Hugh Montgomerie, 3rd Earl of Eglinton (c. 15311585) was a Scottish aristocrat who was a strong supporter of

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 Sco ...

. He was an important participant in a tumultuous period of Scottish history.

Early Years

Born in 1531, Montgomerie was the great-grandson of

Hugh Montgomerie, 1st Earl of Eglinton Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

. He attended St. Mary's College, St. Andrews in 1552. Soon after, Montgomerie married Janet Hamilton, the daughter of James Hamilton, then First Earl of Aran. Although Montgomerie was a Catholic, he originally supported his Protestant father-in-law politically. In October 1559, Montgomery brought forces to

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

to support Hamilton and the Scottish

Lords of the Congregation The Lords of the Congregation (), originally styling themselves "the Faithful", were a group of Protestant Scottish nobles who in the mid-16th century favoured a reformation of the Catholic church according to Protestant principles and a Scotti ...

against French forces supporting the exiled Mary Stuart and the current Scottish government. In December 1559, Montgomerie renewed his pledge of support.

Support of Mary

However, as a practicing Catholic, Montgomerie was a frequent target of criticism by Protestant clerics, and was said to attend daily mass and had a priest on his personal staff. He soon switched sides to support Mary Stuart. In December 1560, soon after the death of Mary's teenage husband, Francis II of France, Montgomerie signed a pledge of support for her in a meeting at

Dunbar Castle Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near the English-Scotti ...

. In February 1561, he traveled to France to visit Mary. Hamiliton returned with her to Scotland in August 1561, when she assumed the Scottish throne. On 15 May 1568 Montgomerie joined Mary's forces at the

Battle of Langside The Battle of Langside was fought on 13 May 1568 between forces loyal to Mary, Queen of Scots, and forces acting in the name of her infant son James VI. Mary’s short period of personal rule ended in 1567 in recrimination, intrigue, and disast ...

. After their defeat, he fled the field and spend the night hiding in an outhouse. On 19 August Parliament declared Montgomerie guilty of treason for failing to turn over his castles to the victor. In May 1571 he finally swore allegiance to the

Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox (21 September 1516 – 4 September 1571) was a leader of the Catholic nobility in Scotland. He was the paternal grandfather of King James VI of Scotland and I of England. He owned Temple Newsam in Yorkshire, ...

, the regent for the young king

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 ...

. In September 1571, Montgomerie was with Stewart when he was killed at a skirmish in

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

. The raiding party, which included the Hamiltons, locked Montgomerie in his quarters under guard. In 1573, Montgomerie advocated tolerance for Catholics from the latest regent,

Morton Morton may refer to: People * Morton (surname) * Morton (given name) Fictional * Morton Koopa, Jr., a character and boss in ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' * A character in the ''Charlie and Lola'' franchise * A character in the 2008 film '' Horton H ...

. In 1578. Morton used his influence to appoint Montgomerie as a Privy Councillor. In 1579, Montgomerie subscribed the order for prosecuting the Hamiltons for their roles in the murders of Mathew Stewart and another regent,

James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. A supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for hi ...

. When Morton fell out of power, Montgomerie served as an

assize The courts of assize, or assizes (), were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes e ...

for Morton's trial in 1581.

Marriage and issue

Montgomerie's first wife was Lady Jean Hamilton, a daughter of

Regent Arran A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

and

Margaret Douglas Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox (8 October 1515 – 7 March 1578), was the daughter of the Scottish queen dowager Margaret Tudor and her second husband Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus. In her youth she was high in the favour of her un ...

. The Montgomeries had the marriage dissolved in 1562 and the couple had no children. That same year, Montgomerie married Agnes Drummond daughter of Sir John Drummond of

Innerpeffray Innerpeffray is a hamlet in Perthshire, Scotland, southeast of Crieff. It is located on a raised promontory among beech woodland above the River Earn. A fording point across the river can still be used, on what is the line of a Roman Road. The ...

and

Monzie Castle Monzie Castle is a castellated mansion, near Monzie in Perth and Kinross, Scotland that incorporates an L-plan, early 17th-century building that was enlarged in 1797–1800. It is a category A listed building. The current house dates from 190 ...

, (a granddaughter of James IV of Scotland). The couple had the following children:Balfour Paul, Sir James, ''Scots Peerage'', Edinburgh 1904. vol iii, p441-442
/ref> *

Hugh Montgomerie, 4th Earl of Eglinton Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

*Robert Montgomerie of Giffen *Margaret Montgomerie, married

Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton (1553 – 22 March 1603) was one of the Scottish peers who supported Mary, Queen of Scots. Early years The son of George Seton, 7th Lord Seton, Robert Seton grew up active in the affairs of his father and of th ...

*Agnes Montgomerie, married

Robert Sempill, 4th Lord Sempill Robert Sempill, 4th Lord Sempill, (d.1611), Scottish Lord of Parliament. Robert Sempill succeeded his grandfather as Lord Sempill in 1576, his father, Robert Sempill, Master of Sempill, having died in 1569. The 4th Lord Sempill's mother was Barba ...

Early Years

Support of Mary

Marriage and issue

Notes

References

Further reading