John Hay, 1st Marquess and 2nd Earl of Tweeddale (c. 13 August 1625, Yester, East Lothian – 11 August 1697, Edinburgh) was

Lord Chancellor of Scotland The Lord Chancellor of Scotland, formally the Lord High Chancellor, was a Great Officer of State in the Kingdom of Scotland. Holders of the office are known from 1123 onwards, but its duties were occasionally performed by an official of lower s ...

Early life

Hay was born in 1626. He was the eldest son of

John Hay, 1st Earl of Tweeddale John Hay, 1st Earl of Tweeddale (1593–1653) was a Scottish aristocrat. Hay was the son of James Hay, 7th Lord Hay of Yester and Margaret Kerr or Ker, eldest daughter of Sir John Ker of Ferniehirst. He became Lord Hay of Yester in February 1609 ...

(created 1 December 1646) and Lady Jean Seton. After his mother's death a few days after his birth in 1625, his father remarried to Lady Margaret Montgomerie, the eldest daughter of

Alexander Montgomerie, 6th Earl of Eglinton Alexander Montgomerie, 6th Earl of Eglinton (1588–1661) was a Scottish aristocrat and soldier, originally known as Sir Alexander Seton of Foulstruther. Life He was the third son of Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton by his wife Lady Margaret ...

and Lady Anne Livingston (eldest daughter of

Alexander Livingston, 1st Earl of Linlithgow Alexander Livingston, 1st Earl of Linlithgow PC (died 24 December 1621) was a Scottish nobleman, courtier, and politician. His wife was Helenor Hay, Countess of Linlithgow who was a Royal tutor. Early life He was the eldest son of William Li ...

). After his father's death in 1653, his stepmother remarried to

William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn William Cunningham, 9th Earl of Glencairn ( gd, Uilleam Coineagan) (1610–1664), was a Scottish nobleman, Lord Chancellor of Scotland, and a cavalier. He was also the chief of Clan Cunningham. The eldest son of William Cunningham, 8th Earl of ...

. From his father's second marriage, he had a younger half-brother, the Hon. William Hay of Drummelzier (1649–1726), who married the Hon. Elizabeth Seton, only surviving daughter of

Alexander Seton, 1st Viscount of Kingston Sir Alexander Seton, 1st Viscount of Kingston (13 March 1620 – 21 October 1691), a Cavalier, was the first dignity Charles II conferred as King. Family Alexander was the son of George Seton, 3rd Earl of Winton (1584–1650) by Anna Hay, da ...

. His father was the eldest son and heir of

James Hay, 7th Lord Hay of Yester James Hay, 7th Lord Hay of Yester (1564-1609) was a Scottish landowner and courtier. He was a son of William Hay, 5th Lord Hay of Yester and Margaret Ker eldest daughter of Sir John Ker of Ferniehirst. His older brother William Hay, 6th Lord ...

and Lady Margaret Kerr (third daughter of

Mark Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian Mark Kerr (or Ker), 1st Earl of Lothian (15538 April 1609) was a Scottish nobleman and politician. He became the first Earl of Lothian in 1606. Family He was a member of the "famous border family" of Ker of Cessford. He was the son of Mark Ke ...

). His mother was the only daughter of

Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline (1555–1622) was a Scottish lawyer, judge and politician. He served as Lord President of the Court of Session from 1598 to 1604, Lord Chancellor of Scotland from 1604 to 1622 and as a Lord High Commiss ...

by his second wife, Lady Grizel Leslie (the half-sister of

John Leslie, 6th Earl of Rothes John Leslie, 6th Earl of Rothes (1600 – 23 August 1641) was a Scottish nobleman, one of the main leaders of the Covenanters. Life Born in Leslie, Fife, he was the only son of James Leslie, Master of Rothes (died 1607) and Katherine Drummond, ...

Career

During the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

he repeatedly switched allegiance between the Royalist cause and the Parliamentarians. He fought for

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

and joined him at Nottingham in 1642, then for Parliament at the

Battle of Marston Moor The Battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms of 1639 – 1653. The combined forces of the English Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax and the Earl of Manchester and the Scottish Covenanters und ...

in 1644, on account of his attitude towards Covenanters, and four years later was again on the side of the Royalists at the Battle of Preston. He succeeded as

Earl of Tweeddale Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

in 1654, and was imprisoned for support of James Guthrie in 1660. He was a member of the Commonwealth Parliaments of 1656 and 1659. When Charles II was restored to the throne, he was appointed Lord President of the Scottish Council in 1663 and an

Extraordinary Lord of Session Extraordinary Lords of Session were lay members of the Court of Session in Scotland from 1532 to 1762, and were part of the historical judiciary of Scotland. When the Court of Session was founded in 1532, it consisted of the Lord President, 14 ...

in 1664. He was elected in the latter year a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...

. He used his influence to moderate proceedings against the Covenanters, but with the hardening of the official attitude in 1674 he was dismissed from office and from the Privy Council on the advice of

Lauderdale Lauderdale is the valley of the Leader Water (a tributary of the Tweed) in the Scottish Borders. It contains the town of Lauder, as well as Earlston. The valley is traversed from end to end by the A68 trunk road, which runs from Darlington to ...

. He returned to the

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...

in 1680. Tweeddale supported William III and became a privy councillor in 1689. He was

from 1692 to 1696. He supported the Glorious Revolution in Scotland, and was created

Marquess of Tweeddale Marquess of Tweeddale (sometimes spelled ''Tweedale'') is a title of the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1694 for the 2nd Earl of Tweeddale. Lord Tweeddale holds the subsidiary titles of Earl of Tweeddale (created 1646), Earl of Gifford (1694), ...

in 1694. As Lord High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland from 1694 to 1696 he ordered the inquiry into the

Glencoe massacre The Massacre of Glencoe ( gd, Murt Ghlinne Comhann) took place in Glen Coe in the Highlands of Scotland on 13 February 1692. An estimated 30 members and associates of Clan MacDonald of Glencoe were killed by Scottish government forces, allege ...

in 1695. He was dismissed from the Chancellorship in 1696 for supporting the

Darien scheme The Darien scheme was an unsuccessful attempt, backed largely by investors of the Kingdom of Scotland, to gain wealth and influence by establishing ''New Caledonia'', a colony on the Isthmus of Panama, in the late 1690s. The plan was for the co ...

Personal life

On 4 September 1644, Tweeddale was married to Lady Jean Scott, the second daughter of

Walter Scott, 1st Earl of Buccleuch Walter Scott, 1st Earl of Buccleuch, 2nd Baron Scott of Buccleuch (before 1606 – 20 November 1633) was a Scottish nobleman. He was born the son of Walter Scott, 1st Lord Scott of Buccleuch Walter Scott, 5th of Buccleuch, 1st Lord Scott of ...

and Lady Mary Hay, third daughter of

Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll (30 April 156416 July 1631) was a Scottish nobleman. A convert to Catholicism, he openly conspired with the king of Spain to try to unseat the Protestant Queen Elizabeth. Biography He was the son of Andrew Hay ...

). Together, they were the parents of: *

John Hay, 2nd Marquess of Tweeddale John Hay, 2nd Marquess of Tweeddale PC (1645 – 20 April 1713) was a Scottish nobleman. Early life Hay was the eldest son of John Hay, 1st Marquess of Tweeddale and his wife, Lady Jean Scott, daughter of Walter Scott, 1st Earl of Buccleuch. H ...

(1645–1713), who married Lady Mary Maitland, only daughter and heiress of John Maitland, 1st Duke of Lauderdale. * David Hay (1656–1737), who married Rachel Hayes, daughter of Sir James Hayes, of Great Bedgbury. * Alexander Hay (1663–1737), who married Catherine Charters, daughter of Laurence Charters. * Margaret Hay (d. 1753), who married

Robert Ker, 3rd Earl of Roxburghe Robert Ker, 3rd Earl of Roxburghe PC (6 May 1682) was a Scottish nobleman. Early life Ker was the eldest son of four sons born to William Ker, 2nd Earl of Roxburghe and the Honourable Jane Ker, who were first cousins. Among his younger broth ...

. * Jean Hay (d. 1729), who married

William Douglas, 1st Earl of March Earl of March is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "marches" or borderlands between England and either Wales (Welsh Marches) or Scotland ( Scottish March ...

. Tweeddale died on 11 Aug 1697.

Legacy

His portrait by Sir Peter Lely is held by the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...

.Hutchinson's ''Encyclopedia of Britain''

References

External links

Portrait of John Hay, 1st Marquess of Tweeddale
by Sir Peter Lely at the

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tweeddale 1625 births 1697 deaths Senators of the College of Justice Lord chancellors of Scotland Lords High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland Commissioners of the Treasury of Scotland English MPs 1656–1658 English MPs 1659 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1689 Extraordinary Lords of Session 1 Fellows of the Royal Society