Sir James Montgomery, 4th Baronet (or Montgomerie, died 1694) was the tenth
laird of
Skelmorlie
Skelmorlie is a village in North Ayrshire in the south-west of Scotland. Although it is the northernmost settlement in the council area of North Ayrshire, it is contiguous with Wemyss Bay, which is in Inverclyde. The dividing line is the Kelly B ...
. He was a Scottish politician known for the Montgomery Plot, a
Jacobite scheme to restore
King James VII and II to the thrones of Scotland and England.
Early years
He was eldest son of Sir Robert Montgomery, 3rd Baronet, by his wife Anna or Antonia, second daughter and coheiress of Sir John Scott of Rossie,
Fife
Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...
. His father died on 7 February 1684, and James became his heir on 3 February 1685. In April 1684 his widowed mother made a strong appeal to him to make suitable provision for her and her fatherless children, but to this he replied that, for the sake of peace, he had already conceded more than legal obligations required. On 2 October 1684 Montgomery was imprisoned and fined for harbouring
covenanter
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 ''Covenan ...
s, religious rebels, and on 7 May 1685 he and his mother were pursued on account of
conventicles held in his father's lifetime, but both pleaded that they were not responsible.
Revolution of 1688
Montgomery visited Holland in connection with the invitation to
William of Orange to invade England on behalf of Protestantism; but
Balcarres rejects the notion that Montgomery had any commission to do so, since he possessed no influence, "except with some few of the most bigoted fanatics". He was chosen as member for the
county of Ayr
Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of R ...
in the
Convention of the Estates of Scotland which met on 14 March 1689, when he distinguished himself by his eloquent advocacy of the resolution proposed by
Sir John Dalrymple, that King James had forfeited his throne and kingdom. The resolution being carried, Montgomery was named one of three commissioners for the shires to offer the Scottish crown to
William III William III or William the Third may refer to:
Kings
* William III of Sicily (c. 1186–c. 1198)
* William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702)
* William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg ...
and
Mary II
Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III & II, from 1689 until her death in 1694.
Mary was the eldest daughter of James, Duke of York, and his first wife ...
.
After the convention had been formally converted into a parliament, he continued to sit for Ayrshire until he was obliged to stand down in 1693 for not having signed the Assurance (pledge of allegiance to King William III). His ambition had already selected the office of
secretary of state for Scotland
The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...
, as that alone commensurate with his services and abilities; and when
George Melville, 1st Earl of Melville
George Melville, 1st Earl of Melville (163620 May 1707) was a Scottish aristocrat and statesman during the reign of William III and Mary II.
In 1643, he succeeded his father as Lord Melville.
Career
At the Restoration of the Stuarts Melvill ...
, chiefly on account of his moderate opinions, was preferred, Montgomery, although offered the office of
lord justice clerk, so deeply resented the supposed slight that he determined at all hazards to have revenge, and immediately set himself to organise a political society called The Club, the main purpose of which was to concert measures against the government.
Montgomery Plot
In parliament he led with great ability and eloquence the opposition against Sir John Dalrymple, the two, according to Balcarres, frequently scolding each other "like watermen". Towards the close of the session he went to London with his closest confederates, the
Earl of Annandale
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 ...
and
Lord Ross, to present a declaration of Scottish grievances to the king, but the king declined to listen to their complaints.
Thereupon Montgomery entered into communication with the Jacobite agent,
Neville Payne, and they concerted together a plot for the restoration of King James, known as the Montgomery Plot, each being, according to Balcarres, more or less the dupe of the other. Montgomery's coalition with the Jacobites proved to him rather a hindrance than a help in parliament, and as soon as his influence began to wane the Jacobites revolted against him. A quarrel ensued, and soon afterwards Lord Ross made confession of his connection with the plot to a presbyterian minister, who informed Melville. On learning this Montgomery went to Melville, and on promise of an indemnity confessed all he knew, making it, however, a condition that he should not be obliged to be "an evidence or legal witness". Melville sent him, with a recommendation in his favour, to
Queen Mary, to whom he pleaded for "some place which might enable him to subsist with decency". She wrote on his behalf to King William, but the king had conceived such an antipathy to him that he declined to utilise his services on any consideration. According to
Gilbert Burnet
Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch, French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Burnet was highly respected as a cleric, a preacher, an academic, ...
, Montgomery's "art in managing such a design, and his firmness in not discovering his accomplices raised his character as much as it ruined his fortunes". After lying for some time in concealment in London, he passed over to Paris, where he was well received by the Jacobites. Some time afterwards he returned to London, and on 11 January 1694 was taken into custody, on the accusation of being the author of several virulent papers against the government; but on the 18th he made his escape from the house of the messenger where he was confined, the two sentinels who guarded the door leaving their arms and going with him. He escaped to the continent, reaching Paris by 15 February, and he died at
St. Germains
Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris.
Inhabitants are called ''Saint-Germanois'' or ''Saint-Ger ...
before 6 October 1694.
[DNB:''ib''. p. 380] By Lady Margaret Johnstone, second daughter of
James Johnstone, 1st Earl of Annandale, he had two sons:
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 ...
(1680-1731) and William.
Works
Montgomery was the author of "The People of England's Grievances to be enquired into and redressed by their Representatives in Parliament", reprinted in
Somers ''Tracts'', x. 542-6. The authorship of other political pamphlets attributed to him has been claimed by
Robert Ferguson the Plotter, and in some instances there may have been a joint authorship. A portrait of Montgomerie in armour has been engraved.
References
;Attribution
*; Endnotes:
**
Colin Lindsay, 3rd Earl of Balcarres
Colin Lindsay, 3rd Earl of Balcarres (1652–1722) was a Scottish aristocrat and politician, one of the most important supporters of James II of England.
Biography
Early life
Colin Lindsay was baptized at Kilconquhar on 23 August 1652, the seco ...
,
Memoirs touching the revolution in Scotland' (
Bannatyne Club)
**
John Lauder, Lord Fountainhall
Sir John Lauder of Fountainhall, 2nd Baronet, Lord Fountainhall (baptised 2 August 1646 – 20 September 1722) was one of Scotland's leading jurists who remains to this day an oft consulted authority. He was knighted in 1680 and matriculated his ...
Historical Notices of Scottish Affairs' (Bannatyne Club)
**
Leven and Melville ''Papers'' (Bannatyne Club)
**
Gilbert Burnet
Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch, French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Burnet was highly respected as a cleric, a preacher, an academic, ...
: ''History of my Own Time''
**
Narcissus Luttrell
Narcissus Luttrell (1657–1732) was an English historian, diarist, and bibliographer, and briefly Member of Parliament for two different Cornish boroughs. His ''Brief Historical Relation of State Affairs from September 1678 to April 1714'', a ch ...
,
A brief historical relation of state affairs: from September 1678 to April 1714'
**
William Carstares
William Carstares (also Carstaires) (11 February 164928 December 1715) was a minister of the Church of Scotland, active in Whig politics.
Early life
Carstares was born at Cathcart, near Glasgow, Scotland, the son of the Rev. John Carstares, a ...
, ''State Papers''
**
Catharine Macaulay
Catharine Macaulay (née Sawbridge, later Graham; 23 March 1731 – 22 June 1791), was an English Whig republican historian.
Early life
Catharine Macaulay was a daughter of John Sawbridge (1699–1762) and his wife Elizabeth Wanley (died 1733 ...
, ''Hist. of England''
**, a biography of
Robert Ferguson
**
Noble
A noble is a member of the nobility.
Noble may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Noble Glacier, King George Island
* Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land
* Noble Peak, Wiencke Island
* Noble Rocks, Graham Land
Australia
* Noble Island, Great B ...
's ''Continuation'' of
James Granger's ''Biographical History of England'', i. 219-20
**
Douglas
Douglas may refer to:
People
* Douglas (given name)
* Douglas (surname)
Animals
*Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking
*Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...
, ''Scottish Peerage'' (
Wood
Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...
), i. 509
**
Sir William Fraser
Sir William Augustus Fraser, 4th Baronet (10 February 182617 August 1898), of Pilton House, near Barnstaple, Devon, was an English politician, author and collector. He was elected member of parliament for Barnstaple (Devon) in 1852, and again in ...
, ''Montgomeries, Earls of Eglinton'', i. 162-5.
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, James
1694 deaths
Lairds
17th-century Scottish people
17th-century Scottish politicians
Shire Commissioners to the Parliament of Scotland
Scottish Jacobites
Year of birth unknown
Baronets in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia
Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1689
Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1689–1702