Abbé ''Abbé'' (from Latin , in turn from Greek , , from Aramaic ''abba'', a title of honour, literally meaning "the father, my father", emphatic state of ''abh'', "father") is the French word for an abbot. It is also the title used for lower-ranki ...

Peter Grant (1708 - 1 September 1784) was a Scottish Roman Catholic priest, agent for the Scottish Catholic Mission and, later in life, an important liaison for British Catholic visitors in Rome.

Life

Grant was born in the diocese of

Moray Moray ( ; or ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin, the area' ...

, a member of the Grant family of Blairfind in Glenlivet. He was a

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

speaker. He entered the Scotch College at Rome in 1726, and returned to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

as a priest in 1735. He was sent to the mission at

Glengarry The Glengarry bonnet is a traditional Scots cap made of thick-milled woollen material, decorated with a toorie on top, frequently a rosette cockade on the left side, and ribbons hanging behind. It is normally worn as part of Scottish military ...

. There he remained until 1737, when, after the murder of the Scottish Catholic Mission's Roman agent Stuart, he was appointed to fill that office. In Rome he occupied apartments in the Piazza di Navona. Skinner, Basil C. (1966), ''Scots in Italy in the 18th Century'',

National Galleries of Scotland The National Galleries of Scotland (, sometimes also known as National Galleries Scotland) is the executive non-departmental public body that controls the three national galleries of Scotland and two partner galleries, forming one of the Nation ...

, pp. 14 - 23 He became valued as a well-connected contact by British travellers visiting

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, and rendered them many services. Although widely regarded as a Jacobite, he secured the patronage as

cicerone Cicerone ( ) is an old term for a guide who conducts visitors and sightseers to museums, galleries, etc., and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest. The word is presumably taken from Marcus Tullius Cicero, ...

of influential visitors, including William Beckford,

Lord Shelburne William Petty Fitzmaurice, 1st Marquess of Lansdowne (2 May 17377 May 1805), known as the Earl of Shelburne between 1761 and 1784, by which title he is generally known to history, was an Anglo-Irish Whig statesman who was the first home secr ...

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (née Pierrepont; 15 May 168921 August 1762) was an English aristocrat, medical pioneer, writer, and poet. Born in 1689, Lady Mary spent her early life in England. In 1712, Lady Mary married Edward Wortley Montagu, ...

, Sir James Grant and Lord Hope. He also acted as chaperone to Catherine Read and Anne Forbes. For a long period hardly any British subject of distinction visited Rome without being provided with letters of introduction to the Abbé Grant.

Clement XIV Pope Clement XIV (; ; 31 October 1705 – 22 September 1774), born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 May 1769 to his death in September 1774. At the time of his elec ...

was very fond of him, and intended to create him a Cardinal; but died before taking steps. Grant died at Rome on 1 September 1784.

References

1784 deaths 18th-century Scottish people People from Moray 1708 births {{Scotland-reli-bio-stub 18th-century Scottish Roman Catholic priests Alumni of the Scots College, Rome