John Ruaridh Grant Mackenzie, 5th Earl of Cromartie (born 12 June 1948) is a Scottish engineer and peer. He is the current chief of

Clan Mackenzie Clan Mackenzie ( gd, Clann Choinnich ) is a Scottish clan, traditionally associated with Kintail and lands in Ross-shire in the Scottish Highlands. Traditional genealogies trace the ancestors of the Mackenzie chiefs to the 12th century. Howev ...

Early life

He is the only child of

Roderick Mackenzie, 4th Earl of Cromartie Roderick Grant Francis Blunt-Mackenzie, 4th Earl of Cromartie, (24 October 1904 – 13 December 1989) was a Scottish soldier and peer. In 1979, he was recognised as the chief of Clan Mackenzie. Ancestry and early life Blunt-Mackenzie was born o ...

and his second wife, the former Olga ( née Laurence) Mendoza (d. 1996). His mother, who was previously married to Peter Mendoza, was a daughter of Stuart Laurance of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. From his father's first marriage to Dorothy Downing Porter, he has two elder half-sisters, Lady Julia Blunt-Mackenzie and Lady Gilean Blunt-Mackenzie. His paternal grandmother was Lady Sibell Lilian Mackenzie, ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

'' Countess of Cromartie, who married his grandfather, Lt.-Col. Edward Walter Blunt later Blunt-Mackenzie DL (the eldest son of Maj.-Gen. Charles Harris

Blunt Blunt may refer to: * Blunt (surname), a surname (and list of people with the name) * Blunt (cigar), a term used in the cigar industry to designate blunt-tipped, usually factory-rolled cigars * Blunt (cannabis), a slang term used in cannabis cult ...

Adderbury Adderbury is a winding linear village and rural civil parish about south of Banbury in northern Oxfordshire, England. The settlement has five sections: the new Milton Road housing Development & West Adderbury towards the southwest; East Adder ...

Manor). He was educated at

Rannoch School Rannoch School was an independent boarding school, located on the south shore of Loch Rannoch in Perth and Kinross, Scotland on the Dall Estate, from Kinloch Rannoch. Dall House served as the main school building and a boarding house. It was ...

, Perthshire and at

Strathclyde University The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal c ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

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 Scotl ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

Career

Lord Cromartie is registered as a Member of the Institution of Explosives Engineers (M.I.Exp.E.) as an explosives engineer. He has held the position of Chief of Clan Mackenzie since 1980, wrote the book ''Selected Climbs in Skye'', published in 1982. He succeeded to the titles of 5th Baron Castlehaven, of Castlehaven, 5th

Viscount Tarbat A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, of Tarbat, 5th

Baron MacLeod Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

of Castle Leod, and 5th

Earl of Cromartie Earl of Cromartie () is a title that has been created twice, both for members of the Mackenzie family. It was first created as Earl of Cromarty in the Peerage of Scotland in 1703 for Sir George Mackenzie, 2nd Baronet, but his titles were forfe ...

on 13 December 1989. The seat of the Earl is at Castle Leod, Strathpeffer,

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 o ...

Personal life

Cromartie married firstly Helen Murray, daughter of John Murray, a steelworker at

, in 1973, and divorced in 1983, by whom he had an only son: * Hon. Kenneth Mackenzie (1980–1980), who died in infancy. He married secondly Janet Clare Harley, daughter of Christopher James Harley of Strathpeffer, Ross-shire, in 1985. They have two sons: * Colin Ruaridh Mackenzie, Viscount Tarbat (b. 1987) * Hon. Alasdair Kenelm Stuart Mackenzie (b. 1989)

References

Alumni of the University of Strathclyde Scottish engineers British geologists Living people People from Ross and Cromarty 1948 births Explosives engineers Earls of Cromartie (1861) {{Scotland-earl-stub