Lord Archibald Hamilton of Riccarton and Pardovan (1673 – 5 April 1754) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

officer of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, and Whig politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

between 1708 and 1747. In the 1690s, he was active in the English Channel pursuing French

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

s, including ''Tyger'' out of

St Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on the English Channel coast. The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Alli ...

. He commanded the third-rate at the

Battle of Vigo Bay The Battle of Vigo Bay, also known as the Battle of Rande (; ), was a naval engagement fought on 23 October 1702 during the opening years of the War of the Spanish Succession. The engagement followed an Anglo-Dutch attempt to capture the Spanish ...

in October 1702 and then commanded the

third-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third r ...

at the Battle of Málaga in August 1704 during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

. He was a controversial

Governor of Jamaica This is a list of viceroys in Jamaica from its initial occupation by Spain in 1509, to its independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. For a list of viceroys after independence, see Governor-General of Jamaica. For context, see History of Jamai ...

. He then joined the

Board of Admiralty The Board of Admiralty (1628–1964) was established in 1628 when Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission. As that position was not always occupied, the purpose was to enable management of the day-to-day operational requi ...

, ultimately serving as

Senior Naval Lord Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

Naval career

Hamilton was baptized on 17 February 1673, the youngest son of

William Douglas-Hamilton, Duke of Hamilton William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

and

Anne Hamilton, 3rd Duchess of Hamilton Anne Hamilton, 3rd Duchess of Hamilton (6 January 1632 – 17 October 1716) was a Scottish peeress. The daughter of Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton and 3rd Marquess of Hamilton, Scottish General and premier peer of the realm, and La ...

, Hamilton studied at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

and was then sent to study under the

Astronomer Royal Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Households of the United Kingdom. There are two officers, the senior being the Astronomer Royal dating from 22 June 1675; the junior is the Astronomer Royal for Scotland dating from 1834. The post ...

John Flamsteed John Flamsteed (19 August 1646 – 31 December 1719) was an English astronomer and the first Astronomer Royal. His main achievements were the preparation of a 3,000-star catalogue, ''Catalogus Britannicus'', and a star atlas called ''Atlas Coe ...

, in London before taking a commission in the

aboard the

. Promoted to

post-captain Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of Captain (Royal Navy), captain in the Royal Navy. The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from: * Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) ...

on 11 September 1693, he was given command of the

fifth-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower. Rating The rating system in the Royal N ...

in 1694 and of the

fourth-rate In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...

in 1697. In December 1695 he was active in the English Channel pursuing French

s, including ''Tyger'' out of

, an encounter commemorated in a painting by

Willem van de Velde the Younger Willem van de Velde the Younger (18 December 1633 (baptised)6 April 1707) was a Dutch Republic, Dutch marine painter, the son of Willem van de Velde the Elder, who also specialised in maritime art. His brother, Adriaen van de Velde, was a landsc ...

. Hamilton went on to take command of the third-rate in 1698, of the third-rate in 1699 and of the third-rate in 1702. After that he became captain of the third-rate in September 1702 and commanded her at the

in October 1702 during the

. He took command of the third-rate in 1704 and commanded her at the Battle of Málaga in August 1704. He became captain of the

second-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a second-rate was a ship of the line which by the start of the 18th century mounted 90 to 98 guns on three gun decks; earlier 17th-century second rates had fewer guns ...

in 1706.

Political career

After his naval career, Hamilton saw a place in parliament as a way of finding favour with the Government and hopefully a lucrative office. At the

1708 general election Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine * ''Seventeen'' (Japanese m ...

, Hamilton stood for Parliament at Great Marlow, and also at the family seat of

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 Scotlan ...

. He was defeated at Marlow, but was returned in a hard-fought contest as

Member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for Lanarkshire. He opposed the Treason Act of 1709, which altered Scottish law in direct contravention of the safeguards included in the Union, but his opposition was short lived as he sought payment for arrears with his pension. He supported the ministry in the vote for the impeachment of Dr Sacheverell and with the support of the Duke of Marlborough was appointed Governor of Jamaica in May 1710. Hamilton did not stand at the 1710 general election and took up his post in Jamaica in 1711. He played a controversial role in setting up some of the founders of the infamous Bahamanian pirate gang, including

Henry Jennings Henry Jennings (died possibly 1745) was an 18th-century Kingdom of England, English privateer from the colony of Bermuda, who served primarily during the War of the Spanish Succession and later served as leader of the pirate haven or "Pirates' ...

, Francis Fernando, and Leigh Ashworth, for which he was arrested and brought back to England in 1716 by the Royal Navy. He was acquitted by a board of Trade inquiry and released. Hamilton was returned as MP for Lanarkshire at a by-election on 23 December 1718. He retained his seat at the 1722 British general election , with the help of his 19-year-old nephew, the 5th Duke of Hamilton, a Tory who was actually on the opposing side politically. He was returned again unopposed for Lanarkshire at the

1727 British general election The 1727 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 7th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election was trigg ...

and joined the

under the

Walpole–Townshend ministry The government of Great Britain was under the joint leadership of Prime Minister Robert Walpole (in the House of Commons) and Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend (in the House of Lords), from 1721 until Townshend's departure from the gover ...

in May 1729. He was advanced to First Naval Lord in June 1733Rodger, pp. 51–52 He did not stand at the 1734 British general election, but was returned as MP for

Queenborough Queenborough is a town on the Isle of Sheppey in the Swale borough of Kent in South East England. Queenborough is south of Sheerness. It grew as a port near the Thames Estuary at the westward entrance to the Swale where it joins the River M ...

at a by-election on 22 February 1735. After he failed to support a bill for the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

's allowance, he was forced to stand down as First Naval Lord in March 1738. However he was appointed cofferer and surveyor general to the Prince of Wales in 1738. He did not stand at the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

, but was returned as MP for Dartmouth at a by election on 27 March 1742. He rejoined to Board, as Senior Naval Lord again, in March 1742 under the

Carteret ministry The Carteret ministry was the Whig government of Great Britain that held office from 1742 to 1744, following the defeat of the Walpole ministry by a margin of one vote. The nominal head of the ministry was Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilming ...

and remained on the Board until the

Broad Bottom ministry The Broad Bottom ministry was the factional coalition government of Great Britain between 1744 and 1754. It was led by the two Pelham brothers in Parliament, Prime Minister Henry Pelham in the House of Commons and the Duke of Newcastle in th ...

fell in February 1746. He served as Governor of Greenwich Hospital from 1746 until his death. He kept his post under the Prince of Wales until 1747, when he was turned out for refusing to follow him into opposition. He gratefully accepted a pension of £1,200 a year offered by the Prince. For much of his life, Hamilton lived at Park Place at

Remenham Remenham is a village and civil parish on the Berkshire bank of the River Thames opposite Henley-on-Thames in southern England. It is particularly well known for the steep approach, known as Remenham Hill or White Hill (due to the chalky nature ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

. He died on 5 April 1754.

Family

Hamilton's first wife was Anne Cary (née Lucas) (a daughter of

Charles Lucas, 2nd Baron Lucas Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...

and mother of

Lucius Cary, 6th Viscount Falkland Lucius Henry Cary, 6th Viscount Falkland (27 August 1687 – 31 December 1730) was a Scottish peer and Jacobite. Cary was the son of Edward Cary (1656–1692), of Caldicot, Monmouthshire, and his wife Anne, the eldest daughter of Charles Lucas, ...

). She died in 1709 and Hamilton then married Lady Anne Hamilton around 1714 (widow of Sir Francis Hamilton, 3rd Baronet Hamilton of Castle Hamilton, Killeshandra, Cavan, Ireland). She died in 1719 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. Later that year, he married

Lady Jane Hamilton Jane, Lady Archibald Hamilton (née Lady Jane Hamilton) (before 1704 – 6 December 1753, Paris) was a British noblewoman. She was the fifth child and third daughter of James Hamilton, 6th Earl of Abercorn (d. 1734) and Elizabeth Reading, daughter ...

(a daughter of the 6th Earl of Abercorn). Hamilton and his third wife later had six children: * Charles (?–1751) Married Mary Dufresne. *

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

(1720–1800), married

Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick, KT (10 October 1719 – 8 July 1773), known as Lord Brooke from 1727 to 1746 and Earl Brooke from 1746, was a British nobleman. He inherited Warwick Castle and the title of Baron Brooke from his father in 1 ...

(10 October 1719 6 July 1773) * Frederic (1728–1811), religious minister. Married 11 June 1757 Rachel Daniel. * Archibald (accidentally drowned, 1744) * William Hamilton (1730–1803), diplomat. Married 25 January 1758 Catherine Barlow (died 1783). Married 6 September 1795 Emma Hart (died 1815). *

Jane Jane may refer to: * Jane (given name), a feminine given name * Jane (surname), related to the given name Film and television * ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd * ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fil ...

(19 August 1726 – 13 November 1771), married 24 July 1753 Charles Schaw later

Charles Cathcart, 9th Lord Cathcart Lieutenant-General Charles Schaw Cathcart, 9th Lord Cathcart, KT (21 March 1721 – 14 August 1776) was a British soldier and diplomat. He was also chief of the Clan Cathcart. Biography The son of Charles Cathcart, 8th Lord Cathcart, and Mari ...

References

Sources

* * *

External links

Hamilton biography
a
Republic of Pirates
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Lord Archibald 1673 births 1754 deaths British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1715–1722 British MPs 1722–1727 British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 Governors of Jamaica Archibald Hamilton Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Dartmouth Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies People from Remenham Rectors of the University of Glasgow Younger sons of dukes Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Whig (British political party) MPs for Scottish constituencies People involved in anti-piracy efforts Piracy Lords of the Admiralty