William Forbes-Sempill, 17th Lord Sempill (20 May 1836 – 21 July 1905), born William Forbes, was a Scottish peer, the 17th

Lord Sempill Lord Sempill (also variously rendered as Semple or Semphill) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in circa 1489 for Sir John Sempill, founder of the collegiate Church of Lochwinnoch. Sempill was killed at the Battle of Flodde ...

and 8th Baronet of Craigievar. He was the son of Sir John Forbes, 7th Baronet, and succeeded his father to the baronetcy on his death in February 1846, at the age of seven. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and then joined the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

in 1854; he served in the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

, rising to the rank of captain. In 1884, he inherited the title of Lord Sempill from his relation

Maria Jane Sempill, 16th Lady Sempill Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

, and adopted the surname of Sempill. He married three times, the first time in 1858 to Caroline, the only daughter of Sir Charles Forbes, 3rd Baronet; this ended in divorce in 1861, after the birth of one daughter, Katherine. Katherine married the naturalist George Muirhead

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 letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

in 1907. The second marriage was in 1862 to Frances Emily Abercromby, the youngest daughter of

Sir Robert Abercromby, 5th Baronet Sir Robert Abercromby, 5th Baronet of Birkenbog and Forglen, FRSE KGCB DL (4 February 1784 – 6 July 1855) was a Scottish politician. Life He was the son of Sir George Abercromby, 4th Baronet, and Jane Ogilvie, the daughter of Alexander Og ...

, in 1862. They had seven children, five sons and two daughters. Their third son, William, died aged one. The remaining sons served in the military. The eldest,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

commanded a battalion of the

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment ...

at the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...

. The second son, Douglas, a Major in the

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw servic ...

, was killed on the North-West Frontier of India in 1908. The fourth son, Robert, a Lieutenant in the 5th Bn.

Gordon Highlanders Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

, was killed by a sniper on 2 June 1915, aged 45, near

Festubert Festubert is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. The village was on the Western Front during the First World War and was largely destroyed in the May 1915 Battle of Festubert. Geography A farming v ...

whilst working with his men repairing a gap blown in the parapet of their trench. He is buried in Le Touret Military Cemetery. The youngest of the four,

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

, was in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, and survived the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...

.p.6, The elder daughter, Evelyn, married

Duncan Vernon Pirie Duncan Vernon Pirie OBE FRSGS JP DL (22 March 1858 – 11 January 1931) was a Scottish Liberal politician who served as MP for Aberdeen North for 22 years. Background and education Duncan Pirie was born in Aberdeen in 1858, the eldest of ...

MP, whilst the younger, Gertrude, never married. The third marriage was in 1890, to Mary Sherbrooke. On his death in 1905, his titles were inherited by his son

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sempill, William Forbes-Sempill, 17th Lord 1836 births 1905 deaths People educated at Eton College Coldstream Guards officers British Army personnel of the Crimean War Lords Sempill

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...