Mary Hay, 14th Countess of Erroll (died 19 August 1758) was a Scottish noblewoman and ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

'' Countess of Erroll. As 18th Hereditary Lord High Constable and

Knight Marischal The office of Knight Marischal was first created for the Scottish coronation of Charles I in 1633, at Scone. Unlike the separate office of Marischal, the office of Knight Marischal is not heritable, and has continued to be filled up to the death ...

of Scotland, she was the Senior Great Officer among the Royal Officers of Scotland and Chief of the King's Household in Scotland. She inherited these titles in 1717 on the death of her unmarried brother,

Charles Hay, 13th Earl of Erroll Charles Hay, 13th Earl of Erroll (1677 – 16 October 1717) was a Scottish peer and Lord High Constable of Scotland who strongly opposed the 1707 union of Scotland and England. Biography Charles Hay was the eldest son of John Hay, and his wif ...

Early life

She was the eldest daughter of John Hay, 12th Earl of Erroll (grandson of Sir George Hay, the younger son of the seventh

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

) and his wife, Lady Anne Drummond, sister of the Jacobite Dukes of

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

and Melfort. Her older brother was

(–1717) and her younger sister was Lady Margaret Hay, who married

James Livingston, 5th Earl of Linlithgow James Livingston, 5th Earl of Linlithgow, 4th Earl of Callendar (died 25 April 1723) was a Scottish nobleman who was convicted of high treason and forced to forfeit his estates and all his titles to the Crown. Early life Livingston was the only ...

. Her elder brother Charles was imprisoned in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age. There has been a royal castle on the rock since the reign of Malcol ...

on suspicion of treason, and lived in exile on the Continent from 1712 to 1715. As eldest sister and heir of their line, she succeeded to the dignities enjoyed by her brother under the nomination of 16 February 1674, and was served his heir on 6 February 1718. She had her claim as High Constable allowed at the coronation of King

George II of Great Britain George II (George Augustus; ; 30 October / 9 November 1683 – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Electorate of Hanover, Hanover) and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Em ...

, although she was represented by a deputy.

Career

Like her mother and brother, Countess Anne was an active Jacobite and a secret agent of the exiled court of the Old Pretender, "James III and VIII", at

Saint Germain-en-Laye Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Saint-Germanois'' or ''Saint- ...

. In 1745, she raised an army of Buchan men for

Prince Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

. Making Slains Castle the chief centre for landing Jacobite secret agents, she had an implied understanding with the naval officer patrolling the coast of

Buchan Buchan is a coastal district in the north-east of Scotland, bounded by the Ythan and Deveron rivers. It was one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It is now one of the six committee areas of Aberdeenshire. Etymology The ge ...

to let her know when his ship was passing off Slains. Once landed at Slains, they were hurried inland to another of her strongholds,

Delgatie Castle Delgatie Castle is a castle near Turriff, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. History A castle has stood on the site of Delgatie Castle since the year 1030 AD, although the earliest parts of the castle standing today were built between 1570 and 1579. ...

, with its hidey-holes and secret passage. She used

Jamie Fleeman Jamie Fleeman or Fleeming (1713–1778) was better known as "the Laird of Udny's Fool" or "the Laird of Udny's Fule" in the Scots language. Although described as a fool, he had a reputation for his clever, witty repartee and many anecdotal tales ...

, the Laird of Udny's fool, as a messenger to contact Jacobite rebels when they were in hiding as he was able to roam unquestioned around the countryside. In 1747, under the

Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746 The Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746 (20 Geo. 2. c. 43) or the Sheriffs Act 1747 was an Act of Parliament (United Kingdom), act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745 abolishing ...

which abolished heritable jurisdictions, she received £1,200 for the

regality A burgh of regality is a type of Scottish town. They were distinct from royal burghs as they were granted to "Lords of Regality, lords of regality", leading noblemen. (In distinction, burgh of barony, burghs of barony were granted to a tenant-in- ...

of Slains.

Personal life

Before August 1722, Hay married Alexander Falconer of Delgaty (1682–1745), an advocate and son of Sir David Falconer, Lord President of the Court of Session. His elder brother, David, succeeded a distant cousin as 5th

Lord Falconer of Halkerton The title Lord Falconer of Halkerton is a dormant title in the peerage of Scotland, created on 20 December 1646 for Sir Alexander Falconer, Lord of Session, with remainder to his heirs-male whatsoever. King Charles I granted Sir Alexander a yea ...

. Later, her husband adopted the Hay surname. Her husband having predeceased her in July 1745, she died on 19 August 1758 at Slains Castle, County Aberdeen. As she was childless, the family dignities went to her great-nephew, James, Lord Boyd, the grandson of her sister, Lady Margaret Hay and son of

William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock (12 May 170518 August 1746), was a Scottish peer who joined the 1745 Jacobite Rising, was captured at Culloden and subsequently executed for treason on Tower Hill. His family were supporters of the governmen ...

, who was executed on

Tower Hill Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher gro ...

and attainted in 1746, for his part 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 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Errol, Mary Hay, 14th Countess of Year of birth missing 1758 deaths Nobility from Perth and Kinross Daughters of Scottish earls Women in 18th-century warfare Hereditary women peers

Erroll Erroll is an English male given name or surname that is synonymous to Earl. Notable people with the name include: *Earl of Erroll, Scottish title *Erroll Bennett (1950–2025), French/Tahitian footballer * Erroll M. Brown (born 1950), first USCG Af ...

Women in European warfare People of the Jacobite rising of 1745 18th-century Scottish nobility 18th-century Scottish women