John Maitland, 1st Duke and 2nd Earl of Lauderdale, 3rd Lord Maitland of Thirlestane
KG PC (24 May 1616,
Lethington,
East Lothian – 24 August 1682), was a
Scottish politician, and leader within the
Cabal Ministry.
Background
Maitland was a member of an ancient family of both
Berwickshire
Berwickshire ( gd, Siorrachd Bhearaig) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in south-eastern Scotland, on the English border. Berwickshire County Council existed from 1890 until 1975, when the area became part of th ...
and
East Lothian, the eldest surviving son of
John Maitland, 2nd Lord Maitland of Thirlestane (d. 1645), (who had been created
Viscount of Lauderdale in 1616, and
Earl of Lauderdale etc., in 1624), and of Lady Isabel (1594–1638), daughter of
Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline and great-grandson of Sir
Richard Maitland
Sir Richard Maitland of Lethington and Thirlstane (1496 – 1 August 1586) was a Senator of the College of Justice, an Ordinary Lord of Session from 1561 until 1584, and notable Scottish poet. He was served heir to his father, Sir William Mait ...
of
Lethington, the poet.
Covenanter
Maitland began public life as a zealous adherent of the
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...
cause, took the
Covenant, sat as an
elder
An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority.
Elder or elders may refer to:
Positions Administrative
* Elder (administrative title), a position of authority
Cultural
* North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and ...
in the
General Assembly of the Church of Scotland at
St Andrews
St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourt ...
in July 1643, and was sent to the
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England (, ) was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from 12 July 927, when it emerged from various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain.
On ...
as a
Commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
for
the Covenant in August, and to attend the
Westminster Assembly in November.
Privy Councillor in two kingdoms
In February 1644 he was a member of the
Privy Council of England
The Privy Council of England, also known as His (or Her) Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council (), was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England. Its members were often senior members of the House of Lords and the House of ...
and the
Privy Council of Scotland, and on 20 November was one of the Commissioners appointed to meet the king at
Uxbridge
Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxb ...
, when he made efforts to persuade
King Charles I to agree to the establishment of Presbyterianism. In 1645 he advised Charles to reject the proposals of
Independents, and in 1647 he was in London when the Scottish Estates in Edinburgh ordered the king's
surrender to the
Scots.
Second English Civil War and the Worcester Campaign
Once Charles surrendered to the Scots, Lauderdale veered round completely to the king's cause, had several interviews with him, and engaged in various projects for his
restoration, offering the aid of the Scots, on the condition of Charles's consent to the establishment of Presbyterianism, and on 26 December he obtained from Charles at
Carisbrooke Castle "
The Engagement" by which Presbyterianism was to be established for three years,
schismatics were to be suppressed, and the
Acts of the Parliament of Scotland ratified, the king in addition promising to admit the Scottish
nobles
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
into public employment in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and to reside frequently in Scotland.
Returning to Scotland, in the spring of 1648, Lauderdale joined the party of
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilto ...
in alliance with the
English royalists. Their defeat at the
Battle of Preston, postponed the arrival of the
Charles, Prince of Wales, but Lauderdale had an interview with the prince in
the Downs in August, and from this period obtained supreme influence over the future king. He persuaded Prince Charles later to accept the invitation to Scotland from
Archibald Campbell, Marquess of Argyll's faction, accompanied him thither in 1650 and in the expedition into England, and was captured following the
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...
in 1651. He escaped from the city in the company of the
Earl of Derby and
Duke of Buckingham, but they were taken prisoner near
Newport in
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
.
Interregnum
Lauderdale remained in confinement from his capture at Worcester until March 1660. He was exempted from
Cromwell's Act of Grace under which his estates were confiscated by
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three ...
the
Lord Protector
Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') was a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometimes ...
. This was fortunate for him, because confiscated estates were restored to their owners, whilst land sales to pay fines were not reversed at the Restoration.
Restoration
Just before the restoration, he joined
Charles II in May 1660 at
Breda
Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda has ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, and in spite of the opposition of
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (18 February 16099 December 1674), was an English statesman, lawyer, diplomat and historian who served as chief advisor to Charles I during the First English Civil War, and Lord Chancellor to Charles II fr ...
and
George Monck, was appointed
Secretary of State for Scotland.
King's councillor
From this time onwards he kept his hold upon the king, was lodged at
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...
, was "never from the king's ear nor council",
[ cites: ]Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...
''Diary'', 2 March 1664 and maintained his position against his numerous adversaries by a crafty dexterity in dealing with men, a fearless unscrupulousness, and a robust strength of will, which overcame all opposition. Though a man of considerable learning and intellectual attainment, he was authoritarian and determined to implement the King's instructions.
He abandoned Argyll to his fate, permitted, if he did not assist in, the restoration of
episcopacy in Scotland, and after triumphing over all his opponents in Scotland drew into his own hands the whole administration of that kingdom, and proceeded to impose upon it the absolute supremacy of the crown in
Kirk and state, restoring the nomination of the
lords of the articles to the king and initiating severe measures against the
Covenanters
Covenanters ( gd, Cùmhnantaich) were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland, and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. The name is derived from '' Covena ...
. In 1669 he was able to boast with truth that "the king is now master here in all causes and over all persons".
The Cabal Ministry
His own power was now at its height, and his position as the favourite of Charles II, controlled by no considerations of patriotism or
statesmanship
A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level.
Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to:
Newspapers United States
* ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...
, and completely independent of the
English parliament, recalled the worst scandals and abuses of the
Stuart administration before 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 r ...
.
He was a member of the
Cabal Ministry, but took little part in English affairs, and being a Presbyterian was not entrusted with the first secret
Treaty of Dover
The Treaty of Dover, also known as the Secret Treaty of Dover, was a treaty between England and France signed at Dover on 1 June 1670. It required that Charles II of England would convert to the Roman Catholic Church at some future date and th ...
, but gave personal support to Charles in his degrading demands for
pension
A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...
s from
Louis XIV
Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...
. On 2 May 1672 he was created
Duke of Lauderdale and
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 ...
, and on 3 June
Knight of the Garter.
In 1673, on the resignation of
James, Duke of York
James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious ...
in consequence of the
Test Act, he was appointed a
Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty. In October he visited Scotland to suppress the
dissenters and obtain money for the
Third Anglo-Dutch War. The intrigues organised by
Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, against his power in his absence, and the attacks made upon him in the
House of Commons in January 1674 and April 1675, were alike rendered futile by the steady support of Charles and James.
On 25 June 1674 he was created
Earl of Guilford and
Baron Petersham
Petersham is a village in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the east of the bend in the River Thames south of Richmond, London, Richmond, which it shares with neighbouring Ham, London, Ham. It provides the foreground of the sce ...
in the
Peerage of England
The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain. There are five peerages in th ...
. His ferocious measures having failed to suppress the
conventicles in Scotland, he summoned to his aid in 1677 a band of
Highlander
Highlander may refer to:
Regional cultures
* Gorals (lit. ''Highlanders''), a culture in southern Poland and northern Slovakia
* Hill people, who live in hills and mountains
* Merina people, an ethnic group from the central plateau of Madagasca ...
s, who were sent into the western country. In consequence, a large party of
Scottish nobles
The Peerage of Scotland ( gd, Moraireachd na h-Alba, sco, Peerage o Scotland) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union, ...
went to
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...
, made common cause with the English
Country Faction, and compelled Charles to order the disbandment of the marauders. In May 1678 another demand made in the Commons for Lauderdale's removal was defeated due to court influence, by a margin of only a single vote.
He maintained his triumphs almost to the end. In Scotland, which he visited immediately after this victory in the Parliament of England, he overbore all opposition to the king's demands for money. Another address for his removal from the Commons in England was suppressed by the
dissolution of parliament
The dissolution of a legislative assembly is the mandatory simultaneous resignation of all of its members, in anticipation that a successive legislative assembly will reconvene later with possibly different members. In a democracy, the new assemb ...
on 26 May 1679, and a renewed attack upon him, by the
Scottish party and
Shaftesbury's faction combined, also failed. Later that summer on 22 June 1679 the last attempt of the Covenanters was suppressed at the
Battle of Bothwell Brig
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 ...
.
Resignation
Following a stroke or heart attack early in 1680, his health and abilities failed leading Lauderdale to resign in October that year the place and power for which he had so long successfully struggled. His vote given for the execution of
Lord Stafford on 29 November incurred the displeasure of the
Duke of York
Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was ...
.
Personal life
Lauderdale's first marriage was to
Lady Anne Home, daughter of
Alexander Home, 1st Earl of Home and
Mary (Dudley) Sutton
Mary (Dudley) Sutton, Countess of Home (1586–1644), was a landowner, living in England and Scotland.
Early years and marriage
Mary (Dudley) Sutton, born 2 October 1586, was the eldest daughter of Edward Sutton, 5th Baron Dudley (d. 1643) and ...
, by whom he had one daughter, Mary who married
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 ...
.
In 1672, after his wife's death in Paris he married
Elizabeth, Countess of Dysart in her own right, daughter of
William Murray, 1st Earl of Dysart, and now widow of
Sir Lionel Tollemache. Among his stepchildren was General
Thomas Tollemache. He left no male
heir
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offic ...
, consequently his
duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...
dom and his
English titles became extinct, but he was succeeded in the
earl
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", particu ...
dom by his brother
Charles Maitland, 3rd Earl of Lauderdale
Charles Maitland, 3rd Earl of Lauderdale (c. 1620 – 9 June 1691), was the second son (''The Great Seal of Scotland'' gives him as third son) of John Maitland, 1st Earl of Lauderdale (died 1645).
Maitland was born at Lethington. Following the ...
.
Bibliography
DNB - The chief authorities for Lauderdale's life are:
*Baillie's Letters and Journals;
*Burnet's Lives of the Dukes of Hamilton, and Hist. of his own Time;
*Mackenzie's Memoirs;
*Wodrow's Hist. of the Sufferings of the Church of Scotland;
*the Hamilton Papers, published by the Camden Society;
*and especially the vast collection of the Lauderdale Papers in the manuscripts room at the British Museum, three volumes of selections from which have also been issued by the Camden Society
The EB article lists the following sources:
*''Lauderdale Papers Add. manuscripts in
Brit. Mus.'', 30 vols., a small selection of which, entitled ''The Lauderdale Papers'', were edited by Osmond Airy for the
Camden Society
The Camden Society was a text publication society founded in London in 1838 to publish early historical and literary materials, both unpublished manuscripts and new editions of rare printed books. It was named after the 16th-century antiquary an ...
in 1884–1885;
* ''Hamilton Papers'' published by the same society;
*"Lauderdale Correspondence with Archbishop
Sharp
Sharp or SHARP may refer to:
Acronyms
* SHARP (helmet ratings) (Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme
* Self Help Addiction Recovery Program, a charitable organisation founded in 199 ...
," Scottish Hist. Soc. Publications, vol. 5 (1893);
*Burnet's ''Lives of the Hamiltons and History of his Own Time'';
*R Baillie's ''Letters'';
*
SR Gardiner's ''Hist. of the Civil War and of the Commonwealth'';
*Clarendon's ''Hist. of the Rebellion'';
*The ''Quarterly Review'', civii. 407. Several speeches of Lauderdale are extant.
See also
*
William Maitland of Lethington
William Maitland of Lethington (15259 June 1573) was a Scottish politician and reformer, and the eldest son of poet Richard Maitland.
Life
He was educated at the University of St Andrews.
William was the renowned "Secretary Lethington" to ...
References
;Citations
;Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
;Attribution
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lauderdale, John Maitland, 2nd Earl Of
1616 births
1682 deaths
Covenanters
Dukes in the Peerage of Scotland
Knights of the Garter
Lords of the Admiralty
Members of the pre-1707 Parliament of Scotland
Members of the Privy Council of England
People from East Lothian
Presidents of the Privy Council of Scotland
Scottish Presbyterians
Secretaries of State for Scotland
Scottish Commissioners at the Westminster Assembly
Elders of the Church of Scotland
Ordained peers
Members of the Privy Council of Scotland
17th-century Scottish peers
Lords High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland
Commissioners of the Treasury of Scotland
Earls of Lauderdale
Earls of Guilford
Extraordinary Lords of Session