John Mortland or Morthland of Rindmuir

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(1751–1807) was a Scottish advocate who was one of the joint founders of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

in 1783.

Life

He was born on 14 January 1751 at Rindmuir House in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

the son of Matthew Morthland (born 1714), Professor of Oriental Languages at Glasgow University, and his wife, Anna Simpson, daughter of Rev Dr John Simpson. He studied law at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

. He was a member of the

Speculative Society The Speculative Society is a Scottish Enlightenment society dedicated to public speaking and literary composition, founded in 1764. It was mainly, but not exclusively, an Edinburgh University student organisation. The formal purpose of the Society ...

and president 1774-5. He qualified as an

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

in 1773 and rose to be Depute Advocate of Scotland in 1783. In 1784 he was living and working at a property on George Street in Edinburgh's Dirst New Town. In 1787 he married Mary Menzies and moved to a larger property at 53 Queen Street. Mortland was a member of the

Society of the Friends of the People The Society of the Friends of the People was an organisation in Great Britain that was focused on advocating for Parliamentary Reform. It was founded by the Whig Party in 1792. The Society in England was aristocratic and exclusive, in contrast ...

, a Whiggish organization which advocated for Parliamentary reform and universal suffrage. He attended the first general convention of the Scottish Friends of the People in Edinburgh in December 1792. He was however a prosecution witness in the August 1793 trial of

Thomas Muir of Huntershill Thomas Muir (24 August 1765 – 26 January 1799), also known as Thomas Muir the Younger of Huntershill, was a Scottish political reformer and lawyer. Muir graduated from Edinburgh University and was admitted to the Faculty of Advocates in 178 ...

for

sedition Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, estab ...

. Mortland was one of the founders of the ''Scots Chronicle'' newspaper in 1796. The ''Chronicle'' opposed the war on France, and Mortland was sued for libel over a letter published in the paper. He died in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 22 March 1807.Scots Magazine April 1807 Rindmuir House was renamed Rhinmuir House and was successively the home of the Pollok family and from 1901 the Kerr family. It was burnt down in 1995. It lay in the

Easterhouse Easterhouse is a suburb of Glasgow, Scotland, east of the city centre on land gained from the county of Lanarkshire as part of an expansion of Glasgow before the Second World War. The area is on high ground north of the River Clyde and south ...

district of Glasgow. His Edinburgh house at Queen Street was later the home of the surgeon

James Dunsmure Dr James Dunsmure FRSE FRCSEd (23 April 1814 – 15 October 1886) was a Scottish surgeon. He served as President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Life He was born at 33 George Street in Edinburgh on 23 April 1814 the son of S ...

References

1751 births 1807 deaths Lawyers from Glasgow Alumni of the University of Glasgow Scottish lawyers Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh {{Scotland-bio-stub