John Mackenzie, Lord MacLeod (17272 April 1789) was a Scottish Jacobite politician and soldier of fortune.

Life

Strathpeffer Strathpeffer () is a village and spa town in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland, with a population of 1,469. Geography It lies in a strath west of Dingwall, with the elevation ranging from above sea level. Sheltered on the west and north, ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, he was the eldest son of George Mackenzie, 3rd Earl of Cromartie and Isabel Gordon. He was a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, his father being the Grand Master, Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1737-38. He married Margery, daughter of James Forbes, 16th Lord Forbes. Mackenzie was styled Lord MacLeod in 1731. Sailing to join the rebel army on board the sloop ''Hound'', he fought with his father's clan at the

Battle of Falkirk The Battle of Falkirk (; ), on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence. Led by Edward I of England, King Edward I of England, the English army defeated the Scottish people, Scots, led by William Wal ...

, leading the Cromartie's Regiment of about 500 clansmen in the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Francis Edward Stuart. It took place during the War of the Austrian Succession, when the bulk of t ...

during which he was taken prisoner, with his father and 218 others, on 15 April 1746 at

Dunrobin Castle Dunrobin Castle is a stately home in Sutherland, in the Highland area of Scotland, that serves as the family seat of the Earl of Sutherland, Chief of Clan Sutherland. It is located north of Golspie and approximately south of Brora, overlo ...

, by a party of the William Sutherland, 17th Earl of Sutherland's militia the day before the

Battle of Culloden The Battle of Culloden took place on 16 April 1746, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. A Jacobite army under Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force commanded by the Duke of Cumberland, thereby endi ...

, in the last

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

fought on the mainland of Great Britain. On 20 December 1746 he was not brought to trial before the Commissioners, though he pleaded guilty to high treason, but received full pardon on 26 January 1748 on condition "that within six months of his 21st birthday he would convey to the Crown all his rights in the Earldom" which was not restored until the reign of Queen Victoria. He would later write ''The Memorials of John Murray of Broughton: sometime secretary to Prince Charles. Narrative by John Mackenzie, Lord Macleod eldest son of the Earl of Cromartie.'', the only other person not to stand trial for treason and pardoned. Leaving Scotland, Mackenzie initially lived in Berlin with Field Marshal Keith, who assisted him in obtaining a commission in the

Swedish Army The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...

in 1750. Receiving financial assistance to equip himself for service from Georges de Boulogne, on the recommendation of Lord George Murray, he entered service in

Swedish Pomerania Swedish Pomerania (; ) was a dominions of Sweden, dominion under the Sweden, Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815 on what is now the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish-Swedish War, Polish War and the Thirty Years' War ...

as a

mercenary A mercenary is a private individual who joins an armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather t ...

. Described by Lord George as "a young man of real merit", he was expected to gain promotion in the service of the Swedish King. This expectation was realized during his service to the Crown of Sweden for twenty-seven years with distinction, obtaining the rank of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

, and subsequently being decorated with the award of Commander,

Order of the Sword The Royal Order of the Sword (officially: ''Royal Order of the Sword''; Swedish: ''Kungliga Svärdsorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry and military decoration created by King Frederick I of Sweden on 23 February 1748, together with the Or ...

of Sweden. During the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

he joined the Prussian Army as a volunteer, serving through the second campaign of 1757. Created a Count of Sweden he returned to Scotland in 1771 and was the first colonel of the 73rd Foot (MacLeod's Highlanders, 71st Foot) from 1772, and then 1st Battalion, The Highland Light Infantry in 1777. On 9 December 1778 his Swedish title was recognised by King George III. From 1779 he served with his regiment in the East Indies Campaign against

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali (''Haidar'alī''; ; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's ...

, joining the army under Major-General Sir Hector Munro assembled at St. Thomas Mount,

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

, in July 1780. Although he wasn't with the battalion at the time, it was completely destroyed during the Battle of Conjeveram on 10 September 1780. Following disagreement with Major-General Munro on the loss of the battle, John Mackenzie returned to Scotland, but remained the regiment's Colonel until his death. He was promoted to major-general in 1784. Returning to Scotland John Mackenzie settled in

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; ), or the County of Ross, was a county in the Scottish Highlands. It bordered Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire, a county consisting of numerous enc ...

where he entered politics holding the office of Member of Parliament (

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

) between 1780 and 1784. Promoted to the rank of Major-General in 1782, he regained his family estates in 1784, restored to him by Act of Parliament, for a payment of £19,010 for debts on the estates. Fraser, William. (1876).
The Earls of Cromartie, Their Kindred, Country and Correspondence
'. Vol. 1. p. cclvi. Edinburgh. He spent the rest of his life on the estate which he greatly improved, planting thousands of trees, and building a new mansion, Tarbat House. John Mackenzie died in Edinburgh on 2 April 1789 following a year of illness, without descendants and was buried at the

Canongate Kirkyard The Canongate Kirkyard () stands around Canongate Kirk on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Scotland. The churchyard was used for burials from the late 1680s until the mid-20th century. The most celebrated burials at the kirkyard are the economist ...

, Edinburgh. The grave lies immediately to the right (east) upon entering the churchyard. His estates passed to his cousin, Kenneth Mackenzie.

References

Sources

* G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910–1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 546. * Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 1, page 979. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie, John, Lord MacLeod 1727 births 1789 deaths People from Ross and Cromarty Nobility from Highland (council area)

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 * Second E ...

Clan Macleod Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies British MPs 1780–1784 Commanders of the Order of the Sword Burials at the Canongate Kirkyard British Army major generals Scottish mercenaries Scottish Jacobites Scottish biographers Swedish generals People from Swedish Pomerania British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Mysore War Jacobite military personnel of the Jacobite rising of 1745 Prussian Army personnel 71st Highlanders officers