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 deat ...

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.

Early life

She was the eldest daughter of

John Hay, 12th Earl of Erroll John Hay, 12th Earl of Erroll (died 30 December 1704) was a Scottish nobleman and Lord High Constable of Scotland. Among his titles was Lord of Slains, but he had previously been known as John Hay of Kellour. Marriage and issue Hay was a son of S ...

(grandson of Sir George Hay, the younger son of the seventh

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 ...

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

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

and Melfort. Her older brother was Charles Hay, 13th Earl of Erroll (–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 ...

. Like her brothers, 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-Ge ...

Career

Her elder brother was imprisoned in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

on suspicion of treason, 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 , house = Hanover , religion = Protestant , father = George I of Great Britain , mother = Sophia Dorothea of Celle , birth_date = 30 October / 9 November 1683 , birth_place = Herrenhausen Palace,Cannon. or Leine ...

, although she was represented by a deputy. In 1745, she raised an army of Buchan men for

Prince Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (20 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, grandson of James II and VII, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland and ...

. Making

Slains Castle Slains Castle may refer to one of two ruined castles in Aberdeenshire, Scotland: * Old Slains Castle, a 13th-century castle was originally the property of the Comyn Earls of Buchan, near Collieston *New Slains Castle, a 16th-century tower house, b ...

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

Buchan Buchan is an area of north-east Scotland, historically one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It is now one of the six committee areas and administrative areas of Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland. These areas were created by th ...

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. 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. Additio ...

, 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. II c. 43) was an Act of Parliament passed in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745 abolishing judicial rights held by Scots heritors. These were a significant source of power, especia ...

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

regality A regality was a territorial jurisdiction in old Scots law which might be created by the King or Queen only, by granting lands to a subject ''in liberam regalitatem'', and the tract of land over which such a right extended. A lord of regality h ...

of Slains.

Personal life

Before August 1722, Hay married Alexander Falconer of Delgaty (1682–1745), an advocate and son of

Sir David Falconer Sir David Falconer of Newton (1640Edinburgh, Midlothian, 15 December 1685) was a Scottish judge. Biography He was the second son of Sir David Falconer of Glenfarquhar, one of the Commissaries of Edinburgh, and the former Margaret Hepburn, ...

, 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 was created in the peerage of Scotland 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 yearly pension of � ...

. 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 grou ...

and attainted in 1746, for his part in the

Jacobite rising of 1745 The Jacobite rising of 1745, also known as the Forty-five Rebellion or simply the '45 ( gd, Bliadhna Theàrlaich, , ), was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the Monarchy of Great Britain, British throne for his father, James Franci ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hay, Mary Year of birth missing 1758 deaths Women in 18th-century warfare Hereditary women peers Erroll Women in European warfare People of the Jacobite rising of 1745 18th-century Scottish people 18th-century Scottish women