William Hamilton (died 1724) was a Scottish antiquarian.

Life

He was a son of William Hamilton of

Wishaw Wishaw ( sco, Wishae or Wisha ; gd, Camas Neachdain) is a large town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, on the edge of the Clyde Valley, south-east of Glasgow city centre. The Burgh of Wishaw was formed in 1855 within Lanarkshire. it formed ...

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...

, and grandson of John Hamilton of Udston who claimed descent from

James Hamilton of Cadzow James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

; his mother was Beatrix, daughter of James Douglas of Morton. The third son in a large family, he ultimately succeeded to the family estate of Wishaw. Hamilton was a reputed antiquarian and genealogist, praised by

George Crawfurd George Crawford (also Crawfurd) (1681-1748) was a Scottish genealogist and historian. Life He was the third son of Thomas Crawfurd of Cartsburn. When Simon Fraser laid claim to the barony of Lovat, he employed Crawfurd to investigate the case ...

, and an acknowledged supporter of

Alexander Nisbet Alexander Nisbet (bapt. 23 March 1657; died 7 Dec. 1725) was a Scottish lawyer and antiquarian. He is remembered for his works on the subject of heraldry, which are generally considered to be some of the most complete and authoritative ever pr ...

's ''System of Heraldry'' (1722). He died at an advanced age in 1724, having been born in the 1630s.

Works

Hamilton left in manuscript an ''Account of the Shyres of Renfrew and Lanark'', which went to the

Advocates' Library The Advocates Library, founded in 1682, is the law library of the Faculty of Advocates, in Edinburgh. It served as the national deposit library of Scotland until 1925, at which time through an Act of Parliament the National Library of Scotland w ...

, Edinburgh. In 1832 it was published as one of the volumes of the

Maitland Club The Maitland Club was a Scottish historical and literary club and text publication society, modelled on the Roxburghe Club and the Bannatyne Club. It took its name from Sir Richard Maitland (later Lord Lethington), the Scottish poet. The club was ...

, edited by

William Motherwell William Motherwell (13 October 1797, Glasgow – 1 November 1835, Glasgow) was a Scottish poet, antiquary and journalist. Life Motherwell was born at Glasgow, the son of Willan and Jane Motherwell. His father was an ironmonger. He was se ...

, and consists of brief topographical descriptions of the principal castles and mansions in Renfrewshire and Lanarkshire, with genealogical information on local families.

Family

Hamilton married, first, in 1660, his first cousin, Anne, daughter of John Hamilton of Udston, with whom he had six sons and a daughter. Secondly, he married in 1676 Mary, eldest daughter of the Hon. Sir Charles Erskine, son of John, 7th Earl of Mar, by whom he had five sons and six daughters. Of those: *William Hamilton, the third son of the marriage, was the father of

William Gerard Hamilton William Gerard Hamilton (28 January 172916 July 1796), was an English statesman and Irish politician, popularly known as "Single Speech Hamilton". Biography He was born in London, the son of William Hamilton, a Scottish bencher of Lincoln's I ...

; and *Alexander, the fifth son, was grandfather to

William Richard Hamilton William Richard Hamilton, Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS, (9 September 1777 – 11 July 1859) was a British antiquarian, traveller and diplomat. Early life Hamilton was born in St Martin-in-the-Fields, London in 1777. He was the son of Rev. An ...

The Belhaven title and descent

Robert, the second son of the first marriage, died during his father's life; his son William inherited Wishaw on the death of his grandfather. By an entail executed by

John Hamilton, 2nd Lord Belhaven John Hamilton, 2nd Lord Belhaven and Stenton (5 July 1656 – 21 June 1708) was a Scottish peer, landowner and politician. Life He was the eldest son of Robert Hamilton, Lord Presmennan (d. 1696). Having married Margaret, granddaughter of John Ham ...

, Robert, son of this William Hamilton, should have succeeded to the title

Lord Belhaven and Stenton Lord Belhaven and Stenton, of the County of Haddington, is a Lordship of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1647 for Sir John Hamilton, 2nd Baronet, with remainder to his heirs male. History This branch of the prominent H ...

. He did not assume the dignity, however, and his eldest son, who claimed the title, became seventh Lord Belhaven. His son

Robert Montgomery Hamilton Robert Montgomery Hamilton, 8th Lord Belhaven and Stenton, KT (1793 – 22 December 1868) was a Scottish peer and politician. Background Born at Wishaw House, he was the son of William Hamilton, 7th Lord Belhaven and Stenton, and Penelope M ...

(1793–1868) was eighth Lord Belhaven and Stenton. The title was then adjudged to a distant relation, who became James Hamilton, 9th Lord Belhaven and Stenton, by the House of Lords in 1875.

Notes

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, William Year of birth missing 1724 deaths Scottish antiquarians Scottish genealogists Scottish topographers People from Lanarkshire 18th-century Scottish historians 17th-century Scottish historians