Sir Robert Rutherfurd (31 May 1719 – 13 February 1794) was a Scottish merchant who was made a Baron of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

Early life

Rutherfurd was born on 31 May 1719. He was the fourth son of Sir John Rutherfurd of Rutherfurd and

Edgerston Edgerston is a village and an estate about north of the Anglo-Scottish border, and south of Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland in the former Roxburghshire. According to the Clan Rutherfurd family history site, Edgerston was p ...

, and his first wife, Elizabeth Cairncross, who married in 1710. His father was the head of an old Roxburgh family. Among his eighteen siblings were John Rutherfurd, MP for

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Berw ...

, and Walter Rutherfurd, who moved to America and became a prominent merchant. His paternal grandparents were Thomas Rutherfurd of Teviotdale and Susannah (née Riddell) Rutherfurd, and he was eleventh in descent from James Rutherfurd of

Clan Rutherford Clan Rutherford or Rutherfurd/Rutherford (surname), Rutherfurd is a Lowland Scottish clan of the Scottish Borders. The clan is officially recognized by the Lord Lyon King of Arms, however as it does not currently have a Scottish clan chief, clan ...

, who was granted the manorial lands of Edgerston in 1492 by King

James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauchi ...

. His maternal grandfather was William Cairncross of West Langlee,

Career

Rutherfurd was a merchant and lived in Italy for 40 years before returning to Scotland in 1777. While in Italy, he was the Russian agent at

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

and

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, and had reportedly "made himself useful to Russia during her war with the Turks in 1770." He was created a Baron of Russia by

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

in 1768 and was presented by the Empress with a gold enameled box richly set with diamonds.

Personal life

Rutherfurd bought back the family estate, Fairnington, in 1779. The property had first been acquired by the Rutherfurds in 1647 from Francis Scott, 2nd Earl of Buccleuch. On the estate, he built an octagonal summerhouse and observatory with piended roof surmounted by iron finial known as "Baron´s Folly" or "Down Law". Upon his death in 1794 without issue, he left his estate to his nephew, John Rutherfurd, an MP for Roxburghshire who married Mary Ann Leslie (the only child of Maj.-Gen.

Alexander Leslie Alexander Leslie, 1st Earl of Leven (15804 April 1661) was a Scottish soldier in Swedish and Scottish service. Born illegitimate and raised as a foster child, he subsequently advanced to the rank of a Swedish Field Marshal, and in Scotland be ...

and a granddaughter of

Alexander Leslie, 5th Earl of Leven Alexander Melville (also Alexander Leslie), 5th Earl of Leven (28 May 1695 – 2 September 1754) was a Scottish aristocrat. Early life He was the son of David Melville, 3rd Earl of Leven (1660–1728) and Lady Anne Wemyss (1675–1702). His mo ...

). On John's death without issue in 1834, the estate passed to Charles Rutherfurd, son of Maj. John Rutherfurd of Mossburnford (the son of Sir Robert's brother Thomas Rutherford). It later passed to Charles' brother Thomas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rutherfurd, Robert 1719 births 1794 deaths

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

Barons of the Russian Empire