Agnes Douglas, Countess Of Argyll
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Agnes Douglas, Countess of Argyll (1574 – 3 May 1607) was a Scottish noblewoman and the first wife of
Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll Archibald may refer to: People and characters *Archibald (name), a masculine given name and a surname * Archibald (musician) (1916–1973), American R&B pianist * Archibald, a character from the animated TV show '' Archibald the Koala'' Other us ...
. She was the mother of three of his children, including his heir,
Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll (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 1650s known as the Wars of the Three K ...
, the de facto head of the government in Scotland throughout most of the conflict known as the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were a series of 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 in a personal union un ...
. Lady Agnes was considered so beautiful that she was described as a "pearl of Lochleven."


Family

Lady Agnes Douglas was born at
Lochleven Castle Lochleven Castle is a ruined castle on an island in Loch Leven, in the Perth and Kinross local authority area of Scotland. Possibly built around 1300, the castle was the site of military action during the Wars of Scottish Independence (1296–1 ...
, Scotland, in 1574, one of the eleven children of Sir
William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton (c. 1540 – 1606) was the son of Robert Douglas of Lochleven and Margaret Erskine, a former mistress of James V of Scotland. Career Connections William Douglas's half-brother from his mother's liaison with t ...
, and Agnes Leslie. She had four brothers and six sisters. Lady Agnes and her sisters were so famed for their beauty throughout Scotland that they were known as the "pearls of Lochleven". Her paternal grandparents were Sir Robert Douglas and Margaret Erskine, a former mistress of King
James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV a ...
, and her maternal grandparents were George Leslie, 4th Earl of Rothes, and Margaret Crichton, an illegitimate daughter of
Princess Margaret Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. She was the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth II. ...
, the youngest sister of King James III. Her half-uncle was
James Stewart, Earl of Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. At times a supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotl ...
,
Regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
of Scotland, and the illegitimate son of her grandmother, Margaret, from the latter's liaison with King James V. He was assassinated in 1570. Before Agnes's birth, from June 1567 until her escape in May 1568,
Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...
, was a prisoner at Lochleven Castle, where her father served as custodian and her mother was the queen's closest female companion. The queen escaped from Lochleven with the aid of George Douglas, Agnes's uncle, and Willy Douglas, a cousin who was resident at the castle. Her father succeeded to the Earldom of Morton in 1588 as the 6th earl upon the death of his kinsman, Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Morton. The title had been forfeited in 1581 when
James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581) was a Scottish nobleman. He played a leading role in the murders of Queen Mary's confidant, David Rizzio, and king consort murder of Lord Darnley, Henry Darnley. He was the last of th ...
, regent of Scotland, was executed and attainted for his part in the murder of
Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546 – 10 February 1567) was King of Scotland as the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 29 July 1565 until his murder in 1567. Lord Darnley had one child with Mary, the future James VI of Scotland and ...
, in 1567. It was restored to the Douglas family in 1586.


Marriage and children

On 24 July 1592 at
Dalkeith Palace Dalkeith Palace is a country house in Dalkeith, Midlothian, Scotland. It was the seat of the Duke of Buccleuch, Dukes of Buccleuch from 1642 until 1914, and is owned by the Buccleuch Living Heritage Trust. The present palace was built 1701–1711 ...
, she married, as his first wife,
Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll Archibald may refer to: People and characters *Archibald (name), a masculine given name and a surname * Archibald (musician) (1916–1973), American R&B pianist * Archibald, a character from the animated TV show '' Archibald the Koala'' Other us ...
, the son of
Colin Campbell, 6th Earl of Argyll Colin Campbell, 6th Earl of Argyll (c. 1542– October 1584) was a Scottish nobleman and politician. He was appointed to the Lord Chancellorship of Scotland. Biography He was the eldest son of Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll and his seco ...
, and Agnes Keith. Agnes, who was a
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, was instrumental in her husband's later decision to convert to the Catholic faith in 1618, eleven years after her death. Despite Agnes's religion, he commanded the royal troops which fought against the Catholic rebels led by
George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly (156213 June 1636) was a Scottish nobleman who took a leading role in the political and military life of Scotland in the late 16th century, and around the time of the Union of the Crowns. Biography The son ...
, in the
Battle of Glenlivet The Battle of Glenlivet was a Scottish clan battle fought on 3 October 1594 near Glenlivet, Moray, Scotland. It was fought between Protestant forces loyal to King James VI of Scotland who were commanded by Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Arg ...
on 3 October 1594. Argyll's forces were defeated by the numerically smaller forces of Huntly. The marriage produced three children: * Lady Annabel Campbell (died 1652), married
Robert Kerr, 2nd Earl of Lothian Robert Kerr, 2nd Earl of Lothian (died 1624) was a Scottish noble. His life Robert Kerr was the son of Mark Kerr, 1st Earl of Lothian, who had been given the new title in 1606. He was the eldest son, with three brothers: William, Mark, and James, ...
, by whom she had two daughters. * Lady Anne Campbell (died 14 June 1638), married
George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly George Gordon, 2nd Marquess of Huntly (c. 1592March 1649), styled Earl of Enzie from 1599 to 1636, eldest son of George Gordon, 1st Marquess of Huntly by Lady Henrietta Stewart, daughter of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, born at Huntly Cast ...
, by whom she had seven children. *
Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll (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 1650s known as the Wars of the Three K ...
(April 1607 – 27 May 1661), de facto head of government in Scotland during most of the conflict known as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, and the most influential member of the
Covenanter Covenanters were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. It originated in disputes with James VI and his son C ...
movement during the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
. In 1626 married Lady Margaret Douglas (1610–1678), by whom he had four children, including his heir,
Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll Archibald may refer to: People and characters *Archibald (name), a masculine given name and a surname * Archibald (musician) (1916–1973), American R&B pianist * Archibald, a character from the animated TV show '' Archibald the Koala'' Other us ...
. He was executed in 1661 by the orders of King
Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and King of Ireland, Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest su ...
on charges of High Treason. His head was exposed on top of the
Tolbooth A tolbooth or town house was the main municipal building of a Scotland, Scottish burgh, from medieval times until the 19th century. The tolbooth usually provided a council meeting chamber, a court house and a jail. The tolbooth was one of th ...
. In January 1600 she imprisoned Thomas Alexander of Balruidy in
Castle Campbell Castle Campbell is a medieval castle situated above the town of Dollar, Clackmannanshire, in central Scotland. It was the lowland seat of the earls and Duke of Argyll, dukes of Argyll, chiefs of Clan Campbell, from the 15th to the 19th century, ...
, who her lawyer and John Archibald, Captain of Castle Campbell, claimed was a sheep rustler.David Masson, ''Register of the Privy Council of Scotland: 1599–1604'', vol. 6 (Edinburgh, 1884), p. 79. Agnes died on 3 May 1607, a month after the birth of her only son, Archibald. She was buried at Kilmun Parish Church. Her husband married secondly, on 30 November 1610, Anne Cornwallis, by whom he had three more children.


Agnes Douglas in art

In 1599, when she was twenty-five years old, Agnes's portrait was painted by Flemish artist Adrian Vanson. It is displayed in the National Gallery of Scotland.


Ancestors


Notes


References

* Antonia Fraser, ''Mary, Queen of Scots'', Dell Publishing Co., Inc., New York, March 1971; originally published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, 1969 * * Historical Records, ''Family of Leslie 1067- 1868–69'', printed by R. Clark for Edmonston and Douglas, Edinburgh, retrieved on 25 March 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Argyll, Agnes Douglas, Countess Of 1574 births 1607 deaths Scottish countesses Scottish Roman Catholics Burials at the Argyll Mausoleum 16th-century Scottish people 16th-century Scottish women 17th-century Scottish people 17th-century Scottish women Daughters of Scottish earls