10th Earl of Eglinton, 1769 carriage panel

Alexander Montgomerie, 10th Earl of Eglinton (10 February 172325 October 1769), was a Scottish peer. Eglinton was the son of The 9th Earl of Eglinton. His mother, who was the third wife of the 9th Earl, was Susanna, Countess of Eglinton, the society beauty. He was the Grand Master Mason of the

Grand Lodge A Grand Lodge (or Grand Orient or other similar title) is the overarching governing body of a fraternal or other similarly organized group in a given area, usually a city, state, or country. In Freemasonry A Grand Lodge or Grand Orient is the us ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

from 1750 to 1751. Lord Eglinton was one of the first of the Scottish landowners to carry out improvements on his estates. He planned and built the conservation village of

Eaglesham Eaglesham ( ) is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland, situated about south of Glasgow, southeast of Newton Mearns and south of Clarkston, and southwest of East Kilbride. The 2011 census revealed that the village had 3,114 occupants, dow ...

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfr ...

, in 1769 around the basic plan of a capital 'A'. The

Earl 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 ...

introduced the young

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 (New Style, N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the Englis ...

to the joys of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

society in the early 1760s, and figures prominently in ''Boswells London Journal, 1762-63''. The Earl was shot on the beach near his own estate of

Ardrossan Ardrossan (; ) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the 'Three Towns'. Ardrossan is located on the east shore ...

by an excise officer or ''Gaudger'' (Scots) named

Mungo Campbell Mungo Nutter Campbell of Ballimore (1785–1862) was a 19th-century Scottish merchant who served as Lord Provost of Glasgow 1824/26. Life He was born around 1785 the eleventh child of Alexander Campbell of Dallingburn (1739–1811) and his wife ...

on 24 October 1769 following a dispute about the latter's

right to bear arms The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, including securi ...

on the Earl's grounds. The Earl died from his abdominal wounds late that evening. Campbell was convicted of murder but died by his own hand before the sentence could be carried out.Account of the murder of the 10th Earl of Eglinton

References

External links

Alexander Montgomerie (1723–1769)
at James Boswell – a Guide 1723 births 1769 deaths 10 East Renfrewshire Scottish murder victims People murdered in Scotland Deaths by firearm in Scotland Scottish representative peers Eaglesham Clan Montgomery {{Scotland-earl-stub