Sir George Home of Wedderburn (1552 – 1616) was briefly Comptroller of the Scottish Exchequer in the household to

James VI 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 ...

of Scotland.

Career

George Home was the son of Mariota Johnston and David Home of

Wedderburn Wedderburn may refer to: People * Alexander Wedderburn (disambiguation) * Bill Wedderburn, Baron Wedderburn of Charlton (1927–2012), British politician and legal scholar * Charles F. Wedderburn (1892–1917), United States Navy officer * Da ...

(d. 1574). He was born at Elphinstone Castle, educated a
Dunbar Grammar School
and joined the household of

Regent Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581, aged 65) was the last of the four regents of Scotland during the minority of King James VI. He was in some ways the most successful of the four, since he won the civil war that had b ...

. After the political fall of Regent Morton, George Home was imprisoned for six months to punish him for supporting the Morton government. He was also imprisoned in

Doune Castle Doune Castle is a medieval stronghold near the village of Doune, in the Stirling council area of central Scotland and the historic county of Perthshire. The castle is sited on a wooded bend where the Ardoch Burn flows into the River Teith. It ...

after the 'Raid of Stirling' in 1584. Rehabilated, he was

Warden A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a prison warden. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the Warden of the Mint. ''Warden'' is etymologically ident ...

of the East Marches, Comptroller of the Scottish Exchequer from 1597 to 1597, and Master of the Royal Household. George was unable to make ends meet for James VI and

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and En ...

but was given a refund after he lost the job. His leisure interests included hawking and falconry and he built a new house called "Handaxewood" in the Lammermuirs for his hobby. George married Jean Haldane of Gleneagles in 1578, they had one son and six daughters.

Legacy

George is remembered for a remark attributed to him by his younger brother

David Hume of Godscroft David Hume or Home of Godscroft (1558–1629) was a Scottish historian and political theorist, poet and controversialist, a major intellectual figure in Jacobean Scotland. It has been said that "Hume marks the culmination of the Scottish humanis ...

. George Home was supposed to have argued with the

for the restitution of the estates of

Alexander Home, 1st Earl of Home Sir Alexander Home of that Ilk, 1st Lord Home ( – ) was in 1448 Sheriff Deputy for Berwickshire, and was made a Lord of Parliament on 2 August 1473. He is an ancestor of the Earls of Home. Family Alexander Home's father, Sir Alexander Home o ...

whose father had supported

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

. Morton argued that this would be to George Home's own detriment. According to Godscroft, George explained his loyalty to the young chief of his family, answering;

"the Lord Hume was his chief, and he could not see his house ruined; if they were unkinde he could not do withall, that would be their own fault; this he thought himself bound to do, and for his own part whatsoever their carriage were to him, he would do his duty to them; if his chief should turne him out at the fronte-doore, he would come in again the back-doore."

The Earl of Home was restored to his estates with the help of the Erskine brothers, the Commendators of Dryburgh and Cambuskenneth, kinsmen of George Home's wife. George Home's remark has been quoted by more recent historians including

Gordon Donaldson Gordon Donaldson, (13 April 1913 – 16 March 1993) was a Scottish historian. Life He was born in a tenement at 140 McDonald RoadEdinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory, 1912 off Leith Walk in northern Edinburgh on 13 April 1913 the son ...

as an example of an expression of family solidarity in the

Scottish borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lot ...

. Hume of Godscroft had earlier used the example of front door and back door in a pro-Unionist tract, describing it as a tired argument against the union of Scotland and England.Paul J. McGinnis & Arthur H. Williamson, ''The British Union: A Critical Edition and Translation of David Hume of Godscroft's De Unione Insulae Britannicae'', (Ashgate 2002), p.115

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Home, George 1552 births 1615 deaths 16th-century Scottish people Court of James VI and I Comptrollers of Scotland George

Career

Legacy

Further reading

See also

Notes