The grave of Lord MacLeod, Canongate Kirkyard, Edinburgh

John Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod (17272 April 1789) was a Scottish Jacobite politician and soldier of fortune.

Life

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, he was the eldest son of

George Mackenzie, 3rd Earl of Cromartie George Mackenzie, 3rd Earl of Cromartie (c. 1703 – 28 September 1766) was a Scottish nobleman. Life He succeeded his father John, the 2nd earl, in February 1731. In 1745, he joined Charles Edward Stuart and he served with the Jacobites unti ...

and Isabel Gordon. He was a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

, his father being the Grand Master, Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1737-38. He married Margery, daughter of

James Forbes, 16th Lord Forbes James Forbes, 17th Lord Forbes (died 29 July 1804) was the son of James Forbes, 16th Lord Forbes. In 1760, he married Catherine Innes and they had six children: *Mary Elizabeth Forbes (d. 1803) * Marjory Forbes (1761–1842) * James Ochoncar ...

. Mackenzie was styled Lord MacLeod in 1731. Sailing to join the rebel army on board the

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

''Hound'', he fought with his father's clan at the

Battle of Falkirk The Battle of Falkirk (''Blàr na h-Eaglaise Brice'' in Gaelic), on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence. Led by King Edward I of England, the English army defeated the Scots, led by William Wal ...

, leading the Cromartie's Regiment of about 500 clansmen in the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Franci ...

during which he was taken prisoner, with his father and 218 others, on 15 April 1746 at

Dunrobin Castle Dunrobin Castle (mostly 1835–1845 — present) is a stately home in Sutherland, in the Highland area of Scotland, as well as the family seat of the Earl of Sutherland and the Clan Sutherland. It is located north of Golspie and approximatel ...

, by a party of the

William Sutherland, 17th Earl of Sutherland William Sutherland, 17th Earl of Sutherland, previously named William Gordon, 17th Earl of Sutherland,Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden (; gd, Blàr Chùil Lodair) was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince Wi ...

, in the last

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...

fought on the mainland of Great Britain. On 20 December 1746 he was not brought to trial before the Commissioners, though he pleaded guilty to high treason, but received full pardon on 26 January 1748 on condition "that within six months of his 21st birthday he would convey to the Crown all his rights in the Earldom" which was not restored until the reign of Queen Victoria. He would later write ''The Memorials of

John Murray of Broughton Sir John Murray of Broughton, 7th Baronet of Stanhope (c. 1715 – 6 December 1777), also known as Murray of Broughton, was a Scottish baronet, who served as Jacobite Secretary of State during the 1745 Rising. As such, he was responsible for ...

: sometime secretary to Prince Charles. Narrative by John Mackenzie, Lord Macleod eldest son of the Earl of Cromartie.'', the only other person not to stand trial for treason and pardoned. Leaving Scotland, Mackenzie initially lived in Berlin with Field Marshal Keith, who assisted him in obtaining a commission in the

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

in 1750. Receiving financial assistance to equip himself for service from Georges de Boulogne, on the recommendation of Lord George Murray, he entered service in

Swedish Pomerania Swedish Pomerania ( sv, Svenska Pommern; german: Schwedisch-Pommern) was a dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden held ...

as a

mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any o ...

. Described by Lord George as "a young man of real merit", he was expected to gain promotion in the service of the Swedish King. This expectation was realized during his service to the Crown of Sweden for twenty-seven years with distinction, obtaining the rank of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, and subsequently being decorated with the award of Commander,

Order of the Sword The Royal Order of the Sword (officially: ''Royal Order of the Sword''; Swedish: ''Kungliga Svärdsorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry and military decoration created by King Frederick I of Sweden on February 23, 1748, together with the Or ...

of Sweden. During the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

he joined the Prussian Army as a volunteer, serving through the second campaign of 1757. Created a Count of Sweden he returned to Scotland in 1771 and was the first Colonel of the 73rd Foot (MacLeod's Highlanders, 71st Foot) from 1772, and then 1st Battalion, The Highland Light Infantry in 1777. On 9 December 1778 his Swedish title was recognised by King George III. From 1779 he served with his regiment in the East Indies Campaign against

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the att ...

, joining the army under Major-General Sir Hector Munro assembled at

St. Thomas Mount Parangimalai (known in English as St. Thomas Mount) is a small hillock in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, near the neighbourhood of Guindy and very close to Chennai International Airport. The ancient Syrian Christian community of India trace t ...

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

, in July 1780. Although he wasn't with the battalion at the time, it was completely destroyed during the

Battle of Conjeveram A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

on 10 September 1780. Following disagreement with Major-General Munro on the loss of the battle, John Mackenzie returned to Scotland, but remained the regiment's Colonel until his death. He was promoted to Major-General in 1784. Returning to Scotland John Mackenzie settled in

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; gd, Siorrachd Rois) is a historic county in the Scottish Highlands. The county borders Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire – a county consisting of ...

where he entered politics holding the office of

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

) between 1780 and 1784. Promoted to the rank of

Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in 1782, he regained his family estates in 1784, restored to him by

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

, for a payment of £19,010 for debts on the estates. Fraser, William. (1876).
The Earls of Cromartie, Their Kindred, Country and Correspondence
'. Vol. 1. p. cclvi. Edinburgh. He spent the rest of his life on the estate which he greatly improved, planting thousands of trees, and building a new mansion,

Tarbat House Tarbat House is a Category A listed building in the Highland council area of northern Scotland. A three-story stone mansion in the neoclassical style, it was built in 1787 by the Edinburgh architect James McLeran for John Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod. ...

. John Mackenzie died in Edinburgh on 2 April 1789 following a year of illness, without descendants and was buried at the

Canongate Kirkyard The Canongate Kirkyard ( en, Churchyard) stands around Canongate Kirk on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Scotland. The churchyard was used for burials from the late 1680s until the mid-20th century. The most celebrated burials at the kirkyard are ...

, Edinburgh. The grave lies immediately to the right (east) upon entering the churchyard. His estates passed to his cousin, Kenneth Mackenzie.

References

Sources

* G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910–1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 546. * Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 1, page 979. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie, John, Lord MacLeod 1727 births 1789 deaths People from Ross and Cromarty Clan Macleod Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies British MPs 1780–1784 Commanders of the Order of the Sword Burials at the Canongate Kirkyard British Army generals Scottish mercenaries Scottish Jacobites Scottish biographers Swedish generals People from Swedish Pomerania British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Mysore War Jacobite military personnel of the Jacobite rising of 1745 Prussian Army personnel 71st Highlanders officers