiction writers Lairds British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1784–1790 Businesspeople from Dundee Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland