Brigadier-General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Lord John Hay (c. 1668 – 25 August 1706) was the second son 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 ...

. He served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

under the

Duke of Marlborough General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S.) was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reign ...

Military service

Hay was born the second son of

. He became a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the Royal Scots Dragoons on 16 July 1689. He was promoted to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on 8 September 1692 and

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

on 28 February 1694. He was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in 1702 and became colonel of his regiment in 1704, having purchased the position from

Viscount Teviot Viscount Teviot was a title that was created twice in the Peerage of Scotland. The first creation was on 20 October 1685 for the Honourable Robert Spencer of the Spencer family. He was the son of William Spencer, 2nd Baron Spencer of Wormleighton ...

. He was promoted to

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

on 1 January 1704, commanding the dragoons at several distinguished actions, particularly the

Battle of Schellenberg The Battle of Schellenberg, also known as the Battle of Donauwörth, was fought on 2 July 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession. The engagement was part of the Duke of Marlborough's campaign to save the Habsburg capital of Vienna from a ...

where the unit dismounted and helped storm the heights on foot and also Blenheim and Ramillies where the regiment took prisoners of the famous Régiment du Roi and, according to tradition, won the distinction of wearing grenadiers' caps since enjoyed by the regiment.Dalton, ''The Blenheim Roll'', p. 5. Hay died on campaign from a lingering fever at

Courtrai Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It is the capital and larges ...

on 25 Aug. 1706, 'to the regret of the whole army.'

Personal life

Hay married twice; first to Lady Mary Dalzell, the only daughter of

James Dalzell, 3rd Earl of Carnwath James Dalzell, 3rd Earl of Carnwath (1648–1683) was a Scottish nobleman. He was the son of Gavin Dalzell, 2nd Earl of Carnwath and Margaret Carnegie. He was educated in 1659 at the University of Glasgow. He succeeded to his father's title of Ea ...

, by Lady Mary Seton. His second marriage was to Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Charles Orby of

Crowland Crowland (modern usage) or Croyland (medieval era name and the one still in ecclesiastical use; cf. la, Croilandia) is a town in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated between Peterborough and Spalding. Crowland ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

. Elizabeth survived him and was later remarried to Major-general Robert Hunter, colonial governor of New York.

Citations

References

* Dalton, Charles (2006). ''The Blenheim Roll 1704.'' Naval & Military Press. * 1668 births 1706 deaths Royal Scots Greys officers Scottish generals Younger sons of marquesses {{UK-army-bio-stub