William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton (1582 – 7 August 1648) was a grandson of the 6th Earl of Morton. He was

Treasurer of Scotland The Treasurer was a senior post in the pre-Act of Union 1707, Union government of Scotland, the Privy Council of Scotland. Lord Treasurer The full title of the post was ''Lord High Treasurer, Comptroller, Collector-General and Treasurer of the Ne ...

, and a zealous

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

Life

He was the son of Robert Douglas, Master of Morton, and Jean Lyon, daughter of

John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis (died 1578) was a Scottish nobleman, judge and Lord High Chancellor of Scotland. Life He was the eldest son of John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis, by his wife, Janet Keith, daughter of Robert Keith, Master of Marischal, and sis ...

. There was a rumour in the summer of 1602 that he, the "young Earl of Morton", would marry Elizabeth Stewart, the eldest daughter of the exiled

Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome * Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Francis (surname) Places * Rural ...

, who was described as "a very gallanr lady". In May 1617 he was travelling in France, and met up in

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...

with Henry Erskine, the son of the

Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. The ...

and his French-born second-wife Marie Stewart. One of their companions fell sick, and Morton asked if the doctors had

bezoar A bezoar is a mass often found trapped in the gastrointestinal system, though it can occur in other locations. A pseudobezoar is an indigestible object introduced intentionally into the digestive system. There are several varieties of bezoar, s ...

stones, and they scorned him for believing in such things. Morton left Bourges for

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

with the

Earl of Angus The Mormaer or Earl of Angus was the ruler of the medieval Scottish Provinces of Scotland, province of Angus, Scotland, Angus. The title, in the Peerage of Scotland, is held by the Duke of Hamilton, and is used as a courtesy title for the eldes ...

, and was thinking of visiting the court of the

Elector Palatine The counts palatine of Lotharingia /counts palatine of the Rhine /electors of the Palatinate (german: Kurfürst von der Pfalz) ruled some part of Rhine area in the Kingdom of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire from 915 to 1803. The title was a kind ...

. Morton himself became ill at Paris of a "dangerous" and "irrecoverable and deadly disease." King James wrote to the

from

Theobalds Theobalds House (also known as Theobalds Palace) in the parish of Cheshunt in the English county of Hertfordshire, was a significant stately home and (later) royal palace of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Set in extensive parkland, it was a r ...

on 26 March 1618 asking him take measures to protect Morton's son's inheritance. However, Morton recovered. Morrton offended decorum at court at the time of the death of

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

. In April 1625, when the body of the king was bought from Theobalds, it was noticed that the Earls of Morton and Roxburghe were not in attendance, but had gone to be "merry" at More Park with

Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford ( Harington; 1580–1627) was a major aristocratic patron of the arts and literature in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras, the primary non-royal performer in contemporary court masques, a letter-writer, and a ...

. Morton was Treasurer of Scotland from 1630 to 1636. He extended his home at

Aberdour Castle Aberdour Castle is in the village of Easter Aberdour, Fife, Scotland. Parts of the castle date from around 1200, making Aberdour one of the two oldest datable standing castles in Scotland, along with Castle Sween in Argyll, which was built a ...

in Fife, with a

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

-style east wing, with a long gallery overlooking a formal terraced garden. On the outbreak of the

Wars of the Three Kingdoms The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were a series of related conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, then separate entities united in a pers ...

in 1642, he provided £100,000 for the Royalist cause by selling his

Dalkeith Dalkeith ( ; gd, Dail Cheith, IPA: �t̪alˈçe is a town in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River Esk. It was granted a burgh of barony in 1401 and a burgh of regality in 1540. The settlement of Dalkeith grew southwestwards from its 12th-cent ...

estates to the

Earl of Buccleuch Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

Family

In June 1602 there was a rumour he would marry one of the Earl of Bothwell's daughters, who was "a very gallant lady". On 28 March 1604, he married Lady Anne Keith, a daughter of

George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal (c. 1553–1623) was a Scottish nobleman and Earl Marischal. He succeeded as earl on 7 October 1581, upon the death of his grandfather, William Keith, 4th Earl Marischal. Early life George Keith was the so ...

, and they had ten children:(douglasshistory.co.uk) *Margaret Douglas (1610–1678), married

Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll Archibald Campbell, Marquess of Argyll, 8th Earl of Argyll, Chief of Clan Campbell (March 160727 May 1661) was a Scottish nobleman, politician, and peer. The ''de facto'' head of Scotland's government during most of the conflict of the 1640s and ...

and had issue. *Anne Douglas (d. 1667), married the

George Hay, 2nd Earl of Kinnoull Sir George Hay, 2nd Earl of Kinnoull, (1596 – 5 October 1644), was a Scottish peer, military officer, and political official. Biography He was the son of George Hay, 1st Earl of Kinnoull, who was created the Earl of Kinnoull by King Charl ...

and had issue. *

Robert Douglas, 8th Earl of Morton Robert Douglas, Earl of Morton (died 12 November 1649) was a Scottish nobleman and Earl of Morton. He was the son of William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton and Lady Anne Keith, daughter of George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal. In 1627, he married Anne ...

(d. 1649), married Anne Villiers, their son was

William Douglas, 9th Earl of Morton William Douglas, Earl of Morton (died before 1 November 1681) was a Scottish nobleman and Earl of Morton. He was the son of Robert Douglas, 8th Earl of Morton, and Anne Villiers. He succeeded as the 9th Earl of Morton on 12 November 1649. Willi ...

(d.1681). *Lady Mary Douglas, married

Charles Seton, 2nd Earl of Dunfermline Charles Seton, 2nd Earl of Dunfermline PC (November 1615 – 11 May 1672), styled Lord Fyvie until the death of his father in 1622, was a Scottish peer. Seton the son of Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline and Margaret, daughter of James ...

and had issue. *

James Douglas, 10th Earl of Morton 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 (disambiguati ...

(d. 1686) He succeeded his nephew as earl in 1681. *Isabel Douglas (d. 1650), who married

James Graham, 2nd Marquess of Montrose James Graham, 2nd Marquess of Montrose ( – February 1669) was a Scottish nobleman and judge, surnamed the "Good" Marquess. Early life He was the second son of James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, by his wife, Lady Magdalene Carnegie, daugh ...

and had issue. *Nicholas Douglas (d. 1686). *Jean Douglas, who married James Home, 3rd Earl of Home. *Agnes Douglas

Claimant to the earldom

John Maxwell, 9th Lord Maxwell John Maxwell, 9th Lord Maxwell ( – 21 May 1613) was a Scottish Catholic nobleman. He escaped from Edinburgh Castle in 1607, and in 1608 shot the Laird of Johnstone. For these crimes, he was executed and his titles were forfeit. Biography The n ...

(c. 1586–1613), a descendant of the 3rd Earl, also claimed the earldom of Morton, but was attainted in 1609 and his rights then failed. His titles and estates were restored in 1618 to his brother Robert, with the title of

Earl of Nithsdale Earl of Nithsdale was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1620 for Robert Maxwell, 9th Lord Maxwell, with remainder to heirs male. He was made Lord Maxwell, Eskdale and Carlyle at the same time. The title of Lord Maxwell had be ...

(1620) in lieu of Morton.

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, William Douglas, 7th Earl Of 1582 births 1648 deaths Earls of Morton Knights of the Garter

William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton William Douglas, 7th Earl of Morton (1582 – 7 August 1648) was a grandson of the 6th Earl of Morton. He was Treasurer of Scotland, and a zealous Royalist. Life He was the son of Robert Douglas, Master of Morton, and Jean Lyon, daughter of ...

17th-century Scottish politicians 17th-century Scottish people Lord High Treasurers of Scotland Cavaliers 1582 in Scotland Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1617 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1621 Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1621 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1625 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1630 Members of the Convention of the Estates of Scotland 1643–44 Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1644–1647