John Hamilton of Blair (c.1638–1690)was a 17th-century

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 ...

minister and bishop. He was a descendant of John Hamilton,

Archbishop of St Andrews The Bishop of St. Andrews ( gd, Easbaig Chill Rìmhinn, sco, Beeshop o Saunt Andras) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of St Andrews in the Catholic Church and then, from 14 August 1472, as Archbishop of St Andrews ( gd, Àrd-easbaig ...

Life

He was born the son of John Hamilton of Blair in

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

and his wife Barbara Elphinstone, daughter of James Elphinstone,

Lord Balmerino The title of Lord Balmerino (or Balmerinoch) was a title in the Peerage of Scotland; it was created in 1606 and forfeited in 1746 on the attainder and execution of the 6th Lord Balmerino in the Tower of London. The title of Lord Coupar or Cupar w ...

.Burke's Peerage He studied at

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

graduating MA in 1653. He was in June 1660 made a "regent" lecturing at

St Leonard's College, St Andrews St Leonard's College is a postgraduate institute at the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland. Founded in 1512 as an autonomous theological college of the University of St Andrews, it merged with St Salvator's College in 1747 to form ...

. He was initially briefly minister of

Cramond Kirk Cramond Kirk is a church situated in the middle area Cramond parish, in the north west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Built on the site of an old Roman fort, parts of the Cramond Kirk building date back to the fourteenth century and the church tower is ...

, being appointed in July 1663. From September 1663 he was minister of

South Leith Parish Church South Leith Parish Church, originally the Kirk of Our Lady, St Mary, is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. It is the principal church and congregation in Leith, in Edinburgh. Its kirkyard is the burial place for John Home (author of ''D ...

, assisted from 1671 by Andrew Cant. In 1681 he was translated from

to Tolbooth Parish, one of the four congregations contained within

St Giles Cathedral St Giles' Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Naomh Giles), or the High Kirk of Edinburgh, is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. The current building was begun in the 14th century and extended ...

.''Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae''; by Hew Scott He was created

Bishop of Dunkeld The Bishop of Dunkeld is the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Dunkeld, one of the largest and more important of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th-century cleric named Cormac. However, the first k ...

on 19 October 1686, his position in St Giles being filled by William Gardyne. He was Bishop of Dunkeld until the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...

brought an end to the

Restoration Episcopate The Restoration was the return of the monarchy to Scotland in 1660 after the period of the Commonwealth, and the subsequent three decades of Scottish history until the Revolution and Convention of Estates of 1689. It was part of a wider Resto ...

of the Scottish church in 1688. After 1688, he was a minister in Edinburgh and Sub-

Dean of the Chapel Royal The Dean of the Chapel Royal, in any kingdom, can be the title of an official charged with oversight of that kingdom's chapel royal, the ecclesiastical establishment which is part of the royal household and ministers to it. England In England, ...

. He died in Edinburgh in 1690.

Family

He married twice: firstly to Magdalene Halyburton, daughter of Alexander Halyburton of Innerleith; secondly to Elizabeth Urry, daughter of Sir John Urry one of Montrose's generals.

References

* Keith, Robert, ''An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688'', (London, 1824) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, John 17th-century births 1690 deaths Bishops of Dunkeld (Church of Scotland) Scottish Restoration bishops Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1689