The Right Hon. William Adam of Blair Adam (2 August 175117 February 1839) was a Scottish advocate,

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

, politician and judge. He served as

Solicitor General for Scotland , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png , incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , department = Crown Office and ...

(1802–1805) and as Lord Chief Commissioner of the Jury Court (1815–39). His political career was affected by his father's periodic financial problems, as sometimes the family had substantial wealth and sometimes it was in difficulties, forcing Adam to concentrate his attention on his legal practice. He rose to be Lord Lieutenant of

Kinross-shire The County of Kinross or Kinross-shire is a historic county and registration county in eastern Scotland, administered as part of Perth and Kinross since 1930. Surrounding its largest settlement and county town of Kinross, the county borders Per ...

. His most important contribution to Scottish Law was probably the introduction of

trial by jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significant ...

on civil (non-criminal) cases.

Life

William Adam was the only surviving son of Jean Ramsay and John Adam of Blairadam, architect and master mason to the Board of Ordnance in Scotland, of Maryburgh, Kinross. His uncle was the architect

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his o ...

. Blairadam House where he was born lies just north of

Kelty Kelty (Scottish Gaelic: Cailtidh) is a former coal mining village located in Fife, Scotland. Lying in the heart of the old mining heartlands of Fife, it is situated on the Fife/Kinross-shire boundary and has a population of around 6,000 r ...

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 ...

but on an isolated side road. He was educated at the High School in Edinburgh, then studied law at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

. He trained further at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

from 1769, to qualify as an English barrister. He was admitted to the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constit ...

in 1773 and was eventually called to the

English bar Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. Barristers have traditionally had the role of handling cases for representation in court, both defence and prosecutio ...

in 1782. Adam represented a number of constituencies in Parliament. He was MP for the

rotten borough A rotten or pocket borough, also known as a nomination borough or proprietorial borough, was a parliamentary borough or constituency in England, Great Britain, or the United Kingdom before the Reform Act 1832, which had a very small electorat ...

of Gatton 1774–1780. He represented Wigtown Burghs 1780–1784. He was a Treasury nominee for that seat, as a supporter of

Lord North Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford (13 April 17325 August 1792), better known by his courtesy title Lord North, which he used from 1752 to 1790, was 12th Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He led Great Britain through most o ...

. He moved to another Scottish Burgh seat Elgin Burghs, 1784–1790. In 1790–1794, he sat for

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; gd, Siorrachd Rois) is a historic county in the Scottish Highlands. The county borders Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire – a county consisting of ...

. His last Parliamentary seat was

Kincardineshire Kincardineshire, also known as the Mearns (from the Scottish Gaelic meaning "the Stewartry"), is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area on the coast of northeast Scotland. It is bounded by Aberdeenshire on the north and ...

, which he represented from 1806 until he became a Judge in January 1812. Adam took a very hard line on American issues in the early part of his political career. He was critical of his future political leader

for being too conciliatory before the outbreak of fighting. However, after pursuing an independent course up to 25 November 1779, he then announced in the House of Commons that he was now going to support Lord North. After that he became a loyal friend and defender of North. And Adam had power over all the beasts of the earth by James Gillray

And Adam had power over all the beasts of the earth by James Gillray

Adam particularly disliked the leading opposition figure

Charles James Fox Charles James Fox (24 January 1749 – 13 September 1806), styled ''The Honourable'' from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned 38 years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was the arch-riv ...

. At one stage they fought a duel. He also attacked Fox verbally in Parliament. Adam was appointed to the minor political office of

Treasurer of the Ordnance The Treasurer of the Ordnance was a subordinate of the Master-General of the Ordnance in the United Kingdom, the office being created in 1670. The office was abolished in 1836 and its duties merged with that of several others to form the office ...

. He held this office twice, first between September 1780 and May 1782 and again April–December 1783. On 17–18 February 1783, Adam spoke and voted against peace with the United States. After that, despite his past animosity to Charles James Fox, Adam advocated the Fox-North Coalition, as the only way to stop Lord North's party becoming politically irrelevant. Adam was active in gathering detailed information about the Scottish constituencies, to help his political associates. Thereafter, he was less involved in politics as he developed his career at the English bar. Through his friendship with the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

he was appointed

(1802–1805) and then Attorney General to the Prince (1805–1806). From 1806 to 1815 he was Chancellor of the Duchy of Cornwall, another office in the gift of the Prince. Adam was

Lord Lieutenant of Kinross-shire This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Kinross-shire: *George Graham 17 March 1794 – 18 December 1801 * William Adam 30 January 1802 – 17 February 1839 * Sir Charles Adam 28 March 1839 – 16 September 1853 ...

from 1802 until his death. He became a friend of

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

. In 1812, he published ''Vitruvius Scoticus'', a collection of his grandfather William Adam's architectural projects, which the elder William had first initiated in 1727. During the

Regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

of the Prince of Wales, Adam received judicial office in Scotland. Between 1814 and 1819 he was a Baron of the Scottish Court of Exchequer. Adam became a member of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

on 17 March 1815. He became Lord Chief Commissioner of the Scottish jury court from 1815 until his death. In 1832-33, his home address was 31

Charlotte Square 300px, Robert Adam's palace-fronted north side Charlotte Square is a garden square in Edinburgh, Scotland, part of the New Town, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The square is located at the west end of George Street and was intend ...

in Edinburgh. He died in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

on 17 February 1839, and was buried at

Greyfriars Kirkyard Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century, and a num ...

He lies in the huge family vault built for his grandfather, William Adam the architect, facing his father, John Adam. The vault lies south-west of the church, in front of the Covenanters Prison.

Family

On 7 May 1777, William Adam married Eleanora Elphinstone (died 4 February 1800), daughter of Charles, 10th

Lord Elphinstone Lord Elphinstone is a title in the Peerage of Scotland created by King James IV in 1510. History The title of Lord Elphinstone was granted by King James IV in 1510 to Sir Alexander Elphinstone of Elphinstone, who was killed at the Battle of ...

. They had six children: #

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 ...

(4 May 17794 June 1825), civil servant of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

, served as acting

Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1 ...

in 1823. #

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

(6 October 178016 September 1853), Admiral in the Royal Navy, MP, #William George KC (6 December 178116 May 1839), lawyer, Accountant-General of the Court of Chancery. #

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederick ...

(17 June 178417 August 1853), General in the British Army,

Governor of Madras This is a list of the governors, agents, and presidents of colonial Madras, initially of the English East India Company, up to the end of British colonial rule in 1947. English Agents In 1639, the grant of Madras to the English was finalized b ...

1832–37. #Francis James (24 March 17918 June 1820) died of

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

at sea with Charles #Clementina (died 29 October 1877), married on 27 April 1807,

John Anstruther-Thomson Colonel John Anstruther-Thomson of Charleton (15 April 1776 – 10 April 1833) was a Scottish nobleman and Colonel of the Royal Fifeshire Yeomanry Cavalry. Family Anstruther-Thomson was the son of Colonel John Anstruther and Grizel Maria Thomson ...

, DL, of

Charleton Charleton is a civil parish in the English county of Devon. In 2001 its population was 511. The parish forms part of the Saltstone electoral ward. At the 2011 census the ward had a population of 1,529. Forming part of the South Hams Sout ...

, Fife.

Notes

References

*''History of Parliament: House of Commons 1754–1790'', by Sir

Lewis Namier Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (; 27 June 1888 – 19 August 1960) was a British historian of Polish-Jewish background. His best-known works were ''The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' (1929), ''England in the Age of the Ameri ...

and

James Brooke Sir James Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak (29 April 1803 – 11 June 1868), was a British soldier and adventurer who founded the Raj of Sarawak in Borneo. He ruled as the first White Rajah of Sarawak from 1841 until his death in 1868. Brooke was bor ...

(Sidgwick & Jackson 1964) * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adam, William 1751 births 1839 deaths 19th-century Scottish politicians 18th-century Scottish people 19th-century Scottish people People from Perth and Kinross People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh School of Law Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Burials at Greyfriars Kirkyard Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Lord-Lieutenants of Kinross-shire Members of the Faculty of Advocates Members of Lincoln's Inn Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies Politics of Dumfries and Galloway Politics of Moray Politics of Highland (council area) Politics of Aberdeenshire Politics of Clackmannanshire Politics of Perth and Kinross Scottish architecture writers Barons of the Court of Exchequer (Scotland) Scottish King's Counsel Scottish Tory MPs (pre-1912) Solicitors General for Scotland British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1780–1784 British MPs 1790–1796 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812