Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, 9th Baronet, KT,

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(8 March 181815 January 1878) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

historical writer,

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. Until 1865 he was known as William Stirling, and several of his books were published under that name. He was

Chancellor of the University of Glasgow The chancellor is the titular head of the University of Glasgow and president of the general council, by whom they are elected. The office is intended to be held for life. Their principal duty is to confer degrees upon those presented to them b ...

from 1875 until his death and was also a

Knight of the Thistle The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland, who asserted that he was reviving an earlier order. The ...

, considered the highest honour that can be conferred by the Crown on a Scotsman.

Life

Stirling was born at Kenmure, the son of Archibald Stirling,

Esq. Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman an ...

, of

Keir Keir is a surname and given name shortened from Keiron. Notable people with the name include: Surname *Andrew Keir (1926–1997), Scottish actor * Colin Keir (born 1959), Scottish politician * David Keir (1884–1971), British actor * David Li ...

and Cawder, and Elizabeth Maxwell, sister of

Sir John Maxwell, 8th Baronet Sir John Maxwell, 8th Baronet, FRSE (12 May 1791 – 6 June 1865) was a Scottish landowner and politician. Life Maxwell was born at Pollok House, Renfrewshire on 12 May 1791 the son of Hannah Anne Gardiner and her husband, Sir John Maxwell, ...

, and Harriet Maxwell (died 1812) and daughter of

Sir John Maxwell, 7th Baronet Sir John Maxwell, 7th Baronet, of Pollok (31 October 1768 – 30 July 1844) was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Paisley from 10 December 1832 until resigning in 1834. The eldest son of Sir James Maxwell, 6th Baronet, of Pollok and Frances Col ...

and Hannah or Anne Gardiner, daughter of Richard Gardiner, of Aldborough,

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

. Stirling's father owned a number of slave plantations in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

and fathered at least six illegitimate children with women of colour, including Edward Stirling who became one of the first settlers in South Australia. He was privately educated at Olney in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

then studied at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, graduating with a BA degree in 1839 and proceeding to MA in 1843. He travelled in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

and contributed to ''

Fraser's Magazine ''Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country'' was a general and literary journal published in London from 1830 to 1882, which initially took a strong Tory line in politics. It was founded by Hugh Fraser and William Maginn in 1830 and loosely direc ...

'' and the ''

Examiner Examiner or The Examiner may refer to: Occupations * Bank examiner, a kind of auditor * Examiner (Roman Catholicism), a type of office in the Roman Catholic Church * Examinership, a concept in Irish law * Medical examiner * Patent examiner * ...

''. In 1848 he published his pioneering ''Annals of the Artists of Spain''. He succeeded to the

estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...

s in 1847. In 1849 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

his proposer being John Russell. He served as the Society's vice president from 1871 to 1875. He served as Member of Parliament for

Perthshire Perthshire (Scottish English, locally: ; ), officially the County of Perth, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore, Angus and Perth & Kinross, Strathmore ...

from 1852 to 1868 and again from 1874 to 1878. He was appointed a Member of the Universities Commission in 1859 and of the

Historical Manuscripts Commission The Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts (widely known as the Historical Manuscripts Commission, and abbreviated as the HMC to distinguish it from the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England), was a United Kingdom Royal Co ...

from 1872 to 1878, as well as of the Scottish Education Board (a forerunner to the

Scottish Office The Scottish Office was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Following the es ...

). He was elected Rector of the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

in 1862 and of the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

in 1871. He succeeded to the Maxwell Baronetcy (in the

Baronetage of Nova Scotia Baronets are hereditary titles awarded by the Crown. The current baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier, existing baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland and Great Britain. To be recognised as a baronet, it is necessary ...

) in 1865, assuming the additional name of Maxwell. He was elected

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

of the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

in 1875, the first to have been elected by members of the General Council (previous Chancellors having been elected by members of the Senate), and was awarded an Honorary DCL from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in the following year. He was a member of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

Senate and a

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

of the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

and the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

. He lived at Keir House near

Dunblane Dunblane (, ) is a town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links to much of the Central Be ...

. He was a

breeder A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist ...

shorthorn The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late eighteenth century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always em ...

s and Clydesdale horses, an ardent

bibliographer Bibliography (from and ), as a discipline, is traditionally the academic study of books as physical, cultural objects; in this sense, it is also known as bibliology (from ). English author and bibliographer John Carter describes ''bibliograph ...

and collector of

works of art A work of art, artwork, art piece, piece of art or art object is an artistic creation of aesthetic value. Except for "work of art", which may be used of any work regarded as art in its widest sense, including works from literature ...

. He died on holiday in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

on 15 January 1878 but his body was returned to Britain and he is buried in the

Lecropt Lecropt (''Leac Croit'' in Gaelic) is a rural parish lying to the west of Bridge of Allan, Scotland. The population of the parish of Lecropt is estimated to be around 75, consisting entirely of isolated farms and houses, as well as the Keir Esta ...

Churchyard near

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

Marriages and issue

He married firstly Lady Anna Maria Leslie-Melville (died 8 December 1874), daughter of

David Leslie-Melville, 8th Earl of Leven David Leslie-Melville, 8th Earl of Leven, 7th Earl of Melville (1785–1860) was a Scottish peer and admiral. He entered the Royal Navy c. 1800; he became Rear Admiral in 1846, and Vice Admiral in 1858. He was a Representative Peer (Tory), for S ...

and Elizabeth Anne Campbell, and had, at least: *

Sir John Stirling-Maxwell, 10th Baronet Sir John Maxwell Stirling-Maxwell, 10th Baronet, KT, DL, FRSE (6 June 1866 – 30 May 1956) was a Scottish landowner, Tory politician and philanthropist. Life The eldest son of Sir William Stirling-Maxwell, 9th Baronet and Lady Anna Maria ...

, of Pollok * Brigadier General Archibald Stirling, of Keir (14 September 186718 February 1931), married on 14 April 1910 The Hon. Margaret Mary Fraser (25 June 18814 August 1972), daughter of

Simon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat Simon Fraser, 13th Lord Lovat and 2nd Baron Lovat, (21 December 1828 – 6 September 1887) was a Scottish nobleman, landowner, and soldier. He was the 22nd Chief of Clan Fraser of Lovat in the Scottish Highlands, and responsible for overseeing ...

and Alice Mary Weld-Blundell, and had six children: ** William Joseph Stirling, of Keir (9 May 19111 January 1983), married on 22 November 1940 Susan Rachel Bligh (12 August 19161983), daughter of The Hon. Noel Gervase Bligh and Mary Frost and granddaughter of

Ivo Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley Ivo Francis Walter Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley (13 March 1859 – 10 April 1927), styled The Honourable Ivo Bligh until 1900, lord of the manor of Cobham, Kent, was a British nobleman, parliamentarian and cricketer. Bligh captained the Engl ...

and Florence Rose Morphy, and had five children: *** Archibald Hugh Stirling, of Keir (born 18 September 1941) *** James Joseph Stirling (1943–1943) *** Hannah Ann Stirling (born 29 May 1944), married on 7 January 1970

Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury Robert Michael James Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, Baron Gascoyne-Cecil (born 30 September 1946) is a British Conservative politician. From 1979 to 1987 he represented South Dorset in the House of Commons, and in the 1990s he was L ...

(born 30 September 1946) *** Magdalen Stirling (born 25 November 1945), married in 1969 Patrick Petit, and had issue *** John Alexander Stirling (born 26 February 1948), married first in 1971 Susan Black, without issue, and married secondly in 1985 Olivia Louise Waller, and had three children: **** Joseph Patrick William Stirling (born 1985) **** Christabel Georgia Stirling (born 1987) **** Hugh David Archibald Stirling (born 1993) ** Peter John Stirling (1 February 191315 April 1994), married on 6 February 1963 Mahin Feli **

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

Sir Archibald David Stirling (15 November 19154 November 1990) ** Hugh Joseph Stirling (4 May 1917 k.i.a.,

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

, 22 April 1941), unmarried and without issue ** Margaret Elizabeth Mary Stirling (4 July 19149 February 1997), married on 26 June 1940

Simon Ramsay, 16th Earl of Dalhousie Simon Ramsay, 16th Earl of Dalhousie, (17 October 1914 – 15 July 1999), styled The Honourable Simon Ramsay between 1928 and 1950, was a British land owner, Scottish Unionist Party politician and colonial governor. Background and education ...

(17 October 19141999) ** Irene Katharine Teresa Stirling (9 March 1919February 1992) In March 1877, Stirling Maxwell married secondly noted author and society figure

Caroline Norton Caroline Elizabeth Sarah Norton, Lady Stirling-Maxwell (''née'' Sheridan; 22 March 1808 – 15 June 1877) was an active English social reformer and author.Perkin, pp. 26–28. She left her husband, who was accused by many of coercive behaviour, ...

, a granddaughter of the famous Irish playwright

Richard Brinsley Sheridan Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan (30 October 17517 July 1816) was an Anglo-Irish playwright, writer and Whig politician who sat in the British House of Commons from 1780 to 1812, representing the constituencies of Stafford, Westminster and I ...

. She died three months later.

Selected publications

Anonymous

*''Songs of the Holy Land'' (privately printed, 1846) *''An Essay towards a Collection of Books Relating to Proverbs, Emblems, Apophthegms, Epitaphs, and Ana'' (privately printed, 1860) *''Ut Pictura Poesis, or An Attempt to Explain in Verse The Emblemata Horatiana of Otho Vaenius'' (privately printed, 1875), contributed the Bibliography of van Veen

As William Stirling

*''Annals of the Artists of Spain'' (1847) *''The Cloister Life of the Emperor Charles the Fifth'' (London: John W. Parker & Son, 1852) *''Velazquez and his Works'' (1855) *''Napoleon's Bequest to Cantillon: a Fragment of International History'' (1858)

As Sir William Stirling-Maxwell

*''Don John of Austria'' (two volumes, 1883)

Notes

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * *

Sources

* http://www.geneall.net/U/per_page.php?id=335061

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stirling-Maxwell, William 1818 births 1878 deaths People from Bishopbriggs Nobility from East Dunbartonshire Chancellors of the University of Glasgow 9 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies Scottish art historians Scottish bibliographers Rectors of the University of Edinburgh Rectors of the University of St Andrews UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1874–1880 Scottish Tory MPs (pre-1912) William Stirling Clan Stirling